Words of Wisdom: A Collection of Business Quotes With Discussion

There are always challenges to be met when maintaining and developing our business strategy, thinking through a campaign, or rising to meet the competition around us. It is often the case that problems are intertwined, creating a seemingly impossible wall of difficulties – then we find the key which seems to begin to unravel all these troubles. When we are really struggling, we tend to entrench ourselves in our method of problem-solving, unable to see an alternative. A tried and tested way of reaching a solution is to see the problem in a different light – how would the business greats and the big thinkers have solved this? Consider the following quotes:

“The competitor to be feared is the one who never bothers about you at all, but goes on making his own business better all the time.” ~ Henry Ford

When we take this statement into consideration, it’s easy to see what Ford was hinting at. The competitor that does not need to outwardly compete is naturally the stronger, as if he or she has faith in the product and the ability of the company, then it is possible to let figures and results speak for themselves. Ford is also saying a lot here about people who spend too much time interrogating the current plans of the competition, and therefore neglecting core strategy.

“When we do not do the one thing we ought to do, we have no time for anything else – we are the busiest people in the world.” ~ Eric Hoffer

Eric Hoffer, a self-made American thinker and social commentator, may be referring to our life work, but if we apply this unfortunate truth to our daily tasks, we see that the results are telling. It is deliciously easy to put off what we ought to be doing, in favour of God knows what else – a little number crunching here, returning a few calls there, but we should not procrastinate over the things that cannot be left waiting, no matter how easy we can stall ourselves. We have to remember that the more serious tasks are harder, but solving or completing them is often more rewarding.

“In the modern world of business, it is useless to be a creative original thinker unless you can also sell what you create. Management cannot be expected to recognize a good idea unless it is presented to them by a good salesman.” ~ David M. Ogilvy

Advertising heavyweight David Ogilvy CBE here talking about the inextricable marriage of sound product with sound marketing. We may naturally be satisfied, even deeply satisfied with it, but unless we can find a way to market it, we’ll be left with a warehouse full of the best product in the world. It is seldom that products sell themselves, no matter their timeliness or their quality.

“In the business world, the rearview mirror is always clearer than the windshield.”

~ Warren Buffet

Hindsight is often the one tool we wish we’d had at the crucial moment, but unfortunately that kind of objectivity is off limits to us in all walks of life. However if we take this quotation and note the stress of things always being this way, then we realize that there are many scenarios where we cannot be as cautious as we’d like; retrospect just isn’t an option. If our latest business gambit falls short, what’s important is to learn from the failure, not to protect ourselves against future ones. To help you, you could consult a company who specialises in decision sciences.