Quotes from Lee Iacocca

I have found that being honest is the best technique I can use. Right up front, tell people what you're trying to accomplish and what you're willing to sacrifice to accomplish it.

My father always used to say that when you die, if you've got five real friends, then you've had a great life.

No matter what you've done for yourself or for humanity, if you can't look back on having given love and attention to your own family, what have you really accomplished

People want economy and they will pay any price to get it.

People want economy and they'll pay almost any price to get it.

So what do we do? Anything. Something. So long as we just don't sit there. If we screw it up, start over. Try something else. If we wait until we've satisfied all the uncertainties, it may be too late.

The speed of the boss is the speed of the team.

The trick is to make sure you don't die waiting for prosperity to come.

You can have brilliant ideas, but if you can't get them across, your ideas won't get you anywhere.

You've got to say, I think that if I keep working at this and want it badly enough I can have it. It's called perseverance.

So what do we do? Anything. Something. So long as we just don't sit there. If we screw it up, start over. Try something else. If we wait until we've satisfied all the uncertainties, it may be too late. - Lee Iacocca

In a completely rational society, the best of us would be teachers and the rest of us would have to settle for something else.

My father always used to say that when you die, if you've got five real friends, then you've had a great life.

In times of great stress or adversity, it's always best to keep busy, to plow your anger and your energy into something positive.

We are continually faced by great opportunities brilliantly disguised as insoluable problems.

Get all the education you can then go out and do something - do anything.

No matter what you've done for yourself or for humanity, if you can't look back on having given love and attention to your own family, what have you really accomplished?

In a completely rational society, the best of us would be teachers and the rest of us would have to settle for something less, because passing civilization along from one generation to the next ought to be the highest honor and the highest responsibility anyone could have.

I've always felt that a manager has achieved a great deal when he's able to motivate one other person. When it comes to making the place run, motivation is everything. You might be able to do the work of two people, but you can't be two people. Instead, you have to inspire the next guy down the line and get him to inspire his people.

Apply yourself. Get all the education you can, but then...do something. Don't just stand there, make it happen.

Name me a leader who has a better idea for homeland security than making us take off our shoes in airports and throw away our shampoo?

The discipline of writing something down is the first step toward making it happen.

It's a good thing God doesn't let you look a year or two into the future, or you might be sorely tempted to shoot yourself. But He's a charitable Lord: He only lets you see one day at a time. When times get tough, there's no choice except to take a deep breath, carry on, and do the best you can.

It's a good thing god doesn't let you look a year or two into the future, or you might be sorely tempted to shoot yourself.