CHAPTER NINE
79 CEO QUOTES “”
By H.E. Sergio Akiemboto, former CEO of N.V Grassalco and Minister of Natural Resources, Suriname.
QUOTE #1
“STAY ON TOP OF THINGS”
-Until the CEO is aware of what happens, when, how, and why it happens within and around their Company, the company remains stuck at the bottom of growth.-
QUOTE #2
“HAVE CLEAR PRINCIPLES. ABIDE BY THEM.”
Possibilities are infinite. Only clear principles can lead you to intended possibilities.-
QUOTE #3
“KEEP MULTIPLE COMMUNICATION LINES”
-If you can’t tell what is going on in the minds of others, what goes on in your mind doesn’t matter-
QUOTE #4
“TO BE A STEP FORWARD, PREPARE IN ADVANCE.”
Hard work is only inevitable during preparations –
QUOTE #5
“INVEST IN YOURSELF CONTINUOUSLY”
-A limited CEO is a limited company-
QUOTE #6
“TEAM FORMATION SHOULD BE RESPONSIVE TO EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE”
-Only when put in the right place, right people do right things-
QUOTE #7
“INVEST IN EMPLOYEES”
-Improved employees’ performance improves company productivity-
QUOTE #8
“HAVE AN OPEN DOOR FEEDBACK POLICY”
-A company lacking feedback is like an army without a fortress to fall back to.-
QUOTE #9
“LET GO OF MEDIOCRE EMPLOYEES”
-Employees who are not contributing to the company’s growth are definitely contributing to the company’s waning-
QUOTE #10
“DESIGN YOUR OFFICE TO REPRESENT YOU”
-The first impression of a company is designed in the client’s mind by the design of its office-
QUOTE #11
“THE QUALITY OF EMPLOYEES A COMPANY RECRUITS DETERMINE THE QUALITY OF WORK THE COMPANY WILL PRODUCE”
-A company’s fate lies in the abilities of its employees-
QUOTE #12
“THE COMPANY’S VISION MUST BE ABRIDGED FOR EMPLOYEES.”
-When faced with hurdles, only those who know their destination are able to maneuver-
QUOTE #13
“EVEN EMPLOYEES NEED BREAK TIME”
-Refreshing increases productivity-
QUOTE #14
“KNOW YOUR EMPLOYEES”
-The extent to which a company knows their employees is exactly the extent to which they are able to measure the work employees will and won’t accomplish-
QUOTE #15
“CHALLENGES KEEP EMPLOYEES SHARP”
-Uninspired, employees become dormant volcanoes – unchallenged, they become extinct.-
QUOTE #16
“PLAN BEFORE IMPLEMENTATION”
-All great builders begin with illustrating the building they intend to build-
QUOTE #17
“AVOID REPEATING SIMILAR MISTAKES.”
-The first mistake you do should be the last you have done-
QUOTE #18
“DIVERSIFY PROMISES SAFETY”
-Diversification saves a company from seasonal adversity-
QUOTE #19
“KEEP KEY THINGS IN FOCUS”
-Keep an eye on the things the company cannot do without-
QUOTE #20
“BE ON TIME”
-Better be early than late-
QUOTE #21
“TAKE CARE OF THE ENVIRONMENT AS MUCH AS IT TAKES CARE OF YOU.”
-If companies stop taking care of the environment, eventually they will all shut down-
QUOTE #22
“GET COMMUNITIES INVOLVED IN THE COMPANY ACTIVITIES”
-Make the company a commercial home-
QUOTE #23
“SUPPORT COMMUNITY INCOME-GENERATING PROJECTS”
-The best way to help communities is to remove the need for help-
QUOTE #24
“FOLLOW UP AND FIND OUT IF CLIENTS GOT UTILITY FROM YOUR PRODUCT OR SERVICE.”
-Companies should care to know whether their clients found what they sought in their products or services-
QUOTE #25
“SURROUND YOURSELF WITH THE BEST PEOPLE “
-If birds of the same feathers flock together, people with similar passions should flock together as well-
QUOTE #26
“SHARE STORIES OF BOTH FAILURE AND SUCCESS “
-Share stories of failure to teach and stories of success to inspire-
QUOTE #27
“FEAR OF LOSING A JOB SHOULD NOT CORRUPT COMMITMENT TO EXCELLENCE.”
