The way to do well is to do well.
Make decisions about the President’s personal security. He can overrule you, but don’t ask him to be the one to counsel caution.
If you develop rules, never have more than ten.
Don’t necessarily avoid sharp edges. Occasionally they are necessary to leadership.
With the press there is no ‘off the record’.
When cutting staff at the Pentagon, don’t eliminate the thin layer that assures civilian control.
Members of the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate are not there by accident. Each managed to get there for some reason. Learn what it was and you will know something important about them, about our country and about the American people.
Presidential leadership needn’t always cost money. Look for low- and no-cost options. They can be surprisingly effective.
The Federal Government should be the last resort, not the first. Ask if a potential program is truly a federal responsibility or whether it can better be handled privately, by voluntary organizations, or by local or state governments.
Secretary Powell and I agree on every single issue that has ever been before this administration except for those instances where Colin’s still learning.
Reduce the layers of management. They put distance between the top of an organization and the customers.
If you foul up, tell the President and correct it fast. Delay only compounds mistakes.
Leave the President’s family business to him. You will have plenty to do without trying to manage the First Family. They are likely to do fine without your help.
Preserve the President’s options. He may need them.
It isn’t making mistakes that’s critical; it’s correcting them and getting on with the principal task.
In the execution of Presidential decisions work to be true to his views, in fact and tone.
One of your tasks is to separate the “personal” from the “substantive.” The two can become confused, especially if someone rubs the President wrong.
If a prospective Presidential approach can’t be explained clearly enough to be understood well, it probably hasn’t been thought through well enough. If not well understood by the American people, it probably won’t “sail” anyway. Send it back for further thought.
See that the President, the Cabinet and staff are informed. If cut out of the information flow, their decisions may be poor, not made, or not confidently or persuasively implemented.
You will launch many projects, but have time to finish only a few. So think, plan, develop, launch and tap good people to be responsible. Give them authority and hold them accountable. Trying to do too much yourself creates a bottleneck.
If in doubt, don’t. If still in doubt, do what’s right.
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