Secretary Donald Rumsfeld 1932 — Quotes

If you try to please everybody, somebody’s not going to like it.

Simply because a problem is shown to exist, it doesn’t necessarily follow that there is a solution.

Plan backward as well as forward. Set objectives and trace back to see how to achieve them. You may find that no path can get you there. Plan forward to see where your steps will take you, which may not be clear or intuitive.

Learn to say “I don’t know.” If used when appropriate, it will be often.

Selected as the most confusing public statement of 2003 by Britain's Plain English Campaign: Reports that say something hasn’t happened are interesting to me, because as we know, there are known knowns; there things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns -- the ones we don’t know we don’t know.

Beware when any idea is promoted primarily because it is “bold, exciting, innovative and new.” There are many ideas that are “bold, exciting, innovative and new,” but also foolish.

s -- the ones we don’t know we don’t know.

It is easier to get into something than to get out of it.