-Intentional underperformance is reason enough to be laid off. Your performance on the previous job is your work shadow. It will follow you to your next job-
QUOTE #28
“INABILITY TO LISTEN, IS INABILITY TO SPEAK”
- The relevance of response depends on the accuracy of the ear-
QUOTE #29
“CEOs SHOULD COMMUNICATE WITH THEIR EMPLOYEES”
-Build employee trust through effective communication-
QUOTE #29
“PATIENCE FUELS PERSISTENCE”
-You must wait on that which might come as if you were hearing the sound of its footsteps-
QUOTE #30
“GET YOUR FAMILY INVOLVED IN YOUR JOB”
-When your family is involved in what you do, they become your cheerleaders-
QUOTE #31
“EMPLOYEES NEED TO AVOID EMOTIONAL AFFECTION WITH THEIR COMPANIES”
The moment an employee starts to fall in love within the company, they begin to fall out of the company-
QUOTE #32
“KNOW IN DETAIL WHAT STAKEHOLDERS EXPECT FROM THE COMPANY”
-Complete knowledge paves way for complete results-
QUOTE #33
“WHEN IT COMES TO LEARNING, SWALLOW PRIDE AND TAKE SOME NOTES.”
-There is no shame in bowing to your teacher as long as you stand a chance to graduate-
QUOTE #34
“FEEL SORRY NOT FOR THE WRONG THINGS YOU HAVE DONE, BUT FOR THE
RIGHT THINGS YOU HAVE NOT DONE YET.”
-Opportunities are shooting stars. You must have a wish ready before they pass by-
QUOTE #35
“CEOs, BEING LEADERS, MUST DISPLAY THEIR EMOTIONS ARTFULLY”
-The light of leaders guides their followers — it cannot be subject to the blowing winds of emotions-
QUOTE #36
“GIVE IN WHEN MISTAKEN, YIELD WHEN CONQUERED TO AVOID UNTIMELY DEATH.”
-You can hide your coughing grandmother to avoid momentary embarrassment, but eventually she will cough and the whole world will know (proverb from Suriname).-
QUOTE #37
“DO MORE YESTERDAY THAN TOMORROW.”
-Stop saying what you will do, say instead what you have done-
QUOTE #40
“NETWORKING IS A MASTER KEY”
-The more people you connect with, the more doors of opportunity you open-
QUOTE #41
“TO MONKEYS, GRABBING THE BRANCH IS NOTHING. THE GENIUS IS IN HANGING IN THERE.”
-Getting to a position is not the hardest part, maintaining it is.-
QUOTE #42
“DELEGATING WORK ALLOWS THE CEO TO FOCUS ON MAIN MATTERS”
-If you try to grab it all by the hand, some of it will slip through the fingers-
QUOTE #43
“BE LIKE A BANANA TREE. THE DIRT THROWN UNDER CATALYZES ITS GROWTH.”
-The dirt thrown on you can pile up to bury you or you can use it as a ladder to climb up.-
QUOTE #44
“THOSE WHO MUST GO MUST BE LET GO”
-You can’t keep the weeds among the crops otherwise soon the former will drain all the water and food meant for the latter-
QUOTE #45
“APPRECIATE WELL-PERFORMING EMPLOYEES”
-Appreciating employees is like watering a plant-
QUOTE #46
“INVEST IN YOUR WORKFORCE”
-Employees are like gardens, you cannot harvest from them what you did not plant in them-
QUOTE #47
“WORKING HARD SHOULD NOT BE AN EXCUSE TO LIVE BAD”
-Sickness has never been a source of motivation — avoid it like you avoid bad work-
QUOTE #48
“NEVER INTEND TO BECOME RICH AS A CEO OF A STATE-OWNED COMPANY. SUCH A CAUSE WILL CORRUPT THE MIND.”
-If a CEO focuses on enriching themselves — they lose sight of the company’s vision. As long as their pockets grow they forget about the growth of the company-
QUOTE #49
“A CEO CAN BECOME FAMOUS BUT IT SHOULD BE FOR HONORABLE REASONS”
-Shine you may. Nevertheless, the glittering better be of gold-
QUOTE #50
“THE CEO SHOULD BE LIKE A MAGNET”
-Repelling unwanted behavior, attracting wanted values-
QUOTE #51
“CEOs SHOULD INVEST RESPONSIBLY”
-Risk-taking is a basic attitude any CEO should possess-
QUOTE #52
“TRUST RESPONSIBLY”
-As part of you is thrilled and excited — the other part should be reserved, anticipating and getting ready for the worst in every situation-
QUOTE #53
“YOU HAVE TO KNOW WHAT YOU FIX BEFORE ATTEMPTING TO FIX IT.”
-Doctors treat diseases they know-
QUOTE #54
“IT IS A PART OF THE CEO’s JOB TO PAUSE AND REFLECT EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE.”
