Quotes from Chip Conley

In general, I'm not much into etiquette and am a rule-breaker and rebel by nature.

At the heart of great leadership is a curious mind, heart, and spirit.

Younger people tend to associate happiness more with excitement and the future, while older people tend to associate happiness with peacefulness in the present.

Great leaders help their people see how they can directly impact the company's objectives and their own personal goals.

Bali is one of my favorite places in the world. In one of my past lives, I believe I was living on the island of Bali.

Conventional wisdom suggests the primary motivator for entrepreneurs is money or wealth creation and, in fact, much of the political debate tends to center around what kind of tax or regulatory policy changes will turn corporate suits into small business adventurers overnight.

Social scientists have found that the fastest way to feel happiness is to practice gratitude.

People don't realize how much control they do have. The more you can show them this control, the easier it is to tap back into the creative side of the brain that allows people to see possibilities and options.

Feeling good about your life, but not expressing a heartfelt 'thank you,' is like wrapping a gift for someone and never giving it to them.

Business principles are only as good as the practices that back them up.

Maybe its time we get a toolbox that doesnt just count whats easily counted, the tangible in life, but actually counts what we most value, the things that are intangible.

What one thing can you start counting today that will actually be meaningful in your life?

Someone could be amazing at what they do, but if you don't like them, why bother hiring them?

When any of us thinks of ourselves as a role model - whether that's as a parent being observed by their kids or a leader under the microscope of their followers - it creates a natural stepping up of how we carry ourselves and what we expect from ourselves.

I don't know about you, but I've saved cards that old high school flames wrote me as well as those that employees have written me over the years. The power of genuine, customized appreciation will never lose its value, even in a gloomy economy... in fact, it's probably what we're all thirsty for in this desert of a depression.

The companies we admire are like the people we admire: resilient, authentic, personable, collaborative, ambitious, and humble.

Whether we're conscious of it or not, our work and personal lives are made up of daily rituals, including when we eat our meals, how we shower or groom, or how we approach our daily descent into the digital world of email communication.

Once you know the emotional building blocks of anxiety, you can influence them.

The more externally chaotic the world becomes, the more we need sound internal logic, especially when it comes to our emotions.

I know that when I attached my sense of identity a little too closely to my work that I might be distracting myself from feelings of unworthiness. It wasn't the number of hours I worked or how bloodshot my eyes were that defined the difference. It was something internal.

The intersection of psychology and business is typically seen as being as congested, stressful, and emotionally barren as a peak commute traffic day on the L.A. freeways. But, thankfully, we live in an era in which neuroscientists are teaching us about the malleability of our brain and the emotionally contagious nature of our workplaces.

Every five years, I like to do a big birthday party. I had my 45th birthday with 75 friends in Marrakesh, Morocco.

Daniel Goleman has proven that two-thirds of the success in business is based upon our Emotional Intelligence as opposed to our IQ or our level of experience. As we look for the next crop of future CEOs, maybe it's time for America's corporations to start interviewing grads from the psychology master's programs rather than the M.B.A. programs.

Isn't it ironic that pay, perks, and benefits all cost your company at the bottom line, but authentic recognition, especially when it's most unexpected, costs very little and gives the most impressive return on investment?