The Best Herb Kelleher quotes

If you don’t treat your own people well, they won’t treat other people well. — Herb Kelleher

Your people come first, and if you treat them right, they’ll treat the customers right. — Herb Kelleher

You have to treat your employees like customers — Herb Kelleher

Your employees come first. And if you treat your employees right, guess what? Your customers come back, and that makes your shareholders happy. Start with employees and the rest follows from that. — Herb Kelleher

The Wright Amendment is a pain in the ass, but not every pain in the ass is a constitutional infringement. — Herb Kelleher

Wild Turkey whiskey and Philip Morris cigarettes are essential to the maintenance of human life! — Herb Kelleher

You can’t have a mid–life crisis in the airline industry because every day is a crisis. — Herb Kelleher

You have to have the service mentality in the sense that you subjugate your own ego, and you subjugate a large part of your own life to really helping other people, being successful on their behalf. — Herb Kelleher

If you’re crazy enough to do what you love for a living, then you’re bound to create a life that matters. — Herb Kelleher

I guess the worst moment I ever had in business was the fear that Southwest Airlines wouldn’t get off the ground. — Herb Kelleher

Keep costs low and spirits high, and the people of Southwest Airlines will keep LUV in the air. — Herb Kelleher

The spirit of Southwest Airlines is exuberant, it’s caring, it’s dedicated, it’s diligent, it’s fun, it’s rewarding, it’s a joy. — Herb Kelleher

When I started working on Southwest Airlines, I kid you not, only people flying on business and very wealthy people ever flew. — Herb Kelleher

I’ve been asked a number of times what was my proudest accomplishment when I was still very active in the day–to–day affairs of Southwest Airlines. I always said job security for our people. — Herb Kelleher

Southwest isn’t a ‘This is my job, that’s your job’ kind of company. Being successful is our job, and we’re willing to do whatever it takes to achieve that. — Herb Kelleher

We’ve always operated on the thesis that a company can have a personality, that people can be themselves, and be very successful in business at the same time. — Herb Kelleher

My suggestion is that if you need someone outside your company to prepare a mission statement for you, then you really don’t know what your mission is, and you probably don’t have one. — Herb Kelleher

Succession planning has been a major priority at Southwest for quite some time. We think we have come up with a winning combination of talent for our company reorganization. — Herb Kelleher