Originally Posted by Altavia (Post 2254245)

Colin Powell Quotes

1. "Don't bother people for help without first trying to solve the problem yourself."

2. "Always focus on the front windshield and not the rearview mirror."

3. "No battle plan survives contact with the enemy."

4. "Organization charts and fancy titles count for next to nothing."

5. "It's a disgrace that we have millions of people who are uninsured."

6. "Never let your ego get so close to your position that when your position goes, your ego goes with it."

7. "If you are going to achieve excellence in big things, you develop the habit in little matters. Excellence is not an exception, it is a prevailing attitude."


8. "The chief condition on which, life, health and vigor depend on, is action. It is by action that an organism develops its faculties, increases its energy, and attains the fulfillment of its destiny."

9. "Just as they did in Philadelphia when they were writing the constitution, sooner or later, you've got to compromise. You've got to start making the compromises that arrive at a consensus and move the country forward."


10. "War should be the politics of last resort."

11. "Experts often possess more data than judgment."

12. "In other words, don't expect to always be great. Disappointments, failures and setbacks are a normal part of the lifecycle of a unit or a company and what the leader has to do is constantly be up and say, 'We have a problem, let's go and get it.'"

13. "f a leader doesn't convey passion and intensity then there will be no passion and intensity within the organization and they'll start to fall down and get depressed."


14. "Trying to get everyone to like you is a sign of mediocrity."

15. "I try to be the same person I was yesterday."Colin Powell: Why We Serve

16. "When we go to war, we should have a purpose that our people understand and support."

17. "Success is the result of perfection, hard work, learning from failure, loyalty to those for whom you work, and persistence."


18. "Politics is not bean bags. It's serious, tough stuff."

19. "We need to understand that we as citizens and as a government in any community throughout this country have no more important obligation than to educate those who are going to replace us."

20. "The ties that bind us are stronger than the occasional stresses that separate us."

21. "Surround yourself with people who take their work seriously, but not themselves."

22. "It takes more courage to send men into battle than to fight the battle yourself."

23. "If you get the dirty end of the stick, sharpen it and turn it into a useful tool."

24. "I think whether you're having setbacks or not, the role of a leader is to always display a winning attitude."

25. "Look at the world. There is no pure competitor to the United States of America."

26. "Never neglect details."

27. "When everyone's mind is dulled or distracted the leader must be doubly vigilant."

28. "Keep looking below surface appearances. Don't shrink from doing so just because you might not like what you find."

29. "Wouldn't it be great if we could look forward to a whole world in which no child will be left behind?"

30. "Get mad, then get over it."

31. "It ain't as bad as you think. It will look better in the morning."

32. "The healthiest competition occurs when average people win by putting above average effort."

33. "I'm not perfect, but I'll be the creator of perfection."

34. "We can seldom get our children to do what we tell them, but they almost never fail to imitate us."

35. "Being responsible sometimes means ****ing people off."

36. "The commander in the field is always right and the rear echelon is wrong, unless proved otherwise."

37. "Giving back involves a certain amount of giving up."

38. "Leadership is solving problems. The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you have stopped leading them. They have either lost confidence that you can help or concluded you do not care. Either case is a failure of leadership."

39. "You can't just have slogans, you can't just have catchy phrases. You have to have an agenda."

40. "There are no secrets to success. Don't waste time looking for them."

41. "Don't be afraid to challenge the pros, even in their own backyard."

42. "It isn't enough just to scream at the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations. We need our political system to start reflect this anger back into, 'How do we fix it? How do we get the economy going again?'"

43. "Ninety percent of my time is spent on 10% of the world."

44. "Have fun in your command. Don't always run at a breakneck pace. Take leave when you've earned it, spend time with your families."

45. "Great leaders are almost always great simplifiers who can cut through the argument debate and doubt to offer a solution everybody can understand."

46. "Today I can declare my hope and declare it from the bottom of my heart that we will eventually see the time when that number of nuclear weapons is down to zero and the world is a much better place."

47. "You don't know what you can get away with until you try."

48. "Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier."

49. "Bad news isn't wine. It doesn't improve with age."

50. "I don't want to spend the rest of my life giving speeches."

Originally Posted by Mrfriendly (Post 2253953)

nothing good happens after midnight“

Originally Posted by michael g. (Post 2253607)

"don't pay interest, get interest."

"it's better to ask a stupid question then to make a stupid mistake."

"to fully understand people, everyone should have their own retail business."

"speak only when your spoken too"

"use a firm grip when shaking someone's hand."

Originally Posted by Ecuadog (Post 2254097)

At a wedding anniversary dinner for my grandparents, my slightly tipsy grandfather revealed his secret to getting along with women. I was15 at the time. He told me, "Yes them to death and do what you please."

Occasionally, I wish that I had taken his advice.

Originally Posted by Nevinator (Post 2254039)

One of the most unusual pieces of advice I ever received was from my grandmother.

My grandmother died in 1975, but her birthday is coming up and that always causes me to reminisce about the time what we spent together when I was a youngster...

The long walks we used to take to the local grocery store near her home in a small town in northern NJ, the quarters she gave me for meaningless jobs like pulling weeds or washing the sidewalk…

Those gems were all good, but the one I remember most, the jewel in the crown of grandmotherly advice, occurred when I was about 15 years old. We were sitting in a park on a beautiful Spring day having just finished collecting about 40 soda bottles to be returned for the deposit money. She told me that one day, I would find a wonderful woman and start my own family. “And remember always this thing,” she said. “Be sure you marry a woman with small hands.” “How come, Grandma?” I asked her. She answered in her soft voice.. “It makes your *!@* look bigger.”

Originally Posted by margaretmattson (Post 2254250)

Wow! Sounds like someone had interesting talks at the dinner table while growing up. Or, Colin Powell was your family hero. Either way, cool information.