Rex Stout Quotes

I'm not the most powerful. I'm not the fastest. I don't have the best arm. I don't have any of that, but put it all together and do the little details well, and you're going to be a very productive player.

What makes success is not your genius idea, but the execution and follow-through around it

Someone asked me what are the secrets to my success, and I said 'There are three: Timing, timing, timing.'

I can't say I'm not grateful to have journalists writing about me as a genius. But I know it's not true. I'm not confused. I understand that success comes through a lot of failure and a lot of very embarrassing failure. People want to create the next Facebook, but they are too afraid to create the next Facemash.

A good idea plus capable men cannot fail; it is better than money in the bank.

I'm a strong believer that you practice like you play, little things make big things happen.

I've always been comfortable thinking things through and doing it, more or less, my way. You can be as creative as you want, but if you're... unwilling to work on the details, to see those put into action, then creativity is just dreams, or worse, hallucinations.

His genius he was quite content in one brief sentence to define; Of inspiration one percent, of perspiration, ninety nine.

Genius is one percent inspiration, ninety-nine percent perspiration.

I train hard; I have the best coaching staff in the world... We always do the right things. I stick to the plan, and we get things done.

You don't see a lot of great companies built on easy problems to solve.

If I do my job, take advantage of every opportunity I get out there and be in the right spot, the plays will come. When it does come, I've got to take advantage of it.

So much success from set pieces comes from practice. Maybe fans see a well-worked free-kick and think it looks good, but to get that, there has been hours of work that nobody has seen on the training ground.

To win is not important. To be successful is not even important. How to plan and prepare is crucial. When you plan very well and prepare very well, then success can come on the way. Then winning can come on your way.

On fight night, you show up. And the question becomes, 'Did you or did you not do the work that is going to prepare you for what is about to occur?' And I just think that's a beautiful thing.

Some guys have all this talent, and you wonder why they can't put it all together. Well, they don't do any of the little things.

Good ideas are common - what's uncommon are people who will work hard enough to bring them about.

There are those who work all day. Those who dream all day. And those who spend an hour dreaming before setting to work to fulfill those dreams. Go into the third category because there's virtually no competition.

Now, ideas are the raw material of progress. Everything first takes shape in the form of an idea. But an idea itself is worth nothing. An idea, like a machine, must have power applied to it before it can accomplish anything. The men who have won fame and fortune through having an idea are those who devoted every ounce of their strength and every dollar they could muster to putting it into operation. Ford had a big idea, but he had to sweat and suffer and sacrifice to make it work.

Genius is in the idea. Impact, however, comes from action!

There's at least a hundred times more people with great ideas than people that are willing to put in the effort to execute them well.

It's true, spectacular preparation always precedes spectacular performance.

I think people sometimes don't pay enough attention to what they do. I've done well, but the reason is pretty simple: I've worked my ass off. The toughest thing a performer can do is make it look as if it comes easy.

In business or in football, it takes a lot of unspectacular preparation to produce spectacular results.

I am aware that success is more than a good idea. It is timing too.