John D. Rockefeller Quotes

I should say in general the advantage of education is to better fit a man for life's work. I would advise young men to take a college course, as a rule, but think some are just as well off with a thorough business training.

I know of nothing more despicable and pathetic than a man who devotes all the hours of the waking day to the making of money for money's sake.

Well i know that my company is not corrupt or unfair because i got all this with all my hard work. I see no reason why you say my company was corrupt may you explain to me miss [Ida] Tarbell.

The major fortunes in America have been made in land.

If you want to succeed you should strike out on new paths, rather than travel the worn paths of accepted success.

I believe that thrift is essential to well-ordered living.

Get rich by taking something common and making it uncommon.

Charity is injurious unless it helps the recipient to become independent of it.

I shall use such influence as I have in emphasizing the basic truths common to all denominations, in lowering denominational barriers and in promoting effective cooperation among Christians of whatever creed.

A man has no right to occupy another man’s time unnecessarily

You know that great prejudice exists against all successful business enterprise - the more successful, the greater the prejudice.

I always tried to turn every disaster into an opportunity.

Capital and labor are both wild forces which require intelligent legislation to hold them in restriction.

I had to work my way up to be where I am now. All these companies could have done the same.

Taxation has its limitations as a method of achieving better economic distribution since for this purpose it is essentially remedial. We must also take a positive approach by finding new ways to spread ownership of future capital growth more broadly in our society.

Competition is a sin.

If my name were John D Smith IV I wouldn't have been elected to anything.

There is nothing in this world that can compare with the Christian fellowship; nothing that can satisfy but Christ.

Never think you need to apologize for asking someone to give to a worthy cause, any more than as though you were giving him or her an opportunity to participate in a high-grade investment. The duty of giving is as much his or hers as is the duty of asking yours.

The person with big talk and big dreams is more powerful than one with all the facts. I believe that the law was made for man and not man for the law; that government is the servant of the people and not their master.

When Prohibition was introduced, I hoped that it would be widely supported by public opinion and the day would soon come when the evil effects of alcohol would be recognised. I have slowly and reluctantly come to believe that this has not been the result. Instead, drinking has generally increased; the speakeasy has replaced the saloon; a vast army of lawbreakers has appeared; many of our best citizens have openly ignored Prohibition; respect for the law has been greatly lessened; and crime has increased to a level never seen before.

I cheat my boys every chance I get. I trade with the boys and skin 'em and I just beat 'em every time I can. I want to make 'em sharp.

Don't be afraid to give up the good to go for the great.

Do not many of us who fail to achieve big things. . .fail because we lack concentration--the art of concentrating the mind on the thing to be done at the proper time and to the exclusion of everything else?

Giving is the secret to a healthy life. Not necessarily money, but whatever a person has to give of encouragement, sympathy, and understanding.

I had no ambition to make a fortune. Mere money-making has never been my goal, I had an ambition to build.

Money is a way of keeping COUNT on how well you're doing in business.

A friendship built on business can be glorious, while a business built on friendship can be murder.

The man who starts out simply with the idea of getting rich won't succeed, you must have a larger ambition.

A man's wealth must be determined by the relation of his desires and expenditures to his income. If he feels rich on ten dollars, and has everything else he desires, he really is rich.

When work goes out of style we may expect to see civilization totter and fall.

Success comes from keeping the ears open and the mouth closed

Think of giving not only as a duty but as a privilege.

I never placed my head upon the pillow at night without reminding myself that my success might only be temporary.

Probably the greatest single obstacle to the progress and happiness of the American people lies in the willingness of so many men to invest their time and money in multiplying competitive industries instead of opening up new fields, and putting their money into lines of industry and development that are needed.

The secret of success is to get up early, work late and strike oil.

I believe the power to make money is a gift of God.

Never was I power thirsty, or trying to control everyone. I believed in educating everyone, so they could all get to the position I was at.

To think! All that power and he wasn't even rich!

I believe the power to make money is a gift from God...to be developed and used to the best of our ability for the good of mankind.

We are coming to see that there should be no stifling of labor by capital, or of capital by labor; and also that there should be no stifling of labor by labor, or of capital by capital.

Homeopathy is a progressive and aggressive step in medicine.

That is not true I am not a greedy man because if I was why would i donate money to charity?I care about others as well.

After it is all over, the religion of man is his most important possession.

I have ways of making money that you know nothing of.

Long ago I lost the joy in living. The only joy I have is in my giving.

I have nothing else to say other than I wasn't corrupt, unfair, or greedy. I was smart when it came to making decisions for my company, and I wasn't greedy. I gave to others in charity and donated money to fund programs. I have nothing else to say.

I'm glad I wrote the book to show what I found out about the [ Standard Oil Company]. I'm glad many people read my book and found out the truth.