-Monitoring and evaluation on a personal level is as productive as it is on an organizational level-
QUOTE #55
“RAW FEEDBACK IS OBTAINED THROUGH UNSCRIPTED SOCIALIZATION”
-Edited feedback can be misleading. The feedback not asked for is if understood game-changing-
QUOTE #56
“ACHIEVING RESULTS SHOULD BE THE ONLY IMPRESSION CEOs ASPIRE TO MAKE”
-Let your actions and not words or wishes move the world –
QUOTE #57
“TIME IS A VALUABLE RESOURCE.”
-The characteristics of time are identical to those of nonrenewable resources –
QUOTE #58
“THE CORPORATE IMAGE SHOULD BE WELL GUARDED.”
-What the public thinks the company is, outweighs what the company truly is-
QUOTE #59
“HAVE AN OPEN DOOR FEEDBACK POLICY.”
-Companies should be open to open interactions-
QUOTE #60
“COMPANIES SHOULD TREAT THEIR EMPLOYEES WITH HONOR.”
-Companies should shepherd their employees to greener parts of their life. In turn, employees will shepherd the company to greener profits.-
QUOTE #61
“ATTEND TO THE NEEDS OF YOUR SUPERIOR PROMPTLY”
-When a CEO sends a delegate to meet their superior, they might perceive it as subordination.-
QUOTE #62
“CEOs MUST ACCEPT TO BE ACTIVE ONLY IN PRODUCTIVE ROLES.”
-A person’s abilities are subject to decomposition when misallocated and misused-
QUOTE #63
“COMMUNICATE WISELY WITH THE PRESS.”
-The press is not interested in privacy. To them, a secret discovered is viral news. Given the nature of their job, Journalists are unable to abide by the rule of confidentiality. Therefore, put highly classified information off the radar-
QUOTE #64
“PICK YOUR FIGHT NOT BASED ON YOUR STRENGTH BUT YOUR WEAKNESS”
-One could be very strong but if their minor weakness cannot allow them to use their mighty strength they would succumb in every battle.-
QUOTE #65
“BUILD TRUST THROUGH TRANSPARENCY”
-Genuineness encourages trust within and around the company-
QUOTE #66
“UNDERSTAND THE SYSTEM IN WHICH YOU WORK.”
-You have to know the topography of the terrain you tread-
QUOTE #67
“GOALS SHOULD BE SIMPLE AND EASY FOR ALL EMPLOYEES TO UNDERSTAND”
- Company goals inexplicable to employees are worthless.-
QUOTE #68
“COMPANIES MUST KNOW THEIR EMPLOYEES. EMPLOYEES MUST KNOW THEIR COMPANY”
-Knowledge over a thing empowers one with the capability to influence it –
QUOTE #69
“EVERY LEADERSHIP HAS ITS SEASONS. EVERY CEO MUST FIND OUT THIERS TO KNOW WHEN TO STEP UP OR DOWN.”
-In the end, all our hair grows grey– it’s only a matter of when-
QUOTE #70
“AVOID SITUATIONS THAT CAN LEAD YOU INTO UNNECESSARY SCANDALS”
-Scandals are not the best situations. Don’t get in any if it can be avoided.-
QUOTE #71
“IT’S IMPORTANT TO TAKE SOME TIME OFF FROM THE DAILY ROUTINE.”
-We all need recharging and refreshing.-
QUOTE #72
“JOIN AFFILIATIONS RELATED TO YOUR WORK.”
-The information others hoard combine to make up the piece we lack to excel-
QUOTE #73
“EVERY ROUTE TAKEN GOES SOMEWHERE.”
-Whoever beats around the bush should take the responsibility of dealing with whatever that comes out-
QUOTE #74
“CEOs SHOULD RESIGN ON TASKS THEY ARE NOT CONTRIBUTING MUCH.”
-To have many prominent roles yet accomplish few or none is not the acumen of prominence. –
QUOTE #75
“HAVE EXTRA WITH YOU”
-Better have much than less. –
QUOTE #76
“BEWARE OF THE ‘KOSOMBO’ ISSUES – THEY TAKE TIME BEFORE STINGING YOU.”
-It is cost-effective to promptly respond to issues as they emerge-
QUOTE #77
“DEVELOPMENT IN ONE’S LIFE IS LIKE A MOVING TRAIN. YOU MUST KNOW WHEN AND WHERE TO JUMP INTO THE TRAIN, WHEN AND WHERE TO STEP OUT IN ORDER TO CATCH THE NEXT TRAIN.”
-Walk eyes in front to have more chances of arriving. –
QUOTE #78
“HAVE ENOUGH TO BE ABLE TO SHARE.”
-Acquiring enough gives one the option of practicing generosity-
QUOTE #79
“NEVER PUT A LOADED GUN IN INEXPERIENCED HANDS.”
-Naivety should have no place in the minds of leaders-
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