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Andrew Carnegie Quotes

Article Overview: Andrew Carnegie Quotes

Andrew Carnegie Quotes

I began to learn what poverty meant. It was burnt into my heart then that my father had to beg for work. And then and there came the resolve that I would cure that when I got to be a man.

Success can be attained in any branch of human labor. There is always room at the top in every pursuit. Concentrate all your thought and energy upon the performance of your duties.

A sunny disposition is worth more than fortune. Young people should know that it can be cultivated; that the mind like the body can be moved from the shade into sunshine.

When I did big things, some large corporation like the Pennsylvania Railroad Company was behind me and the responsible party.

And here is the prime condition of success, the great secret: concentrate your energy, thought, and capital exclusively upon the business in which you are engaged. Having begun in one line, resolve to fight it out on that line, to lead in it; adopt every improvement, have the best machinery, and know the most about it.

I did not understand steam machinery, but I tried to understand that much more complicated mechanism - man.

People who are unable to motivate themselves must be content with mediocrity, no matter how impressive their other talents.

There is little success where there is little laughter.

No man will make a great leader who wants to do it all himself, or to get all the credit for doing it.

Think of yourself as on the threshold of unparalleled success. A whole, clear, glorious life lies before you. Achieve! Achieve!

Concentrate your energies, your thoughts and your capital.... The wise man puts all his eggs in one basket and watches the basket.

As I grow older, I pay less attention to what men say. I just watch what they do.

The average person puts only 25% of his energy and ability into his work. The world takes off its hat to those who put in more than 50% of their capacity, and stands on its head for those few and far between souls who devote 100%.

No man can become rich without himself enriching others.

Immense power is acquired by assuring yourself in your secret reveries that you were born to control affairs.

The man who acquires the ability to take full possession of his own mind may take possession of anything else to which he is justly entitled.

I believe that the true road to preeminent success in any line is to make yourself master of that line.

He that cannot reason is a fool. He that will not is a bigot. He that dare not is a slave.

Do not look for approval except for the consciousness of doing your best.

The secret of success lies not in doing your own work, but in recognizing the right man to do it.

The way to become rich is to put all your eggs in one basket and then watch that basket.

Here is the prime condition of success: Concentrate your energy, thought and capital exclusively upon the business in which you are engaged. Having begun on one line, resolve to fight it out on that line, to lead in it, adopt every improvement, have the best machinery, and know the most about it.

Do your duty and a little more and the future will take care of itself.

The 'morality of compromise' sounds contradictory. Compromise is usually a sign of weakness, or an admission of defeat. Strong men don't compromise, it is said, and principles should never be compromised.

No amount of ability is of the slightest avail without honor.

The first man gets the oyster, the second man gets the shell.

Surplus wealth is a sacred trust which its possessor is bound to administer in his lifetime for the good of the community.

The price which society pays for the law of competition, like the price it pays for cheap comforts and luxuries, is great; but the advantages of this law are also greater still than its cost / for it is to this law that we owe our wonderful material development, which brings improved conditions in its train. But, whether the law be benign or not, we must say of it: It is here; we cannot evade it; no substitutes for it have been found; and while the law may be sometimes hard for the individual, it is best for the race, because it ensures the survival of the fittest in every department.

You cannot push anyone up the ladder unless he is willing to climb.

You must capture and keep the heart of the original and supremely able man before his brain can do its best.

All honor's wounds are self-inflicted.

I shall argue that strong men, conversely, know when to compromise and that all principles can be compromised to serve a greater principle.

The man who dies rich dies disgraced.

And while the law (of competition) may be sometimes hard for the individual, it is best for the race, because it ensures the survival of the fittest in every department.

Those who would administer wisely must, indeed, be wise, for one of the serious obstacles to the improvement of our race is indiscriminate charity.

It was from my own early experience that I decided there was no use to which money could be applied so productive of good to boys and girls who have good within them and ability and ambition to develop it as the founding of a public library.

The problem of our age is the proper administration of wealth, so that the ties of brotherhood may still bind together the rich and poor in harmonious relationship.

We accept and welcome... as conditions to which we must accommodate ourselves, great inequality of environment; the concentration of business, industrial and commercial, in the hands of a few; and the law of competition between these, as being not only beneficial, but essential for the future progress of the race.

This, then, is held to be the duty of the man of wealth: First, to set an example of modest, unostentatious living, shunning display or extravagance; to provide moderately for the legitimate wants of those dependent upon him; and, after doing so, to consider all surplus revenues which come to him simply as trust funds, which he is called upon to administer, and strictly bound as a matter of duty to administer in the manner which, in his judgment, is best calculated to produce the most beneficial results for the community /the man of wealth thus becoming the mere trustee and agent for his poorer brethren, bringing to their service his superior wisdom, experience and ability to administer, doing for them better than they would or could do for themselves.

Every act you have ever performed since the day you were born was performed because you wanted something.

Aim for the highest.

When it is a question of God's almighty Spirit, never say, "I can't."

Whatever I engage in, I must push inordinately.

Whatever I engage in, I must push inordinately.

It is the mind that makes the body rich.

The men who have succeeded are men who have chosen one line and stuck to it.

Concentration is my motto -- first honesty, then industry, then concentration.

You're achieving God's mission for humanity and country through capitalism, but by Christianity and your own sense of patriotism, you have a duty to better mankind.

There is no use whatever trying to help people who do not help themselves. You cannot push anyone up a ladder unless he be willing to climb himself.

I resolved to stop accumulating and begin the infinitely more serious and difficult task of wise distribution.

I would as soon leave my son a curse as the almighty dollar.

Related Articles
  Andrew Carnegie and the Rise of Big Business
  Andrew Carnegie Biography
  Andrew Carnegie Gospel of Wealth
  A Foreign Affair: Carnegie Comes to America
  Carnegie Science Center

Article Tags: andrew carnegie, average person, eggs in one basket, fortune, glorious life, little laughter, mediocrity, pennsylvania railroad company, poverty, prime condition, resolve, responsible party, room at the top, steam machinery, sunny disposition, sunshine, talents, threshold, unparalleled success, wise man



Related Forum Posts
Greatest Capitalist Ever - Pound for pound, I think Andrew Carnegie was the greatest capitalist ever. I say that because he was arguably the first of a generation of great businessmen.
Presenter at BizLaunch - Andrew, I sent you an email with details on a presenter.
Re: Gday, meet kelly and andrew - Welcome to the club Kelly and Andrew, we will like to know more about the kind of work you do at home.
Facebook application - Hi Kevin - thanks for the suggestion! The two that we were thinking of were Famous Entrepreneur Quotes and Which famous entrepreneur am I most like? I like your idea as well. We've got a rollout schedule of new features for the site that we are working on first before we can get to the Facebook app. We're also not sure how hard it is to integrate into Facebook. It looks like there is a php way to do it which is great because that is our core competency.
Recommendation - Hi everyone, I know Andrew and Roger and their business personally and suggested they put this opportunity in this forum. The offer is legit.


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