The difference between getting somewhere and nowhere is the courage to make an early start.
A man can succeed at almost anything for which he has unlimited enthusiasm.
Lead the life that will make you kindly and friendly to everyone about you, and you will be surprised what a happy life you will live.
The best place to succeed is where you are with what you have.
Did you ever stop to think that a great man in life who has won great acclaim and great reputation is the very man who is willing to share and give the honor to others in the doing of things that made him great?
I have always believed that the aristocracy of any country should be the men who have succeeded - the men who have aided in upbuilding their country - the men who have contributed to the efficiency and happiness of their fellow men.
The aristocracy in the future is not one of wealth or university education, but the aristocracy of the men who have done something for themselves and their fellow men.
I consider my ability to arouse enthusiasm among men the greatest asset I possess. The way to develop the best that is in a man is by appreciation and encouragement.
The hardest struggle of all is to be something different from what the average man is. I don't believe in 'super-men,' for the world is full of capable men, but it's the fellow with determination that wins out.
The Bethlehem profit-sharing system is based on my belief that every man should get exactly what he makes himself worth. This is the only plan I know of which is equally fair to the employers and every class of employee. Someday, I hope, all labor troubles will be solved by such a system.
In our works at Bethlehem and San Francisco, and all over the United States, I adopted this system: I pay the managers practically no salary. I make them partners in the business, only I don't let them share in the efforts of any other man.
I was once asked if a big business man ever reached his objective. I replied that if a man ever reached his objective he was not a big business man.
We hear much of Bolshevism, much of labor unrest; at times, we hear the word 'revolution.' But these are but contagious diseases in the body of civilization, and I believe that the antitoxins of good cheer, mutual confidence, fairness and justice will ultimately cure these ills and make the world healthy and strong again.
I disagreed with Carnegie's ideas on how to best to distribute his wealth. I spent mine! Spending creates more wealth for everybody.
I'm making better than two million a year, but it's hard work. The luxuries and pleasures I enjoy in my spare time keep me in condition to do that work. Carnegie and Frick have more money than I have, but I'm getting more value for my dollars than they are.
There is nothing a worker resents more than to see some man taking his job. A factory can be closed down, its chimneys smokeless, waiting for the worker to come back to his job, and all will be peaceful. But the moment workers are imported, and the striker sees his own place usurped, there is bound to be trouble.
Let us suppose you become a craneman. Suppose you become a clerk in a lawyer's office. Give the best that is in you. Let nothing stand in the way of your going on.
The captains of industry do not keep on working for the sake of making money, but for the love of completing a job successfully.
When you start in life, if you find you are wrongly placed, don't hesitate to change, but don't change because troubles come up and difficulties arise. You must meet and overcome and conquer them. And in meeting and overcoming and conquering them, you will make yourself stronger for the future.
Labor should be recognized as entitled to consult with management in the mutual interest. Labor cannot be driven, and business cannot be successful unless the men employed in it are enthusiastic and loyal. That loyalty cannot be obtained with a big stick; it must be based upon fair dealing and sympathy.
