Winning Quotes

"High standards are contagious. If you put a new person into a high standards team, they will adapt."

"The goal is to build something that lasts."

"We are stubborn on vision. We are flexible on details."

"You have to be willing to be misunderstood if you're going to innovate."

"Build something that people actually want."

"Winning is about being missionaries, not mercenaries. Missionaries have more passion and build better products."

"The best way to win is to be the only one doing what you do."

"If you can't tolerate critics, don't do anything new or interesting."

"If you're going to invent, it means you're going to fail, and when you fail, you have to get back up and try again."

"Speed is the ultimate weapon."

"You need to be able to distinguish between 'one-way doors' and 'two-way doors.' Most decisions are reversible."

"I knew that if I failed I wouldn't regret that, but I knew the one thing I might regret is not trying."

"Winning requires a level of obsession that most people find unhealthy."

"The world will always try to pull you toward being normal. Do not let it happen."

"If you double the number of experiments you do per year you’re going to double your inventiveness."

"Winning is about capturing the future."

"Long-term thinking is both a requirement and an outcome of true ownership."

"A brand for a company is like a reputation for a person. You earn reputation by trying to do hard things well."

"Technology is the only way to get more from less."

"Frugality drives innovation, just like other constraints do."

"If you don't understand the details of your business you are going to fail."

"Raising venture capital is the easiest thing a startup does."

"The death of a company happens when you stop being customer-obsessed and start being process-obsessed."

"What we need to do is always lean into the future; when the world changes around you and when it changes against you, you have to lean into that and figure out what to do."

"Don't worry about the competition; worry about the customer."

"Cleverness is a gift, kindness is a choice. Gifts are easy—they're given after all. Choices can be hard."

"We can’t be in survival mode. We have to be in growth mode."

"Software is eating the world."

"If you're competitor-focused, you have to wait until there is a competitor doing something. Being customer-focused allows you to be more pioneering."

"In the end, we are our choices. Build yourself a great story."

"The world is a very malleable place. If you know what you want, and you go after it with maximum energy and drive and passion, the world will yield to you."

"The great thing about factual decisions is that they overrule hierarchy."

"It’s not an experiment if you know it’s going to work."