Malcolm Forbes Quotes

I believe that a scientist looking at nonscientific problems is just as dumb as the next guy.

We're always looking for candidates that have new approaches to problems.

We keep saying we have no other course; what we should be saying is we are not bright enough to see any other course.

We are drowning in information but starved for knowledge.

I love solving puzzles, I love finding my way around obstacles, and I love learning new things about technology.

I have taught my students not to apply rules or mechanical ways of seeing.

The two worst strategic mistakes to make are acting prematurely and letting an opportunity slip; to avoid this, the warrior treats each situation as if it were unique and never resorts to formulae, recipes or other people's opinions.

It is very comforting to believe that leaders who do terrible things are, in fact, mad. That way, all we have to do is make sure we don't put psychotics in high places and we've got the problem solved.

Don’t think that intelligence stops with allies.

Leadership requires that we challenge the conventional wisdom.

Please don't be deterred in the fanatic application of your sterile logic.

I have been an editor at Commentary for a number of years and the thing that we all agree about is that we are much better at identifying problems than at solving them.

There are plenty of team players in government who do whatever the leader says. There are too few difficult members, who have complicated minds, unusual perspectives, the toughness to withstand the party-line barrages and a practical interest in producing results.

People don't understand complex issues.

Questions matter. In business, remarkable performers are brilliant at getting to the right question: the one that speeds them to the place they need to get to and offers them the missing piece they need to find.

Intelligence is what you use when you don't know what to do: when neither innateness nor learning has prepared you for the particular situation.

It's important to have people who are absolutely willing to say you're wrong or who have a totally different perspective than you do on everything. Fresh ideas are hard to come by, and good ones are even harder.

One of the fastest ways to find the solution to an issue or challenge you are facing is to ask the right questions.

When you listen intensely to anything, you see how it can be improved.

Some players are wonderful hitters of the ball, but they can't figure out ways to get out of trouble. Eighty percent of the time, there is a way. You just have to know how to look for it.

I'm always good at seeing five, ten steps ahead. Like, really thinking ahead, you know? Reverse engineering, whatever it is, you know.

If you get the question right, if you really define it, then the answers are just sitting there waiting for you. And it's something a little different than people usually think.

The best students are ones that are willing to take intellectual risks and challenge conventional thinking.

The methodologies and best practices used to develop software can be applied successfully to any challenge in life.

I'm a pretty good problem solver.