How to Apply Some of the Best Business Principles to Your Life

Learning from the “Father of Modern Management”

One of the most widely known and influential thinkers on management for much of the twentieth century, he has influenced millions of people around the world. Born in Vienna, Austria, he came to the United States in 1937 and became a naturalized American citizen at 34 years old in 1943. During his life, he published 39 major books, authored countless articles, and in 2002 received the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He died at the age of 95 in 2005.

Peter Drucker is recognized worldwide as the “Father of Modern Management.” Much of his work extends beyond management into everyday life, the viewpoint used for this article. Let’s look at some of Drucker’s most famous quotes, and some general takeaways. Every quote that follows is from Drucker’s books and articles.

Measuring

To improve anything in life, it must have a standard against which it can be measured. If you can measure it, you can change it, manage it, and improve it. Following are four quotes to this point:

“You can’t manage what you don’t measure.”

“If you can’t measure it, you can’t change it.”

“What gets measured gets managed.”

“What gets measured gets improved.”

Efficiency and Effectiveness

Drucker’s writing on this subject made a serious impact in my career. He wrote a good bit about effectiveness and efficiency, as shown in this powerful quote:

“Efficiency is doing things right;

effectiveness is doing the right things.”

Drucker expands on this statement greatly in his writings. Following are additional quotes further emphasizing effectiveness and efficiency:

“Doing the right thing is more important than doing the thing right.”

“Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things.”

“There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all.”

“If there is any one secret of effectiveness, it is concentration. Effective executives do first things first and they do one thing at a time.”

“Effective people are not problem minded; they’re opportunity-minded. They feed opportunities and starve problems. They think preventively.”

“Brilliant men are often strikingly ineffectual. They fail to realize that the brilliant insight is not by itself achievement. They never have learned that insights become effectiveness only through hard systematic work.”

Goals

What would any life or business be without something to aim for? Yet it takes more than aiming. Read this sage advice:

“Do not measure your life by your goals but what you are doing to achieve them.”

“The real achiever does one thing at a time.”

“If you have more than five goals, you have none.”

“The critical question is not “How can I achieve?” but “What can I contribute?”

“Replace your pursuit of success with the pursuit of contribution.”

Waste Not

A great deal of the life we live and the work we do does not produce much. It behooves us to heed this advice:

“It’s amazing how many things busy people are doing that never will be missed.”

“There is nothing worse than doing the wrong thing well.”

Planning

An important thing in life and business is to plan. Drucker has great insight on the subject.

“Plans are worthless, but planning is invaluable.”

“Long-range planning does not deal with the future decisions, but with the future of present decisions.”

“Do what you do best, and outsource the rest.”

The Future

Drucker provides great advice on what to do and what not to do when it comes to creating your future.

“The best way to predict the future is to create it.”

“Rather than waiting for the future to happen, take an active part in creating it.“

“To make the future demands courage. It demands work. But it also demands faith.”

“If you want something new, you have to stop doing something old”

“Don’t try to innovate for the future. Innovate for the present!”

“The relevant question is not simply what shall we do tomorrow, but rather what shall we do today in order to get ready for tomorrow.”

“Trying to predict the future is like trying to drive down a country road at night with no lights while looking out the back window.”

“The only thing we know about the future is that it will be different.”

Strengths

It has been proven time and time again that more can be accomplished by working from strengths than on weaknesses.

“Cultivate a deep understanding of yourself — not only what your strengths and weaknesses are but also how you learn, how you work with others, what your values are, and where you can make the greatest contribution. Because only when you operate from strengths can you achieve true excellence.”

“A man should never be appointed into a managerial position if his vision focuses on people’s weaknesses rather than on their strengths.”

Learning

Never stop learning. A learner will always grow and accomplish more than one who will not learn and grow.

“We now accept the fact that learning is a lifelong process of keeping abreast of change. And the most pressing task is to teach people how to learn.”

“No one learns as much about a subject as one who is forced to teach it.”

