Don't start a company unless it's an obsession and something you love. If you have an exit strategy, it's not an obsession.
Interpretation
Starting a company should be driven by passion rather than a profit-driven exit plan.
Mark Cuban emphasizes that true entrepreneurial success comes from passion and love for what you do. If starting a company is merely a means to an end—like having an exit strategy—then it lacks the essential obsession required to thrive in the competitive business landscape.
In practice
This quote can inspire aspiring entrepreneurs at startup meetups.
If the pitch starts with a sob story, I'm out. If the pitch talks about personal issues, I'm out. If the pitch starts off with how big the market opportunity is, I'm out. If the pitch tells me what is unique about the product, how it can make a profit, and it's an area where I have expertise, I will read on.
Leaders don't look backwards to condemn what has already been done; they look forward to create a better future.
It doesn't matter how many times you fail. You only have to be right once and then everyone can tell you that you are an overnight success.
I think you’ve got to be very, very careful when you start making blanket statements about what people say and think, as opposed to what they do. It’s a very, very slippery slope.
Creating a close connection to those you do business with has its many risks, rewards and consequences._x000D_ _x000D_ There are few things in business I have encountered that are more difficult than firing someone, particularly if that someone has always been, or has become a friend._x000D_ _x000D_ On the flip side, I have been rewarded with many friends.
I'm always afraid of failing. It's great motivation to work harder.
What made Louis Vuitton famous was the quality. We don't do marketing; we just create products which are exceptional in their design and craftsmanship.
If you want to be great and successful, choose people who are great and successful and walk side by side with them.
Gold medals aren't really made of gold. They're made of sweat, determination, and a hard-to-find alloy called guts.
The secret of success is to make your mind work for you - not against you. This means constantly being positive, constantly setting up challenges you can meet - either today, next week, or next month etc.
A lot of us players, if you were to ask them, feel like they have to play overseas. Why? 'Why not? Might as well do it while I can.' For a while, I felt that way - I've got to make the most money that I can. Now, do I feel like I could still play overseas? Absolutely. But I don't feel that pressure anymore.
Don't count the people that you reach, reach the people who count
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