Strict adherence to written procedure is critical, but we counterbalance this strictness with our eagerness to make instant adjustments should the environment change or should someone come up with a better idea.

Too many of us are paralyzed in the static snapshot of how we think things should be instead of working with the mechanics of the world as it is. Life is not a snapshot; it’s a real-time, streaming video – and the video plays on whether we participate in it or not.

Problems are gifts that inspire us to action. A problem prompts the act of creating or improving a system or procedure. We don’t want setbacks, but when one occurs we think, ‘thank you for this wake-up call,’ and take assertive system-improvement action to prevent the setback from happening again.” Yes, our internal.

Your task is to optimize one system after another, not careen through the day randomly taking care of whatever problems erupt. Your job is not to be a fire killer. Your job is to prevent fires.

If solid goals are established and the majority of time is spent manipulating systems toward those goals, great results will materialize naturally.

Your job is not to be a fire killer. Your job is to prevent fires.

Mysterious people typically don't do well in business or friendship.

Addressing the problem, and then taking this second step to fix the cause of the problem, distinguishes the people who are in control from the people who are not in control - the successful from the unsuccessful.