The boss must first distinguish between action information and status information. He must discipline himself not to act on problems his managers can solve, and never to act on problems when he is explicitly reviewing status. I once knew a boss who invariably picked up the phone to give orders before the end of the first paragraph in a status report. That response is guaranteed to squelch full disclosure.
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I'm not a driven businessman, but a driven artist. I never think about money. Beautiful things make money.
I'm not a driven businessman, but a driven artist. I never think about money. Beautiful things make money.
He that is rich is wise.
He that is rich is wise.
When we are in competition with ourselves, and match our todays against our yesterdays, we derive encouragement from past misfortunes read more
When we are in competition with ourselves, and match our todays against our yesterdays, we derive encouragement from past misfortunes and blemishes. Moreover, the competition with ourselves leaves unimpaired our benevolence toward our fellow men.
The dynamics of capitalism is postponement of enjoyment to the constantly postponed future.
The dynamics of capitalism is postponement of enjoyment to the constantly postponed future.
There is no expedient to which a man will not resort to avoid the real labor of thinking.
There is no expedient to which a man will not resort to avoid the real labor of thinking.
Greater consumption due to increase in population and growth of income heightens scarcity and induces price run-ups. A higher price read more
Greater consumption due to increase in population and growth of income heightens scarcity and induces price run-ups. A higher price represents an opportunity that leads inventors and businesspeople to seek new ways to satisfy the shortages. Some fail, at cost to themselves. A few succeed, and the final result is that we end up better off than if the original shortage problems had never arisen. That is, we need our problems, though this does not imply that we should purposely create additional problems for ourselves.
The desire of businessmen for profits is what drives prices down unless forcibly prevented from engaging in price competition, usually read more
The desire of businessmen for profits is what drives prices down unless forcibly prevented from engaging in price competition, usually by governmental activity.
The Trojans lost the war because they fell for a really dumb trick. hey, there's a gigantic wooden horse outside read more
The Trojans lost the war because they fell for a really dumb trick. hey, there's a gigantic wooden horse outside and all the Greeks have left. Let's bring it inside! Not a formula for long-term survival. Now if they had formed a task force to study the Trojan Horse and report back to a committee, everyone wouldn't have been massacred.. Who says middle management is useless?
The standard of living has risen along with the size of the world's population since the beginning of recorded time. read more
The standard of living has risen along with the size of the world's population since the beginning of recorded time. There is no convincing economic reason why these trends toward a better life should not continue indefinitely.
