"I don’t know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody."
Bill Cosby

"If you’re in a position of authority, no matter how nice and fair you are, some people will dislike you. Being the boss isn’t a popularity contest."
Jay Goltz

"Beware of over-great pleasure in being popular or even beloved."
Margaret Fuller

"A thick skin is a gift from God."
Konrad Adenaur

It's Okay to Say No

"Show me a guy who can’t say ‘No," and I’ll show you a guy with lots of problems."
Red Auerbach

"No one ever went broke by saying no too often."
Harvey Mackay

"Most of the things we decide are not what we know to be the best. We say 'yes' merely because we are driven into a corner and must say something."
Frank Crane

"Yield to all, and you will soon have nothing to yield."
Aesop

Never Compromise Yourself

"To know oneself, one should assert oneself."
Albert Camus

"If you just set out to be liked, you would be prepared to compromise on anything at any time, and you would achieve nothing."
Margaret Thatcher

"Be decent and fair. But ultimately you have to know how to get the work done, whether or not people like you for it."
Sally Field

"A great leader is rarely 'warm.' A good many have been icy. A good many have had not a trace of charisma. But a leader always inspires confidence, always commands respect."
Peter Drucker

"Trust thyself; every heart vibrates to that iron string."
Ralph Waldo Emerson

"If you listen to your conscience, it will serve you as no other friend you’ve ever known."
Loretta Young

And Finally

"Don’t compromise yourself. You’re all you’ve got."
Janis Joplin