“By trying we can easily learn to endure adversity. Another man’s, I mean.” – Mark Twain (Following the Equator, 1897) At the peak of the economic boom in the fourth quarter of 1999, unemployment was at its lowest level in a generation. More to the point, perhaps, the gross number…

“In the nineteenth century, government agencies in Washington had, almost without exception, flatly refused to hire even one female.” – David Brinkley (Washington Goes to War, 1988) On the plane the other day, I overhead a conversation between two women. One was complaining about her job, her boss, her fellow…

“A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.” – Henry Adams (The Education of Henry Adams, 1907) According to a study of 1,600 businesses, companies that train their employees “are able to promote internal candidates almost a third of the time, compared to only a fifth…

“All that we do is done with an eye to something else.” – Aristotle (Nicomachean Ethics, 4th century B.C.) If you’ve spent any time managing a business, you’ve spent time wondering about compensation and performance: What is the best way to pay employees? If you want to get the most…

“Perhaps nobody ever accomplishes all that he feels lies in him to do; but nearly every one who tries his powers touches the walls of his being occasionally, and learns about how far to attempt to spring.” – Charles Dudley Warner (Backlog Studies, 1873) The secret to having a top-notch…

“Man has risen so far above all other species that he competes in ways unique in nature. He fights by means of complicated weapons; he fights for ends remote in time.” – Charles A Lindbergh (Autobiography of Values, 1978) Hollywood would have you believe that successful businessmen are competitive creatures…

“Business, you know, may bring money, but friendship hardly ever does.” – Jane Austen (Emma, 1816) I know a couple that has an unusual number of rich and successful “friends.” We circulate in many of the same social circles, but they end up becoming chummy with the billionaires, movie actors,…

“To teach is to learn twice over.” – Joseph Joubert (Pensees, 1842) If you spend a lot of time training and retraining your employees, you may be making a big mistake. You can change things for the better by passing on the responsibility for teaching new employees to your students.…

“I don’t know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody.” – Bill Cosby Your success has a lot to do with people: the partners, employees, consultants, and vendors you choose to help you build your dream. If you are careful in choosing the…