To doubt one's own first principles is the mark of a civilized man. Don't defend past actions; what is right today may be wrong tomorrow. Don't be consistent; consistency is the refuge of fools.

Good ideas are not adopted automatically. They must be driven into practice with courageous impatience.

The man in charge must concern himself with details. If he does not consider them important, neither will his subordinates.

Success teaches us nothing; only failure teaches.

Human experience shows that people, not organizations or management systems, get things done

It is a human inclination to hope things will work out, despite evidence or doubt to the contrary. A successful manager must resist this temptation.

Any one detail, followed through to its source, will usually reveal the general state of readiness of the whole organization.

More than ambition, more than ability, it is rules that limit contribution; rules are the lowest common denominator of human behavior. They are a substitute for rational thought.

When the men in Russia foul up, they are dismisses, sometimes losing their necks. But we protect those who fail and press them to the government bosom.

Trying to make things work in government is sometimes like trying to sew a button on a custard pie.

All new ideas begin in a non-conforming mind that questions some tenet of the conventional wisdom.

Y'know when your dog drags its butt across the carpet leaving a stain- It's not as easy as it looks..."

Buddhism teaches you to embrace change.

I feel privileged to be a U.N. ambassador. It gives me an opportunity to use my voice to help raise awareness about important social and environmental issues.

Metaphorically these essays move as a quiet but observant coast-guard cutter among the rocks and islands up and down the littoral of our life.

If I hadn't been President of the United States, I probably would have ended up a piano player in a bawdy house.

I have an old soul. I don't know any real-life lingo, so I have to take it from movies.

Take stands, take risks, take responsibility.

We tend to become like those whom we admire.

A real diplomat is one who can cut his neighbor's throat without having his neighbor notice it.