Entrepreneur Innovation Quotes & Sayings

Success brings a measure of credibility.

The fastest way to turn credibility into authority is to deliver results.

The best way to deliver results is to help others succeed.

You can help others succeed by being helpful.

Always look for ways to be helpful. Helpful people are always in demand. — Richie Norton

Follow your passion and learn how to make money at it. Or don't follow your passion and learn to make money at that. They are the same. It's a choice. — Richie Norton

Jack of all trades or master of one? If you're a master of one, you'll soon be a master of none. Times are a changin. Be a jack of all trades. Or better, master of many! — Richie Norton

There is no such thing as creativity in the abstract. Likewise, there is no such thing as innovation in the abstract. To describe yourself as an entrepreneur or a disrupter is as meaningless as describing yourself as an athlete or a thinker. Really? What sports do you play? What do you think about? What — Eric Weiner

If only 1 out of 10 businesses succeeds, start 10 businesses. Just sayin. — Richie Norton

Everyone has an idea. But it's really about executing the idea and attracting other people to help you work on the idea. — Jack Dorsey

Dreams come true when you live life awake. — Richie Norton

In an incongruity, as these cases exemplify, the innovative solution has to be clearly definable. It has to be feasible with the existing, known technology, and with easily available resources. It requires hard developmental work, of course. But if a great deal of research and new knowledge is still needed, it is not yet ready for the entrepreneur, not yet 'ripe'. The innovation that successfully exploits an incongruity between economic realities has to be simple rather than complicated, 'obvious' rather than grandiose. — Peter F. Drucker

Surrounding yourself with creative, imaginative people is a good strategy for success whether you're an entrepreneur seeking innovation or an artist looking for inspiration. — Harvey MacKay

To make money you have to use a four letter word: SELL. — Richie Norton

We're all scared.

Yes, all of us. I'm afraid every day. If I'm not afraid, I must not be doing something I need to be doing. I believe that when you're doing important work, you feel fear because you don't want to fail. The challenge is to not let the fear stop you from doing the work that will enable you to achieve your goals. You need to recognize the fear for what it is and allow your "why" (your compelling vision) for what you're doing be bigger than the fear itself.

So where do you start? Identify your fears. As they say, "name it to tame it."

Then, move forward. — Richie Norton

Sometimes I work so long and so hard that I have no idea what day or time it is. I forget to eat. I don't get ready for the day. I fall asleep on the couch and wake up and get back to work. — Richie Norton

What are you will to sacrifice for success? Whatever it is, don't sacrifice your values, your morals, your principles. Not worth it. — Richie Norton

How much longer will you wait until you take a chance on yourself? — Richie Norton

If you want control, loosen your grip. You're strangling your employees. Letting go is actually holding on. — Richie Norton

Innovation: Imagine the future and fill in the gaps. — Brian Halligan

If you think it's funny to make fun of the "used car salesman," you better only buy new and never sell your car. Just sayin. — Richie Norton

Every post is a digital tattoo of your personal brand.

Every post you make is a marketing piece.

Whether you realize it or not and regardless of having something for sale.

Every post is a digital tattoo of your personal brand. — Richie Norton

More process, less innovation. More operations, less innovation. More management, less innovation. More entrepreneurs, more innovation. — Seth Godin

Happiness being surrounded by good friends and family at a BBQ. — Richie Norton

Dear Influencers: Trolls will lurk under the bridges you build to gobble you up. They are hangry for attention. Build bridges anyways. — Richie Norton

People LOVE change (when it's about changing others). People HATE change (when it's about changing themselves). — Richie Norton

At the end of the day, if you have a great product and service paired with the wrong pricing strategy / business model, you don't have a business. — Richie Norton

An entrepreneur is a leader of excellence, trailblazer and pioneer who constantly brings change to their generation. — Onyi Anyado

Wantrepreneur: "I'll do it later."

Entrepreneur: Today IS later. — Richie Norton

Every book you've ever read on LEADERSHIP will finally make sense (and become practical) if you change the word "leader" to INFLUENCER. — Richie Norton

Do you ever see someone doing something cool and you say to yourself, "I could do that" ... And then you don't? Ask yourself, why not? Honestly, why not? You really may not have a reason to do it, but if you'd regret not doing it? That's a whole other story. — Richie Norton

If you're in business, all the content in the world will do you no good unless it leads to a sale. — Richie Norton

Building a family is an entrepreneurial experience. — Richie Norton

Are you setting business goals? Try this:

Step 1: Add a "0" to your revenue goal.
Step 2: Take away a "0" from your expense goal.
Step 3: Let your mind go to work.

