Business

I learned you always have to use the language of the people you want to convince. If you speak to heads of states and corporations about the costs, that will be incurred to protect the environment, they will never invite you again. If you come and speak their language about job-creation and profit, they will welcome you with open arms.

Swiss Adventurer & Pilot of Solar-Powered Aircraft Solar Impulse

When Google (a very high IQ place!) looked into their highest performing teams, they found the hallmark of those teams was a sense of psychological and emotional safety.

Psychologist who popularized the concept of emotional intelligence

I learned more from the people at those events – the community, the customer – than anyone in business.

Founder and CEO of Gymshark, fitness apparel company

Entrepreneurs and founders have to learn to be the most adaptable people in their business- that's really important – otherwise, the business will outgrow the founder, or the founder will cause the business to stagnate or slow.

Founder and CEO of Gymshark, fitness apparel company

I realised that athletes were my customers- they were the people I wanted to sell too. We wrote to them with a 15% discount offer, and the chance to become an agent to help fund their club. I must have got 200 agents signed-up and the business started to grow.

When I came back, it didn't take me and my brother long to see that this was a failing business. It had been making the same product since the 1930s. The business was dying.

Building a business is about perseverance. When Jeff and I set off in late 1958, the sport of the world was football. Adidas had claimed that – and sports stores didn't need another brand in that category. We had to make customers and stores need our brand.

40% of the total number of products bought in fashion eCommerce are never used, what a total waste. Let's also be frank – the luxury fashion industry has some issues in terms of sustainability.

I invested most of our money, not in marketing, but in service. That was crucial to our early growth- starting in Europe, but then in America, Japan and the USA.

Today, we are asking the opposite question – will luxury brands continue to be sold offline? 20 years after we started, when people were suspicious about whether luxury brands could be sold on the internet, the opposite question is now the big consideration!

I guess that's been my biggest quality – to understand what customer's want, 3 or 4 years ahead of time. That's more or less probably my biggest quality as an entrepreneur.

I often hear people say that everything that matters must be measured, and if it can't be measured, it doesn't matter. I believe the absolute reverse. Nothing that matters can be measured.

Documentary filmmaker and philanthropist; great-granddaughter of Walt Disney

Most people I would consider world-class, successful entrepreneurs never volunteered for the job. They were kicked out like the guy who offended the king and was kicked out of the city walls.

Co-Founder of Square & Mobile Payment Pioneer

You have to step back and focus on the merits of the offer- not the person who brought the offer to you. That's how you defend yourself. You recognise that there's something that goes on first as important as the message itself inclining you towards purchase or agreement.

Influence & Persuasion Expert; Author of "Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion

If you go into a new situation where you don't know anybody and you want to be more influential, don't look around the room and say hmmm… who can most help me here?… instead, look around and say hmmm…. Who can I most help here? You will put that person in a position where they will be standing on the balls of their feet to help you!

Influence & Persuasion Expert; Author of "Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion

If your strategy is to do everything, you have no strategy at all.

NPR Host and Senior News Correspondent for Over Three Decades