From 8/17 BW article on Starbucks

Says a former executive at SBUX when the company was struggling a few years ago:  "When the numbers went south, we couldn't even make an educated guess about why."  Today, store sales data helped Howard Schultz see an important difference between the morning (when coffee is a necessity) and the afternoon (when it is an indulgence).  "We've never had that level of segmentation before," Schultz says.  "It's a new tool in terms of being able to move the business in different ways."  This from a guy who was quoted as saying "I despise research", but people much smarter than me pushed me in this direction and I've gone along.

From the book, Understanding Variation by Donald J Wheeler

"Learn the tools and you will have nothing.  Learn and practice the way of thinking that undergirds the tools and you will begin an unending journey of continual improvement."

No dilly dallying by this guy...

"Something that must be done eventually should be done immediately."  Jeremy Foley, Florida's AD

Is education really expensive compared to the alternative?

"If you think education is expensive, try ignorance."  Arne Duncan, Education Secretary

What Michael J. Fox said...

When asked if he was embarrassed by having Parkinson's disease:  "I don't control it.  So why would I waste one second of my life worrying about it?

When asked if he felt cheated by having Parkinson's disease:  "No, absolutely not.  It's been a detour that I wouldn't have planned, but it's really led me to amazing places."

From the book, "The Essential Wooden" by John Wooden

"The man died at 25, but wasn't buried until 75."  Ben Franklin was describing a man who stopped learning early on.

A quote I saw...

"You can do anything, but you can't do everything."