Thank me later. — Richie Norton

Steve Jobs was an iconic entrepreneur and businessman whose impact on technology was felt beyond Silicon Valley. He will be remembered for the innovation he brought to market and the inspiration he brought to the world. — Meg Whitman

Just because you work, doesn't mean you're working on the right thing. — Richie Norton

Creativity is the new currency, so, are you credited with new thoughts or overdrawn in old thinking? — Onyi Anyado

No one knows your inner battle. No one knows the challenge you face. No one knows the sacrifice it takes to do what you do. But you're not alone. — Richie Norton

When someone says you can't do something because of XYZ, is that true? Or are they playing with your life with their good intentions to keep you safe? — Richie Norton

Forest rangers see the forest differently. Likewise, entrepreneurs see the world differently. — Richie Norton

My parents did a great job of creating a home we wanted to return to...and all of our friends wanted to be there too. — Richie Norton

College does not equal job security. Entrepreneurship does not equal job security. For heaven's sake, "job security" does not equal job security. So what do you do? Don't be a one-trick pony. Add real value in everything you do. But most of all, study and apply business models. No matter what discipline you come from. Learn how to add value so that value can flow in the form of money to you. That, my friends, is job security. Learn where money comes from and you'll know where to turn when life throws a curve. — Richie Norton

Are you Mindful or Mindless? Or in the Middle? — Richie Norton

You may forget the toys you buy and break, but you'll always remember the experiences and memories you create. — Richie Norton

When haters start to rear their ugly head, just play around with them and throw them a bone so they can go away and chew on it. — Richie Norton

WE MAY FEEL...BUT WE DON'T

We may feel the need to change employment, but we don't.

We may feel the need to start a specific project, but we don't.

We may feel the need to pursue higher education, but we don't

We may feel the need to heal a broken relationship, but we don't.

We may feel the need to work to improve our spiritual lives, but we don't.

We may feel the need to take steps toward a healthier physical or emotional life for ourselves and/or our family, but again, we don't.

(This list could likely go on for eternity.)

The desire for progression is innate, but the problem we face is that the actual act of progression is also a choice.

Without embracing our inherent need for progress, for positive growth and/or change, we'll still go on living.

...But at what cost? — Richie Norton

Everyone loves the idea of "disruption" in business, but no one likes it when it happens to them. — Richie Norton

Success steps: Think big. Act small. Then scale.

Failure steps: Act big. Think small. Then shrink.

Consider your next big thing a project. Get one. Get it right. No sense growing a broken system. — Richie Norton

What story will your life tell? Love your story. Live your story. Lead your story. — Richie Norton

What is good customer service about then?

One word: caring.

Bad customer service happens when the employee doesn't care.

You could chalk it up to low wages or getting paid regardless of results. But that's not it either.

Hiring managers need to do two things and two things only:

1. Hire employees that ALREADY care and are ALREADY motivated.

2. Repeat step 1.

When this is done, everything changes.

People are happy on both sides of the table.

Costs for management and training plummet — Richie Norton

Creatives Creed: Destruction is creation. Creation is destruction. — Richie Norton

What does a ship absolutely need to stay afloat? I'm not a mariner, so I can't exactly say. . . but what I can tell you is that ships don't absolutely need lighthouses - but they sure do help!

When it comes to acting on inspired ideas, it's easy to trick ourselves into thinking we don't really need to do them, but that's like a ship ignoring the beacon of light on a rocky shore. — Richie Norton

Every day you're not doing that thing you want to do (your dream), you're spending mental currency, your dream currency (time) on the wrong thing. — Richie Norton

How much value do you want to get out of life? You get out what you put in.

Approach your life with intent, courage, faith and hard work, and you'll reap the beautiful value those sacrifices provide. That's the way our strange world works. — Richie Norton

You can't expect the level of excitement of your audience to be greater than your own. — Richie Norton

During the inevitable times when you feel like your work has no meaning, find meaning at home. If you need something more to feel creative or need extra cash, then moonlight: start dream projects after work hours. At some point in time, a successful side project can become your main project and you'll be fortunate enough to make your work and your dreams become one. || You should always have meaning outside the workplace. Work to support your lifestyle - don't live to support your work. — Richie Norton

Always err on the side of generosity. — Richie Norton

MOM = Maker of Miracles — Richie Norton

Entrepreneur, if you're going to start up, make sure you start up with excellence in mind". — Onyi Anyado

Unless your message is that you have no message, you need a message. — Richie Norton

To travel is to live. Breathe some life into your life and go outside! — Richie Norton

The way to be irreplaceable is to become a social innovator. Start projects that motivate you to save the world and simultaneously make you money (and create mindshare) for your company. Social innovation makes magic happen. — Richie Norton

Share your success stories with others. Don't brag, but don't hide your light. People want (and need) to be inspired and instructed. I know I want to follow and learn from successful people. Isn't that the basis for every business and self-help book? People will also give you good ideas to build on your own wins when you share openly. And when you write out your wins to an audience, your own ideas start to grow within you. Will you try? What's a win you've had lately? Don't be shy about it. — Richie Norton

The origin of innovation and entrepreneurship is a creative mindset — Michael Harris

Don't disregard your so-called "stupid ideas." They may be inspired thoughts and high-potential opportunities. Whatcha gonna do? — Richie Norton

Have the STRENGTH to say "no" to the status quo.

