Quotes from Christos Kartalis
ON LEADERSHIP
- Don’t look to dunk the ball every time. Simple layups will give you the same two points and are almost always easier to achieve.
- A star will always find a way to shine no matter what the circumstances, but it shines especially brightly in times of crisis and change.
- It is true that the shortest distance between two points is the direct line. The speed at which we travel, however, is equally important to a successful trip.
ON MANAGEMENT
- Not everything you do will always be the right thing. From time to time, stop and have a reality check.
- Courage is a personal trait–you either have it or you don’t. Companies don’t have courage.
- Top management is unforgiving. You need to manage expectations at all times.
ON MARKETING
- A well-executed plan can exist without a drop of strategy. The opposite is never true.
- Don’t over-aim; move from “aim” to “ready” to “fire” quickly.
ON HUMAN RESOURCES
- There is a price to pay or a ticket to purchase whenever you play anywhere worthwhile.
- If you don’t open your mouth, people will assume you are voiceless and possibly brainless.
- Define who works for whom. Don’t direct front-line, commercial resources to work on internal projects. Ensure your front-line people are facing customers.
ON CHANGE
- Speedily closing deals is not just a competitive advantage. It is a condition for great deal-making.
- The size of the knife should be proportionate to the size of the watermelon. Usually CEOs give large watermelons to their managers but very short edged knives.
- There are many disadvantages of pursuing an opportunity after everyone else has gone. And there is one, big advantage: you are going last.
ON CULTURE
- Inshallah: Don’t leave all things on God’s shoulders. He appears to have frequent attention gaps.
- To succeed in other cultures, get out of your office and closer to the market with your body, your mind, and your heart, in this order of sequence. The opposite almost never leads to success. Even if it exists for a time, your success will not be sustained.
- Don’t just stand by the side lines waiting for a fumble unless you want it to happen.
BOXING ANALOGIES
- Mike Tyson could have said: “Coach, you are confusing me with the tactics. Just show me who the guy is.” If you are on the pure power side of things, don’t over strategize; just go and get the job done.
- Do you really believe you can become a world champion without getting knocked out once or twice along the way? No world champion got there undefeated. Why are you any different?
- When you have your back against the ropes, there two options: go down or go back and fight to win. Don’t allow for the third option like getting away from the ropes without any conviction to win. You’ll just get backed into the ropes again and again until you and your dignity both go down.
DEFINITIONS
- “Envelop pushers” are people who do only their part and don’t see things to conclusion. For them, it is always someone else’s job.
- “Conclusion jumpers” are people who take action or come to a conclusion without proper analysis. Usually, this leads to superficial output and biased outcomes.
