Azim Premji's secrets for success - 1

1. ·the biggest enemy of future success is past success. When you succeed, you feel that you must be doing something right for it to happen. But when the parameters for success changes, doing the same things may or may not continue to lead to success.
   
2. ·We invested in uncompromising integrity that helped us take difficult stands in some of the most difficult business situations.
   
3. · Routines represent our own zones of comfort. There is a sense of predictability about them. They have structured our time and even our thought in a certain way. While routines are useful, do not let them enslave you. Deliberately break out of them from time to time.
   
4. · Life's battle does not always go to the person who is stronger and faster. The person who wins is the person who thinks he can.
   
5. · Always keep in mind that it is only the test of fire that makes fine steel.
   
6. · As you get bigger, you have to learn to delegate. It?s also an excellent way to get staff involved in the company?s operations.
   
7. · As an advisor, I can say what I want. If I were a politician, I would constantly have to compromise, and I'm incapable of doing that.
   
8. · Character is one factor that will guide all our actions and decisions.
   
9. · It requires courage to keep dreaming. And that is when dreams are most needed -- not when everything is going right, but when just about everything is going wrong.
   
10. · You cannot fire a missile from a canoe. Unless you build a strong network of people with complimentary skills, you will be restricted by your own limitations.
    
11. · Playing to win is not the same as cutting corners. When you play to win, you stretch yourself to your maximum and use all your potential. It also helps you to concentrate your energy on what you can influence instead of getting bogged down with the worry of what you cannot change. Do your best and leave the rest.
    
12. · Everyone feels the fear of unknown. Courage is not the absence of fear but the ability to manage fear without getting paralyzed. Feel the fear, but move on regardless.
    
13. · In our way of working, we attach a great deal of importance to humility and honesty. With respect for human values, we promise to serve our customers with integrity.
    
14. · Guard against complacency all the time. Complacency makes you blind to the early signals from the environment that something is going wrong.
    
15. · If you are always in the company of cynics, you will soon find yourself becoming like them. A cynic knows all the reasons why something cannot be done.
    
16. · Take your time to decide what your core values are. Once you do, do not compromise on them for any reason. Integrity is one such value.
    
17. · Nobody can make us feel inferior without our consent.
    
18. · Change descends on every one equally; it is just that some realise it faster. Some changes are sudden but many others are gradual. While sudden changes get attention because they are dramatic, it is the gradual changes that are ignored till it is too late. You must have all heard of story of the frog in boiling water. If the temperature of the water is suddenly increased, the frog realises it and jumps out of the water. But if the temperature is very slowly increased, one degree at a time, the frog does not realise it till it boils to death. You must develop your own early warning system, which warns you of changes and calls your attention to it. In the case of change, being forewarned is being forearmed.
    
19. · Spend time with people who have a 'can-do' approach. Choose your advisors and mentors correctly.
    
20. · We need an open mind to look at things in a different way and allow new inputs to come in. Otherwise, there is a real danger of becoming complacent or even downright arrogant.
    
21. · We must remember that succeeding in a changing world is beyond just surviving. It is our responsibility to create and contribute something to the world that has given us so much.
    
22. · We believe the combination of excellence in operations and strong execution of our strategy is critical to achieve our vision. We will continue to focus on both in future as well.
    
23. · Constantly ask yourself what new skills and competencies will be needed. Begin working on them before it becomes necessary and you will have a natural advantage.
    
24. · If you do not take enough risks, you may also be losing out on many opportunities. Think through but take the plunge. If some things do go wrong, learn from them.
    
25. · I came across this interesting story some time ago: One day a farmer's donkey fell down into a well. The animal cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do. Finally he decided the animal was old and the well needed to be covered up anyway, it just wasn't worth it to retrieve the donkey. He invited all his neighbours to come over and help him. They all grabbed a shovel and begin to shovel dirt into the well. At first, the donkey realised what was happening and cried horribly. Then, to everyone's amazement he quietened down. A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally looked down the well and was astonished at what he saw. With every shovel of dirt that fell on his back, the donkey was doing some thing amazing. He would shake it off and take a step up. As the farmer's neighbours continued to shovel dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it off and take a step up. Pretty soon, everyone was amazed as the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and trotted off! Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds of dirt. The trick is to not to get bogged down by it. We can get out of the deepest wells by not stopping. And by never giving up! Shake it off and take a step up.