Have the WILL to listen to the deepest desires of your heart.

Have the COURAGE to ACT on and live out your intent. — Richie Norton

Give your idea a chance. You'll never hit a home run (or a base hit for that matter) if you don't swing. — Richie Norton

It's called entrepreneurSHIP, not entrepreneurSIT. Don't wait. Just ship. — Richie Norton

Is it weird that when I see a cool t shirt or pick up a toothbrush or see a new car I don't think about the product itself? I think about the thousands of people and dollars to make it.

I think about how the retailer that took the risk to buy and resell it. Then I work backwards to the store costs, the distributer who got it there, the shipping company that brought it over from China, the factory workers that made it, the people that sourced the materials and the people that harvested the raw materials, and on and on..
.
The global economy is amazing. Your $20 t-shirt is a freaking miracle. — Richie Norton

In business the 80/20 principle is behind any innovation, any extra value. It is an entrepreneurial principle, a formula for value creation utilized not only by entrepreneurs, but by most managers and organizations. — Richard Koch

MESSAGE + MISSION = MOVEMENT

Its not that you want to be on TV or the radio or in a magazine. If no one watched or listened or read, you wouldn't care about those mediums.

What you want is an audience.

You want to be seen and heard. You have a message to share. That said, the world has giving you your own TV channel (YouTube and any other video platform). The world has given you a radio station and even hosts (podcasts). The world has given you your own magazine and newspaper (websites, blogs, etc).

YOU ARE SEEN AND HEARD. YOU ARE ALREADY STANDING ON THE STAGE.

NOW WHAT?

We are watching and listening. — Richie Norton

Unlike other product developers, Jobs did not believe the customer was always right; if they wanted to resist using a mouse, they were wrong. — Walter Isaacson

Some people just love to stir the pot, but don't realize they're cooking themselves. — Richie Norton

One day employers will need to incentivize employees to actually work in an office. The office, in many ways, is obsolete. The office is more and more becoming a place for wasteful meetings and the work is actually being done at home. A Results-Only-Work-Environment (ROWE) is the path of future location-independent businesses. — Richie Norton

Ever feel like you're always winding up and never throwing it out? You might blame it on perfectionism or procrastination or preparation. You may even call it prudent. But whatever it is...IT'S NOT WORKING. I call this phenomenon "petrified performance." Where you're busy, busy, busy (on the wrong activities or the right activities for too long), and never accomplishing the idea or task you set out to do. You're stuck. Like a tree that once was lively is now dead and immovable like a stone. What once was a fluid idea is now frozen in time. How do you overcome petrified performance? With practice, silly. Everything you do should be considered a "project" because projects have a beginning and an end with a timeline. No more dreaming. Wake up and put those dreams to work by putting the steps necessary to make them happen on the calendar. Are you willing to practice? That's my prescription. — Richie Norton

I believe in solving social ills with business skills. — Richie Norton

Entrepreneurship is the engine fuelling innovation, employment generation and economic growth. Only by creating an environment where entrepreneur- ship can prosper and where entrepreneurs can try new ideas and empower others can we ensure that many of the world's issues will not go unaddressed. — Klaus Schwab

Live in a way that helps you lean into your fears, make a difference and live without regret. — Richie Norton

Be a learning machine. What made you money last year, won't necessarily make you money this and next year. — Richie Norton

Pondering the legitimate modern day problem of intellectual bullies. Self-proclaimed smarties attacking the innocent.

They revel in being politically correct, all-loving and open-minded while not applying these principles to themselves.

The ultimate double standard in the name of truth and acceptance. It's sad.

This is not a post about anyone in particular. This is an observation over years.

Have you seen it? Call it out when you do.

The offender won't know what to do because they know that you know their game. — Richie Norton

Better to teach a man to fish who already loves to fish. — Richie Norton

A key part of helping startups is providing them with a G/SCORE that measures a company on the path to sustainability. We score companies from around the world and use Knoodle so they can easily sync video and presentations together for a more effective pitch. We send these pitches to judges all around the world and it's critical that we have a flexible tool that is easy to create, easy to deliver, and effective at letting audiences understand the entrepreneur and their innovation. — Chris Shipley

There's no "get rich quick." There's no "overnight success."

