Category Archives: Quote-ables

And You Can Quote … Me!

By Phil Stella | Published: August 1, 2016

I’m thrilled with your response to my latest installment of ‘Quote-ables’ – comments I’ve made for a reporter’s article on workplace communication. Here are a few more gems you might hear often in one of my workshops: Read More »

What can we learn about communication from the Ancients?

By Phil Stella | Published: July 3, 2016

‘First learn the meaning of what you say and then speak.’
Epictetus (AD 55 – 135), Greek philosopher and teacher Read More »

I Get Teamwork

By Phil Stella | Published: June 1, 2016

Business publication reporters regularly contact me for comments or input in my narrow-but-deep niches of expertise. Recently, someone asked for some original quotes about teamwork. Hope he liked them:

 
‘There is no ‘I’ in ‘team’, but there is a ‘me’. So make me feel welcome, valued and important if I’m on your team.’

‘There is no ‘I’ in ‘team’, but there is an ‘eat’. So, make sure you have good food at every meeting.’

‘A camel is a horse designed by a team. A giraffe is a horse designed by a cross-functional team. A rhino is a horse designed by a self-directed team. And an elephant is a horse designed by a team led by the boss.’

Hope you liked them, too.

And now, you can quote me. – Phil Stella, contemporary entrepreneur, workplace communication expert, executive coach and author.

Abe Gets It

By Phil Stella | Published: May 4, 2016

‘The trouble with quotes on the Internet is that you can never know if they are genuine.’

— Abraham Lincoln, 1809-1865, 16th President of the United States

More Learning from the Movies

By Phil Stella | Published: April 5, 2016

Last month’s piece about communication-related quotes from the movies generated some buzz and request for more. So … Lights … Camera … Action!’

Knowledge speaks; wisdom listens.’ – Andre Benjamin, ‘Jimi: All is By My side’, 2013.

‘If people only spoke when they had something to say, the human race would lose the power of speech.’ – Naomi Watts, ‘The Painted Vail’, 2006.

‘Constantly talking isn’t necessarily communicating.’ – Jim Carrey, ‘Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind’, 2004.

‘Don’t use seven words when one will do.’ – Brad Pitt, ‘Ocean’s Eleven’, 2001.

That’s a wrap …

Learn from the Movies

By Phil Stella | Published: March 3, 2016

With Oscar-mania and other movie award shows behind us for another year, let’s see what we can learn about communication from the movies.

‘The secret to talking is listening.’ – Scarlett Johansson, ‘We Bought a Zoo’, 2011

‘Learning to listen – that takes a lot of discipline.’  – Gary Cole, ‘Forever Strange’, 2008

‘Rule #1 – be a listener!’ – Robert Downey Jr., ‘Lucky You’, 2007

‘As long as you’re talking, you’re not listening.’ – Sylvester Stallone, ‘Creed’, 2015

And the Oscar goes to …

The Power of Words

By Phil Stella | Published: February 2, 2016

‘We have too many high sounding words and too few actions that correspond with them.’ – Abigail Adams, (1744 – 1818), American, wife of President John Adams and mother of President John Quincy Adams.

‘Words ought to be a little wild, for they are the assaults of thought on the unthinking.’ – John Fletcher, (1579 – 1625), prolific and influential English dramatist of the Jacobean era.

‘Do not accustom yourself to use big words for little matters.’ – Samuel Johnson (1709 – 1784), English writer, poet and literary critic.

Learn from Plato

By Phil Stella | Published: December 31, 2015

We can all still learn so much about communicating from Plato, the 4th century BC classic Greek philosopher, mathematician and scientist:

‘The beginning is the most important part of the work.’

‘Wise men speak because they have something to say. Fools speak because they have to say something.’

‘Those who tell the stories rule society.’

‘I’m trying to think, don’t confuse me with facts.’

19th Century Wisdom

By Phil Stella | Published: November 24, 2015

We can learn a lot from these 19th century authors about communication.

‘Deeds, not words, shall speak me.’ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German poet, playwright and statesman.

‘Speak properly and in as few words as you can, but always plainly.’  William Butler Yeats, Irish poet and politician.

‘… the short words are the best and the old words best of all.’ Samuel Taylor Coleridge, English poet, literary critic and philosopher.

Learn from Celebrities

By Phil Stella | Published: October 30, 2015

We can learn a lot from these 20th century celebrities about communication.

‘The secret of a good speech is to have a good beginning and a good ending, then having the two as close together as possible.’ George Burns – comedian and actor.

‘You can speak well if your tongue can deliver the message of your heart.’ – John Ford – award-winning and influential film director.

‘The human brain starts working the moment you are born and never stops until you stand up to speak in public.’ – George Jessell – actor, singer and ‘Toastmaster General of the United States’.

‘Talk low, talk slow, and don’t talk too much.’ – John Wayne, award-winning actor and film director.