Tom Peters Quotes

Decisiveness is a characteristic of high-performing men and women. Almost any decision is better than no decision at all.

My mother always told me not to handle a buffalo by its tail, but always catch it by its horns. And I have used that lesson in everything in my life, including the Railways.

Actions, not words, are the ultimate results of leadership.

When in doubt, do something.

It's very much like filmmaking always is-you're always asked to do something that you're not sure you know how to do. So you make an educated guess as to what you think will work and you hope between that and plan B, that you can end up with a product that's really good.

Great CEOs are not just born with shiny hair and a tie.

If it's a good idea, go ahead and do it. It's much easier to apologize than it is to get permission.

If you see someone in the kitchen that has good hands and a quick brain, then you need that person to be in the front of everything.

Decisiveness is the one word that makes a good manager.

The colonel replied that he didn't care how my men had got the job done. He was happy that it had been accomplished. He said that, obviously, no matter how much or how little I knew technically, I was able to get the best out of people I worked with.

If you feel like it's going to work, do it. If it doesn't, get out as quick as you can.

I was a player who got the job done, and I think I'm kind of maybe thought of like that as a manager.

A good decision executed quickly is better than a great one never executed.

Leaders have to be intensely aware and be bold and flexible enough to adjust course ahead of impending changes.

A leader is the one who speaks last and acts first.

Don't ask permission, just ask forgiveness.

Great leaders don't blame the tools they are given. Great leaders work to sharpen them.

We'd never get anything fixed to suit us if we waited for things to suit us before we started.

Initiating is really and truly difficult, and that's what leaders do. They see something others are ignoring and they jump on it.

Be willing to make decisions. That's the most important quality in a good leader. Don't fall victim to what I call the 'ready-aim-aim-aim-aim syndrome'. You must be willing to fire.

Action orientation is the mark of the superior executive.

I always kind of just went ahead and tried things.

Don't think about things, just do them; don't predict them, just make them.

The key to leadership is having a vision, and being strong enough to say no and not try to please everybody. Thats a recipe for failure. Leadership is practiced through attitude and actions, rather than words and memos.

People who make a difference never wait for just the right time. They know that it will never arrive.