Tom Watson Quotes (9 quotes) | Quotes of famous people

Tom Watson: 9 quotes 10 likes

Famous Tom Watson Quotes

“All the problems of the world could be settled easily if men were only willing to think. The trouble is that men very often resort to all sorts of devices in order not to think, because thinking is such hard work.”

Tom Watson

Actually a remark by Nicholas Murray Butler.
Quoted by Watson in comments about "Think" and attributed to Nicholas Murray Butler - IBM Archives: Comments on "THINK" - Transcript https://www-03.ibm.com/ibm/history/multimedia/think_trans.html
Misattributed
Source: American Dental Association (1959) The Journal of the American Dental Association. Vol 59. p. 289.

“Follow the path of the unsafe, independent thinker. Expose your ideas to the danger of controversy. Speak your mind and fear less the label of "crackpot" than the stigma of conformity.”

Tom Watson

Attributed to Watson in: Georg Blair, Sandy Meadows (1996) A Real-Life Guide to Organizational Change. p. 117.

“If you want to achieve excellence, you can get there today. As of this second, quit doing less than excellent work.”

Tom Watson

Attributed to Watson in: William G. Dickerson (1995) In search of the ultimate practice. p. 19.

“To be successful, you have to have your heart in your business, and your business in your heart. ”

Tom Watson

“Nothing so conclusively proves a man's ability to lead others as what he does from day to day to lead himself.”

Tom Watson

Watson (1939) in: American druggist Vol 100. p. 40.

“A man is known by the company he keeps. A company is known by the men it keeps.”

Tom Watson

Source: Garg, Anu, A Word A Day, Wordsmith, 2016.02.17

“I think there is a world market for maybe five computers.”

Tom Watson

Often dated to 1943. Thorough research of Watson's writings and statements have produced no example of him saying this. It appears to be a corruption of a remark by Howard Aiken that four or five computers could meet all of the United Kingdom's computing needs. See Ralph Keyes (2006), The Quote Verifier.
Misattributed