A visionary company is like a great work of art. Think of Michelangelo's scenes from Genesis on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel or his statue of David. Think of a great and enduring novel like Huckleberry Finn or Crime and Punishment. Think of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony or Shakespeare's Henry V. Think of a beautifully designed building, like the masterpieces of Frank Lloyd Wright or Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. You can't point to any one single item that makes the whole thing work; it's the entire work-all the pieces working together to create an overall effect-that leads to enduring greatness.

I wish I could say I coined the phrase "failing forward." I do it all the time. I find as I've embraced this approach to business, life, cycling and generally any new endeavor I take on, I've grown more and more comfortable with the possibility that I am not likely to succeed on my first try. And that's ok.

Don't buy into the notion that mistakes can somehow be avoided. They can't be.

People say, "John, what's your personal growth?" And ask "How do you grow?" And I tell them. I thought, "Why do I keep telling them, why don't I just write a book on what I call personal growth?" And that's what this [Today Matters] book is.

Sometimes we hold on to our possessions because we fear we might run out - life seems scarce. But when we believe that giving is the way to live, we will produce more in the future - life seems abundant.

Nothing is more difficult to accomplish than changing outward actions without changing inward feelings.

Commitment comes as a result of choice, not conditions.