Regardless of age, regardless of position, regardless of the business we happen to be in, all of us need to understand the importance of branding. We are CEOs of our own companies: Me, Inc. To be in business today, our most important job is to be head marketer for the brand called You.

Almost all quality improvement comes via simplification of design, manufacturing... layout, processes, and procedures.

Excellent firms don't believe in excellence - only in constant improvement and constant change.

Communication is everyone's panacea for everything.

Stop being conned by the old mantra that says, 'Leaders are cool, managers are dweebs.' Instead, follow the Peters Principle: Leaders are cool. Managers are cool too!

Almost all quality improvement comes via simplification of design, manufacturing... layout, processes, and procedures.

Design is so critical it should be on the agenda of every meeting in every single department.

If a window of opportunity appears, don't pull down the shade.

Management is about arranging and telling. Leadership is about nurturing and enhancing.

Community organizing is all about building grassroots support. It's about identifying the people around you with whom you can create a common, passionate cause. And it's about ignoring the conventional wisdom of company politics and instead playing the game by very different rules.