I think a good business book has one coherent idea that is richly played out.

CEOs hate variance. It's the enemy. Variance in customer service is bad. Variance in quality is bad. CEOs love processes that are standardized, routinized, predictable. Stamping out variance makes a complex job a bit less complex.

CEOs the world over are fond of pointing to their workforce and saying "Our people are our greatest asset." And yet today, only two out of ten people think their assets are being well used at work.

In most cases, no matter what it is, if you measure it and reward it, people will try to excel at it

The difference between a pebble and a mountain lies in whom you ask to move it.

Most of the time, our limitations are self-imposed.

We live with them every day, and they come so easily to us that they cease to be precious.