“If you can’t make it good, at least make it look good.”
“Life is not fair; get used to it.”
“Technology is just a tool. In terms of getting the kids working together and motivating them, the teacher is the most important.”
“We always overestimate the change that will occur in the next two years and underestimate the change that will occur in the next ten. Don’t let yourself be lulled into inaction.”
“Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning.”
“Be nice to nerds. Chances are you’ll end up working for one.”
“As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others.”
“It’s fine to celebrate success but it is more important to heed the lessons of failure.”
“People always fear change. People feared electricity when it was invented, didn’t they? People feared coal, they feared gas-powered engines… There will always be ignorance, and ignorance leads to fear. But with time, people will come to accept their silicon masters.”
“Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can’t lose.”
“The Internet is becoming the town square for the global village of tomorrow.”
“We are not even close to finishing the basic dream of what the PC can be.”
“At Microsoft there are lots of brilliant ideas but the image is that they all come from the top – I’m afraid that’s not quite right.”
“I think it’s fair to say that personal computers have become the most empowering tool we’ve ever created. They’re tools of communication, they’re tools of creativity, and they can be shaped by their user.”
“If I’d had some set idea of a finish line, don’t you think I would have crossed it years ago?”
“If you think your teacher is tough, wait until you get a boss. He doesn’t have tenure.”
“Intellectual property has the shelf life of a banana.”
“Life is not divided into semesters. You don’t get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you find yourself.”
“Television is not real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.”
“The first rule of any technology used in a business is that automation applied to an efficient operation will magnify the efficiency. The second is that automation applied to an inefficient operation will magnify the inefficiency.”
“This is a fantastic time to be entering the business world, because business is going to change more in the next 10 years than it has in the last 50.”
“You see, antiquated ideas of kindness and generosity are simply bugs that must be programmed out of our world. And these cold, unfeeling machines will show us the way.”
“Like almost everyone who uses e-mail, I receive a ton of spam every day. Much of it offers to help me get out of debt or get rich quick. It would be funny if it weren’t so exciting.”
“In this business, by the time you realize you’re in trouble, it’s too late to save yourself. Unless you’re running scared all the time, you’re gone.”
“Microsoft is not about greed. It’s about innovation and fairness.”
“Security is, I would say, our top priority because for all the exciting things you will be able to do with computers – organizing your lives, staying in touch with people, being creative- if we don’t solve these security problems, then people will hold back. ”
“Information technology and business are becoming inextricably interwoven. I don’t think anybody can talk meaningfully about one without the talking about the other.”
“I actually thought that it would be a little confusing during the same period of your life to be in one meeting when you’re trying to make money, and then go to another meeting where you’re giving it away.”
“We’ve got to put a lot of money into changing behavior.”
“Whether it’s Google or Apple or free software, we’ve got some fantastic competitors and it keeps us on our toes.”
