Bad Crops

We degrade life by our follies and vices, and then complain that the unhappiness which is only their accompaniment is inherent in the constitution of things. - Christian Nestell Bovee

If you are not happy with what you reap then remember you could have sown a different crop.

Bureaucratic Status Quo

Bureaucracy defends the status quo long past the time when the quo has lost its status. - Dr. Laurence J. Peter

Once a bureaucracy is established nothing short of a revolution will get rid of it.

Governmental Throughput

The Government is like a baby's alimentary canal, with a healthy appetite at one end and no responsibility at the other. - Ronald Reagan

The only way to control the output is to control the input.

Karl's Mom

If Karl, instead of writing a lot about capital, had made a lot of it, it would have been much better. - Karl Marx's Mother

Better, not for just him and his mom, but for millions of people.

Meek Inheritance

It's going to be fun to watch and see how long the meek can keep the earth after they inherit it. - Kin Hubbard

What a field day for the hucksters, swindlers and proselytizers!

Stressful Game

It is how people respond to stress that determines whether they will profit from misfortune or be miserable. - Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

You've got to have some stress now and then to stay in shape for the big game.

Times Like These

In times like these, it helps to recall that there have always been times like these. - Paul Harvey

Only the details change.

Wicked Diet

If the wicked flourish, and thou suffer, be not discouraged; they are fatted for destruction, thou art dieted for health. - Thomas Fuller

Though this has been said before, I liked the memorable vision.

Idleness

The world has not a man who is an idler in his own eyes. - Karl Wilhelm Humboldt

Some folks just have a lower expectation of themselves than others.

Perfect Work

All one's work might have been better done; but this is the sort of reflection a worker must put aside courageously if he doesn't mean every one of his conceptions to remain forever a private vision, an evanescent reverie. - Joseph Conrad

A prudent critic will judge how good your work is, not how perfect it is. Ignore the imprudent critic.

Remarkable Value

As you sit down to consider ways to be more remarkable, the challenge is to be worth talking about... at the same time you are adding value for the person who's talking about you. - Seth Godin

When your business is both remarkable and valuable you have the winning combination.

Judicious Communication

Zealous men are ever displaying to you the strength of their belief, while judicious men are showing you the grounds of it. - William Shenstone

Show me a judicious politician and I will show you one worth voting for.

Getting Results

The one thing in our business lives is effort. Either you make the commitment to get results or your don't. - Mark Cuban

And if you don't, you won't.

Seeing Sin

Two points of danger beset mankind; namely, making sin seem either too large or too small. - Mary Baker Eddy

Sin is indeed in the eye of the beholder. The task is to put the offense in the correct light with reason, not emotion.

Black Markets

If you destroy a free market, you create a black market. - Sir Winston Churchill

Mankind desires freedom for themselves but is less enthusiastic about the freedom of others. It is this imbalance between the desire to do as little as possible for the greatest gain and the desire to do as is desired which leads to regulation of markets. The balance is provided by the black market.

Trust Deceived

You may be deceived if you trust too much, but you will live in torment if you do not trust enough. - Dr. Frank Crane



My tendency is to trust until deceived. I may be poorer for that approach but at least I'm not tormented.

Are Your Friends Dogs or Cats

If a dog jumps in your lap, it is because he is fond of you; but if a cat does the same thing, it is because your lap is warmer. - Alfred North Whitehead





Be aware of friends who only want something from you.

Failure of Passion

Never give a man up until he has failed at something he likes. - Lewis E. Lawes



There are two assumptions Mr. Lawes has made. 1.) That the man (or woman) likes something (there are those who don't). 2.) That you know what that is.

Both of these questions can be answered by a direct question (give lots of time for an answer). What do you like? What is your passion?

Changing Your Model

The best time to change your business model is while you still have momentum. - Seth Godin



The worst time is when you have to.

Pulling Their Weight

You never know how a horse will pull until you hook him up to a heavy load. - Paul "Bear" Bryant



Find out the abilities of your employees by giving them a task beyond their capabilities. You will soon know how much weight they can pull.

Jumping Chasms

The most dangerous strategy is to jump a chasm in two leaps. - Benjamin Disraeli





This is a great quote to remember for those who want to make change incrementally.

Progress Downhill

Democracy is ever eager for rapid progress, and the only progress which can be rapid is progress downhill. - Sir James Jeans



Always (and I mean always) be wary of any politician who promises progress or change.

Discussion Listening

Great minds discuss ideas. Average minds discuss events. Small minds discuss people. - Eleanor Roosevelt



Listen to the discussions of those around you to judge their aptitude.

Worring About Rain

It ain't no use putting up your umbrella till it rains. - Alice Hegan Rice



Too many folks worry about things which are marginally predictable.

Complexity Made Simple (or vice versa)

A wonderful discovery - psychoanalysis. Makes quite simple people feel they're complex. - S. N. Behrman

You have a choice; make your service appear so complex only you can perform it; or, make the solution to the seeming complex simple. One way might make you more money but the other might be more rewarding.

New Ideas

New ideas can be good or bad, just the same as old ones. - Franklin D. Roosevelt

You'll learn to scrutinize new ideas before embracing them - but people will accuse you of being old and cranky.
Note: I have changed my blog so you can now view posts by subject.

Measuring Goodness

Listen, here's what I think. I think we can't go around measuring our goodness by what we don't do. By what we deny ourselves. What we resist, and who we exclude. I think we've got to measure goodness by what we embrace, what we create, and who we include. - From the movie - Chocolat

Because you didn't rob a bank today does not make you a good person but you will find those who try to convince you otherwise using "logic" of this kind.

Pride Frankly Faced

Facts that are not frankly faced have a habit of stabbing us in the back. - Sir Harold Bowden
We can believe almost anything if it be necessary to protect our pride. - Dr. Douglas A. Thom

Sometimes you have to swallow your pride in order to avoid future problems.

Emotional Fear

Our instinctive emotions are those we have inherited from a much more dangerous world, and contain, therefore, a larger proportion of fear than they should. - Bertrand Russell

There is a definite difference between emotional fear and rational fear. Worry is the result of the former while safety is the usual outcome of the latter.

Customer Loyalty

In business there is no loyalty except to the almighty dollar. - Bill V.



Remember that the next time you are tempted to think a customer is loyal.

Successful New Year

If you continue to think what you thought, you will continue to get what you got. - saying, Ruth Vanderhoof

Some folks repeat the same actions expecting a different outcome. If you want your New Years resolution to succeed you will have to change your way of thinking.