80 Quotes by Carl Icahn

Don’t go in and tell somebody else how to run their business.

Too often it’s not the most creative guys or the smartest. Instead, it’s the ones who are best at playing politics and soft-soaping their bosses. Boards don’t like tough, abrasive guys.

I like winning. There’s also a certain joy in it. I feel fulfilled by it.

We want these assets to be productive. We buy them. We own them. To say we care only about the short term is wrong. What I care about is seeing these assets in the best hands.

I believe there are and will be major opportunities to enhance Time Warner’s value in future combinations.

And I’m convinced, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you can work with the unions because the unions want to survive. If they are confronted simply with the question: “Do you want this company to survive or do you want it to be broken up?” they will listen. It’s their livelihood.

We’re not about liquidating companies, but if you do that, why is that terrible? We’re not blowing up the factories. The person who buys it should be able to make the asset more productive.

I'm a cynic about corporate democracy and boards.