James Cash Penney

My definition of an executive’s job is brief and to the point. It is simply this: Getting things done through other people.

I believe in trusting men, not only once but twice – in giving a failure another chance.

As a rule, we find what we look for; we achieve what we get ready for.

I do not believe in excuses. I believe in hard work as the prime solvent of life’s problems.

It is always the start that requires the greatest effort.

The best teamwork comes from men who are working independently toward one goal in unison.

Always be smarter than the people who hire you.

The best teamwork comes from men who are working independently toward one goal in unison.

Asking me to come work here is the dumbest idea you ever had. It has been a waste of a year.

Chris and I came from nothing. We’re selfmade. We started with nothing, so we have nothing to lose. And we have everything to gain.

As members of the Ford Motor organization we are engaged in the production of an article of use for the people of all countries. Our principle is to make our work as profitable for the buyer as for the seller.

What right have you, save service to the world, to think that other men’s labor should contribute to your gains?

No one should buy on reputation alone. They should come and see it and inspect it, feel it and touch it.

No one loses anything by raising wages as soon as he is able. It has always paid us. Low wages are the most costly any employer can pay. It is like using low-grade material–the waste makes it very expensive in the end. There is no economy in cheap labor or cheap material. The hardest thing I ever had to do was to reduce wages. I think we were the last big company to come to it. Now I am mighty glad that wages are climbing again.

Competition is the keen cutting edge of business, always shaving away at costs.

I built a great company, one of the – some of the most iconic assets in the world, $10 billion of net worth, more than $10 billion of net worth, and frankly, I had a great time doing it.

We started learning ourselves, understanding ourselves, reading, researching, going around the world and looking at what was defined as the very best.

Founding a company is hard. Most of it isn’t smooth. You’ll have to make very hard decisions. You have to fire a few people. Therefore, if you don’t believe in your mission, giving up is easy. The majority of founders give up. But the best founders don’t give up.

[On Calvin Klein asking him ‘Why don’t you call it Geffen Records?’] People in the record business just don’t do that. They come up with names likes Asylum, Capricorn, or Island. [Calvin Klein said if you put your own name on the door ‘You’ll get laid more.’]

When most people ask about a business growing, what they really mean is growing revenue, not just growing the number of people using a service. Traditional businesses would view people using your service that you don’t make money from as a cost.

The best ideas come as jokes. Make your thinking as funny as possible.