ACTUALLY WORKING IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN LOOKING AS THOUGH IT WILL ACTUALLY WORK

"Beauty is less important than quality."

Eugene Ormandy, 20th century Hungarian born violinist/conductor

In some instances, maybe not, but I wouldn't bank on it when creating product you want to sell.

From cars to computers, the product landscape is littered with what were initially considered attractive products whose quality ultimately proved lacking.

Looks count, just not for everything.

ADULT YOUTHFULNESS

"Those whom the gods love grow young."

Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) Irish poet/dramatist.

They do so by retaining the best of youth; wonder, excitement, the absence of prejudice.

So hard to do but when present with the rest that makes us adults, we find the best human beings possible.

NOT THE BEST OF US BUT ALSO NOT THE WORST

"The mass never comes up to the standard of its best member, but on the contrary degrades itself to a level with the lowest."

Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) American naturalist/poet/philosopher.

Possibly cruel to say but true in concept.

The best of any group can act less so while the least capable cannot immediately become something they are not.

It is the group's responsibility to resist becoming the lowest common denominator.

WHAT YOU REALLY ARE MORE THAN WHAT YOU REALLY WANT TO APPEAR TO BE

"Aspire rather to be a hero than merely appear one."

Baltasar Gracian

17th century Spanish philosopher/writer

Aspire to be smart, concerned, empathetic, engaged, etc. rather than aspiring to appear smart, concerned, empathetic, engaged, etc.

Appearances count, however ultimately, not for much.

You Mean I Have To Be At Least One Of These?

"Your manuscript is both good and original. But the parts that are good are not original and the parts that are original are not good."

Samuel Johnson

18th century British author

True in business as well.

Companies, products, and even people, only succeed long-term by being at least one of these things, if not both.

The Hidden Cost Of Cheap

"Where quality is the thing sought after, the thing of supreme quality is cheap, whatever the price one has to pay for it."

William James

19th century American psychologist/philosopher

Sometimes the most expensive thing is the one you pay the least for.

Seeing Through You

"Outside show is a poor substitute for inner worth."

Aesop

6th century Greek fabulist

And sooner rather than later everyone will know which you are predominately.

The Real Deal?

"It is a great advantage for a system of philosophy to be substantially true."

George Santayana

Late 19th/early 20th century American philosopher

And no less so in business.

If what you are selling does not warrant being sold, you won't be selling it for long.

What As Much As How

"Erudition can produce foliage without bearing fruit."

Georg C. Lichtenberg

18th century German  scientist

Presentation is important but it is little or nothing without substance.

If It's Worth Doing . . .

"The real Antichrist is he who turns the wine of an original idea into the water of mediocrity."

Eric Hoffer

20th century American philosopher

Few start out to do a mediocre job and still that does happen way too often.

You have to work, really, really work, to be great.

(Fill In The Blank) vs. Fast

"A good and faithful judge always prefers the honorable to the expedient."

Horace

1st century BC Latin poet

Substitute any number of adjectives for "honorable" and this works in many situations.

Accurate, correct, fair, efficient, timely, effective, etc.

All and more like them, qualities we should emphasize in business more than expedient.

Working To Live Or Living To Work?

"The best work never was and never will be done for money."

John Ruskin

19th century English art critic

Maybe it takes someone from the arts to recognize this.

What More Than How Many

"A man is not necessarily intelligent because he has plenty of ideas, anymore than he is a good general because he has plenty of soldiers."

Nicolas Chamfort

18th century French writer

When a quote expressing a thought many of us have likely never had before, is as obviously true as this is, nothing more need be said.

Finding the Best and the Brightest

"There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it's going to be a butterfly."

R. Buckminster Fuller

Talent.

I suppose if we could always see it we would only surround ourselves with those who have it.

How do you decide who is and is not talented?

Substance: What's At The Core?

"Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what people think you are."

John Wooden
Basketball Hall of Fame Coach and Player
10 national championships in 12 seasons as UCLA Head Coach

This sentiment feels a bit unfinished to me; like there needs to be mention that if your character and reputation are not aligned, for better or worse they soon will be.

The equivalent in business would be what; the quality of one's product, service, ethics, all of the above?

Every topic in this blog is important to management but the bedrock of it all is what we really are.

What are you?