If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.

A culture of high standards is protective of all the "invisible" but crucial work that goes on in every company. I'm talkingabout the work that no one sees. The work that gets done when no one is watching. In a high standards culture, doing that work well is its own reward-it's part of what it means to be a professional.

Doing the best at this moment puts you in the best place for the next moment.

The idea that everyone should slavishly work so they do something inefficiently so they keep their job - that just doesn't make any sense to me. That can't be the right answer.

It vexes me greatly that having to earn my living has forced me to interrupt the work and to attend to small matters.

You need to get one thing done well, or else you don't have permission to do anything else.