However, this doesn't mean that when you decide to start a business that you're just starting. You could start making new money tomorrow.

I was fishing with my son and taught him that you can't catch a fish unless your line is in the water. A truth my dad once taught me.
You may have spent years learning a skill or creating a product or service that you just simply haven't thought to monetize. Like leaving a fishing pole on the ground along side the river, but not having your line in the water yet.

All you need to create a new stream of income is to make something consumable and offer it at a price that someone will pay.

If you're not making offers, you're not making money.

Get your line in the water! — Richie Norton

You can't judge a man by the way he reacts when things go right, but by the way he reacts when things go wrong. — Richie Norton

A company's culture is the foundation for future innovation. An entrepreneurs job is to build the foundation — Brian Chesky

The Great Wall of Facebook:

Having just visited the Great Wall of China, I'm thinking about the walls we build on FB. They are real. They keep people in and others out.

Build your wall carefully by answering this question:

What are you building your wall around? — Richie Norton

People who say "it's just business" are lying. It's a deceptive and manipulative tactic used by weak minds. Anyone who has ever run or been in business knows that a business will fail if the relationships are not healthy. Business is the business of relationships. That is all. — Richie Norton

Doubt manifests itself in indecision. — Richie Norton

Don't be a hater and call it love. — Richie Norton

The competition is out to get you. Are you a moving target or a sitting duck? Innovate or die. — Richie Norton

Disruptive innovation is entrepreneurs changing their industry with unique creativity. — Onyi Anyado

If you have time to write a business plan, you have time to prove the model. Just sayin. — Richie Norton

FIND YOUR WEIRD

Finding your weird is a lot like finding your voice. Although, your voice is more about your passion, your story, your way of communicating with the world.

Your weird is that thing you do that people would miss if you were gone.

Your weird is the thing that keeps your followers following you.

Your weird puts a smile on a face or an idea in a mind or money in your pocket.

Your weird is how we remember you.

What's your weird?

If you don't know, ask someone. Ask lots of people!

When you embrace your weird, you
love your life, share your story, meet new people, experience great things, freak yourself out, live on purpose, "save the whales," enjoy the moment.

Find your weird.

But first, breathe. — Richie Norton

Life isn't about having, it's about experiencing. — Richie Norton

When you travel, somehow, the world gets both bigger and smaller, simultaneously. — Richie Norton

Gut check. Is your current fear a stumbling block or a stepping stone? — Richie Norton

IT'S TIME TO LEARN YOUR A.B.C.s

Always
BE CONFIDENT
Confidence is a feeling, feel it.

Always
BE CREATIVE
Creativity is an ability, enable it.

Always
BE CURIOUS
Curiosity is a desire, desire it.

Always
BE COMPASSIONATE
Compassion is an awareness, be aware.

Always
BE CHARITABLE
Charity is generous, be generous.

Always
BE CONSIDERATE
Consideration is thoughtful, think.

Always
BE COURTEOUS
Courtesy is a mindset, be mindful.

Always
BE COACHABLE
Coachability is a willingness, be willing.

Always
BE COMMITTED
Commitment is purpose, live on purpose.

Always
BE CARING
Caring is giving, give. — Richie Norton

People love to say, "You gotta fake it till you make it." But this implies that the fake you is someone better than who you inherently are, and this is simply not the truth. Let me say this loud and clear: the person you imagine yourself to be in the very best and most powerful moments of your life, is the authentic you. And in truth, I imagine you're probably much more amazing even than that. — Richie Norton

Some entrepreneurs have a bad habit of taking personal credit for all improvements and innovations at their startups. If you penalize or ignore employee initiatives, you can be certain that they won't be repeated, and motivation for more conventional performance will suffer. — Martin Zwilling

You can disagree with an idea without attacking the person who shared it. — Richie Norton

Another year older, but am I wiser? Wisdom comes from learning and changing for the better. Sometimes we just go through life living the same day over and over and never gaining true wisdom. Let that never be me. — Richie Norton

How to "change the world" in two words: S.T.A.R.T. N.O.W.

1. START - Serve. Thank. Ask. Receive. Trust.

2. NOW - No Opportunity Wasted — Richie Norton

We are not creators; only combiners of the created. Invention isn't about new ingredients, but new recipes. And innovations taste the best. — Ryan Lilly

Note to businesspersons and salespersons: "Be professional" does not mean "be a robot." Just be friendly and act like a real person. Cool? — Richie Norton