20th-century Businessman Quotes

Walt Disney

Steve Jobs

Bill Gates

Warren Buffett

Richard Branson

Sam Altman

Mitt Romney

When I started Virgin from a basement in west London, there was no great plan or strategy. I didn't set out to build a business empire... For me, building a business is all about doing something to be proud of, bringing talented people together and creating something that's going to make a real difference to other people's lives

Richard Branson

We face serious risk. We face existential risk. The challenge that the world has is how we're going to manage those risks and make sure we still get to enjoy those tremendous benefits. No one wants to destroy the world.

There is no reason for any individual to have a computer in his home.

Success is more a function of consistent common sense than it is of genius.

In the factory we make cosmetics; in the store we sell hope.

Negotiations are a euphemism for capitulation if the shadow of power is not cast across the bargaining table.

George P. Shultz

The world is changing.... I don't, as a consumer, want advertising that's not relevant. If we're going to take a side let's take the side of the consumer.

There is seldom just one cockroach in the kitchen. You know, you turn on the light and, all of sudden, they all start scurrying around.

I'm optimistic that, over time, AI models can be taught to distinguish fact from fiction.

I just make what I like - warm and human stories, ones about historic characters and events, and about animals. If there is a secret, I guess it's that I never make the pictures too childish, but always try to get in a little satire of adult foibles.

Recruiting is hard. It's just finding the needles in the haystack. You can't know enough in a one-hour interview. So, in the end, it's ultimately based on your gut. How do I feel about this person? What are they like when they're challenged? I ask everybody that: 'Why are you here?' The answers themselves are not what you're looking for. It's the meta-data.

We're working to overcome the overly macho nature of the current online console game world, where a handful of the high testosterone crowd fight for supremacy, while the mass of casual game players stay away.

Reggie Fils-Aimé

The purpose of this book is to show how economic analysis can be used in formulating business policies. It is therefore a departure from the main stream of economic writings on the theory of the firm, much of which is too simple in its assumptions and too complicated in its logical development to be managerially useful. The big gap between the problems of logic that intrigue economic theorists and the problems of policy that plague practical management needs to be bridged in order to give executives access to the practical contributions that economic thinking can make to top-management policies.

What if a small group of world leaders were to conclude that the principal risk to the Earth comes from the actions of the rich countries? And if the world is to survive, those rich countries would have to sign an agreement reducing their impact on the environment. Will they do it? The group's conclusion is 'no'. The rich countries won't do it. They won't change. So, in order to save the planet, the group decides: Isn't the only hope for the planet that the industrialized civilizations collapse? Isn't it our responsibility to bring that about?

Bad news sells because the amygdala is always looking for something to fear.

Peter Diamandis

For over a half century now I've watched office obesity develop into a full-blown, crippling disease. As our office clutter mounts, we're ever more intimidated and frustrated by it. We engineer drainage and removal of water and liquid wastes from society to prevent hazardous buildup, but the effluent that pours into our offices-paper-is never flushed out.

I encounter one example after another of how relative truth is.

Raoul Wallenberg

You can communicate to a new AI. Did you ever see the movie The Matrix? Same interface. Same concept. Only better. Starting from next year, you can chat to the world's first AI!

In rich economies, stability matters a lot; small further increases in allocative efficiency matter less. Thus, policy should be heavily focused on ensuring macroeconomic and financial stability and very wary of financial innovation if it carries with it any risk of increased instability.

Adair Turner, Baron Turner of Ecchinswell

We even sell a pair of earrings for under £1, which is cheaper than a prawn sandwich from Marks & Spencers. But I have to say the earrings probably won't last as long.

Innovation, I believe, is the only way that America will regain the initiative in a global dynamic economy.

I had no idea this was going to be an accurate prediction, but amazingly enough instead of 10 [years] doubling, we got nine over the 10 years, but still followed pretty well along the curve.

The only way to consistently stay ahead of the game is to adopt a long-term view and, if appropriate, with a strong contrarian spin.

I feel like I'm 80 years young. Make life exciting and you live longer.

Design isn't just about making things beautiful; it's also about making things work beautifully.

Roger Martin (professor)