“The only skill that will be important in the 21st century is the skill of learning new skills. Everything else will become obsolete over time.”

Life and Living

Drucker always included words for living in his work.

“To make a living is no longer enough. Work also has to make a life.”

“The problem in my life and other people’s lives is not the absence of knowing what to do, but the absence of doing it.”

Management Wisdom

When reading the following quotes, think not about business management only, but how they can apply to managing your life.

“The most serious mistakes are not being made as a result of wrong answers. The true dangerous thing is asking the wrong question.”

“The greatest danger in times of turbulence is not the turbulence — it is to act with yesterday’s logic.”

“Do not believe that it is very much of an advance to do the unnecessary three times as fast.”

“Management by objective works — if you know the objectives. Ninety percent of the time you don’t.”

“Strategy is a commodity, execution is an art.”

“There are two types of people in the business community: those who produce results and those who give you reasons why they didn’t.”

Time

Time is your most precious and limited resource. Use it wisely.

“Time is the scarcest resource and unless it is managed nothing else can be managed.”

“One cannot buy, rent or hire more time. The supply of time is totally inelastic. No matter how high the demand, the supply will not go up. There is no price for it. Time is totally perishable and cannot be stored. Yesterday’s time is gone forever, and will never come back. Time is always in short supply. There is no substitute for time. Everything requires time. All work takes place in, and uses up time. Yet most people take for granted this unique, irreplaceable and necessary resource.”

Do Not Fear Mistakes

As the old saying goes, if you are going to make an omelet, you need to break a few eggs. Drucker’s advice on mistakes is timeless.

“People who don’t take risks generally make about two big mistakes a year. People who do take risks generally make about two big mistakes a year.”

“The better a man is the more mistakes he will make for the more things he will try.”

Entrepreneurship

Drucker defines the heart of entrepreneurship.

“Most of what you hear about entrepreneurship is all wrong. It’s not magic; it’s not mysterious; and it has nothing to do with genes. It’s a discipline and, like any discipline, it can be learned.”

“Entrepreneurship is neither a science nor an art. It is a practice.”

“The entrepreneur always searches for change, responds to it, and exploits it as an opportunity.”

“Innovation is the specific instrument of entrepreneurship. The act that endows resources with a new capacity to create wealth.”

“Entrepreneurship is “risky” mainly because so few of the so-called entrepreneurs know what they are doing.”

“People who need certainty are unlikely to make good entrepreneurs.”

Leadership

Drucker defines leadership in ways often missed by many.

“Rank does not confer privilege or give power. It imposes responsibility.”

“Leadership is not rank, privileges, title or money. It is responsibility.”

“Effective leadership is not about making speeches or being liked; leadership is defined by results not attributes.”

“Our job in life is to make a positive difference, not prove we’re right.”

“Successful leaders don’t start out asking, “What do I want to do?” They ask, “What needs to be done?” Then they ask, “Of those things that would make a difference, which are right for me?”

“The three most charismatic leaders in this century inflicted more suffering on the human race than almost any trio in history: Hitler, Stalin, and Mao. What matters is not the leader’s charisma. What matters is the leader’s mission.”

Change

Every living being and every organization must deal with change.

“The most effective way to manage change is to create it.”

“Everybody has accepted by now that change is unavoidable. But that still implies that change is like death and taxes — it should be postponed as long as possible and no change would be vastly preferable. But in a period of upheaval, such as the one we are living in, change is the norm.”

“To survive and succeed, every organization will have to turn itself into a change agent.”

What Next?

There is much more to learn from Peter Drucker. To tap into some of his wisdom I highly recommend reading The Five Most Important Questions, Managing Oneself, and The Effective Executive. His books will likely affect your life as they have mine, forever changing your perspectives on life and business.

To make the best use of this article in your life, share it with someone with whom you can discuss Drucker’s work. Each of you will greatly benefit from the experience!

Bill Abbate Leadership Writer and Editor in ILLUMINATION.

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