10 Intriguing Tony Hsieh Quotes from Delivering Happiness on Company Culture

---

Excerpt: How is a company’s culture correlated to its success? Check out these intriguing Tony Hsieh Quotes from Delivering Happiness and find out.

---

Introduction: How a company’s culture is tied to its success

If you got to choose your ideal circumstances to do the work you love doing… What would they be? 

Would you choose to work where you were told exactly what to do and how to do it or where you were empowered to do the work in the best way you saw fit?

Would you choose to work in an uplifting, expressive environment where you had the freedom to manage your work space or would you choose to work in a sterile, pre-set environment?

Would you choose to be surrounded by people who felt like they belonged and fit-in to the company or to be surrounded by people who were simply out to make as much money as they could?

Would you choose to work in an environment that emphasized employee growth and personal development or in a work environment that emphasized bottom line and maximizing profits?

The answers to most of these questions are seemingly obvious. But what’s not so obvious is why more company’s don’t provide work environments that follow these insights?

If the employees are the living, breathing lifeline of every company, wouldn’t it follow that employee development and growth should be the number one priority?

If you are in a leadership position, think about what you could do for the people in your place of work to provide a better environment for them.

Think about who you could talk to or what evidence you could present to initiate a change from a higher level authority.

Think about how you could create a more open, authentic, and expressive environment that would bring all of the employees closer together.

Think about even a small gesture that would show the people in your company that you’re ready to take action, i.e. start a book group for the personal development of all of the employees.

Below, you will find our list of 10 intriguing Tony Hsieh quotes from Delivering Happiness that will get you thinking outside of the cubical box.  They might even inspire an initiative that you can take at your workplace.

---

The List: 10 Intriguing Tony Hsieh Quotes from Delivering Happiness on Company Culture

---

“Wake up every day and ask yourself not only what is the 1% improvement I can change to make Zappos better, but also what is the 1% improvement I can change to make myself better personally and professionally. In the end we, as Zappos, can’t grow unless we, as individuals, grow too.”

Tony Hsieh, Delivering Happiness (Page 164)

“For individuals, character is destiny. For organizations, culture is destiny.”

Tony Hsieh, Delivering Happiness (Page 184)

“Never accept or be too comfortable with the status quo, because the companies that get into trouble are historically the ones that aren’t able to adapt to change and respond quickly enough.”

Tony Hsieh, Delivering Happiness (Page 163)

“Open, honest communication is the best foundation for any relationship, but remember that at the end of the day it’s not what you say or what you do, but how you make people feel that matters the most.”

Tony Hsieh, Delivering Happiness (Page 176)

“I believe that there’s something interesting about anyone and everyone – you just have to figure out what that something is.”

Tony Hsieh, Delivering Happiness (Page 81)

“Envision, create, and believe in your own universe, and the universe will form around you.”

Tony Hsieh, Delivering Happiness (Page 85)

“The problem when someone feels burned out, bored, unchallenged, or stifled by their work is not the job itself but rather the environment and playground rules given to them to do the job at hand.”

Tony Hsieh, Delivering Happiness (Page 171)

“I think when people say they dread going into work on Monday morning, it’s because they know they are leaving a piece of themselves at home. Why not see what happens when you challenge your employees to bring all of their talents to their job and reward them not for doing it just like everyone else, but for pushing the envelope, being adventurous, creative, and open-minded, and trying new things?”

Tony Hsieh, Delivering Happiness (Page 171)

“I made a list of the happiest periods in my life, and I realized that none of them involved money. I realized that building stuff and being creative and inventive made me happy. Connecting with a friend and talking through the entire night until the sun rose made me happy. Trick-or-treating in middle school with a group of my closest friends made me happy. Pickles made me happy.”

Tony Hsieh, Delivering Happiness (Page 53)

“I thought about how easily we are all brainwashed by our society and culture to stop thinking and just assume by default that more money equals more success and more happiness, when ultimately happiness is really just about enjoying life.”

Tony Hsieh, Delivering Happiness (Page 53)

---

If you enjoyed these quotes from Delivering Happiness, then you’ll certainly enjoy reading Tony Hsieh’s book in full.  It comes warmly recommended.

---

Read Next:

---