Dick Smith Quotes
120 Dick Smith Quotes
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So many people persevere at things they are not good at. I am good at running a business.
Dick Smith
I remember in second class a person trying to teach me to tie my shoe laces. I could never say ‘S’ then. One of my teachers was nasty. She used to get me up in front of the class and say ‘What’s your name?’ I would say ‘Dick Miff’.
Dick Smith
In my first year at North Sydney Tech I came 194th out of 200. After three years trying to learn French I got seven percent in the Intermediate Certificate.
Dick Smith
When I did the Leaving Certificate… I topped the school in maths. I must have matured late.
Dick Smith
I learn quickly from a mistake. People around me never seem to learn this. They make the same mistake dozens of times.
Dick Smith
When I give an order I give the reason for it and all its problems so it will be understood.
Dick Smith
The tax man wrote it in his book when he came here… the fact that I owned an old car. Now I wonder why he did that?
Dick Smith
[On his house being a suburban brick house, comfortable but not remarkable] I could afford a house worth 10 times as much but it’s satisfactory.
Dick Smith
[On his five year old Ford Fairlane and wive’s second hand Datsun] We’ll keep them until we start getting problems. A lot of people say ‘You have got all that money, you must go out and spend it.’ I can’t see that. I buy things I need.
Dick Smith
If a good salesman comes here I ring up his firm and tell them to send a bad salesman because I refuse to be talked into something I don’t want.
Dick Smith
The unfortunate thing about business is that you judge success only by profits.
Dick Smith
I’m an egotist in business, it makes me want to live and have a go, to be able to say I’m achieving something.
Dick Smith
A lot of people start businesses and the minute they do well they want to live up the image and buy, buy … In the end they drain all the cash and go broke. Then they blame everyone else.
Dick Smith
I thing tipping is a pity, I would like to see people paid adequately.
Dick Smith
My wife runs my finances. I never carry any money at all.
Dick Smith
[His wife] She buys my clothes, otherwise I would be walking around in rags.
Dick Smith
I don’t drink alcohol or smoke. My ultimate is an orange cordial.
Dick Smith
When I go to the pub with the blokes I have one beer which I don’t enjoy. Some of them think ‘He’s having a go at us – he’s the boss.’
Dick Smith
I love the bush. I’ve made my farm a wild life refuge and my family and I go bushwalking and climb mountains.
Dick Smith
[On a chartered airtrip to look for Lasseters gold] We may not have found gold but we certainly seem to have made a lot of friends.
Dick Smith
[On the helicopter he will use for flying around the world] It’s a brand new $400,000 Bell Jetranger with a Collins auto-pilot and a VLF-Omega navigation system. It’s incredible. It’s the only one of its type in the world.
Dick Smith
From London to Darwin I’ve allowed about 30 days. But secretly I would like to do that stage in Hinkler’s time of 15 and a half days. I want to go like mad.
Dick Smith
I’ll be seeing the world in a way no one has before. I’ll be flying at 300 above the ground the whole way, filming everything I want to… circling the Pyramids, swooping on Everest, the Tower of Pisa…
Dick Smith
I’m not travelling fancy, just with a cut lunch.
Dick Smith
Some say it’s impossible. If it is, I’m going to find that out quickly. I’ve coldly calculated the risks involved.
Dick Smith
The biggest problem has been negotiating with the Russians. To get around the world on stage three I have to go via Japan and Alaska which means I have to land in Russia. They normally do not give approval for such landings, but I’m hopeful they’ll allow me to set down…
Dick Smith
If they don’t, I’ll arrange to land on the deck of a ship in the area, re-fuel and fly off.
Dick Smith
People think a helicopter is dangerous but about 3,500 people are killed on our roads each year. Life is dangerous.
Dick Smith
[On flying solo around the world in a helicopter] I’d hate to get to the stage where I didn’t make this trip yet was killed going to work in a car.
Dick Smith
I’ll notch up a few world firsts… first helicopter around the world, first solo helicopter across the Atlantic and most of the segments across the Pacific will be first for helicopters. But I’m not out to set time records. It will be good fun.
Dick Smith
I did quite well from the start; my accountant actually told me after 6 months that I had made more money then the Prime Minister of Australia.
Dick Smith
When I was 13 years of age, very impressionable age, dad opened a printing business. Dad worked in a bookshop and started his own business. Within four or five months, it went broke and he had a complete nervous breakdown and ended up in bed… It's amazing to me that I wanted to start my own business.
Dick Smith
My mum used to say, ‘Dick, you march to the beat of a different drum.’
Dick Smith
[Now married to Pip for 38 years in 2007] Even before we got married when we were still engaged we started Dick Smith Car Radio. I had $600 and Pip had $10.
Dick Smith
Pip and I were very goal-orientated. We thought if we worked hard we would do well. We thought doing well was having three or four people working for us. Within a few years we had 50 people working for us and then 100 and it was doing millions of dollars worth of turnover. We were more surprised than anyone.
Dick Smith
Scouts made me… I did well in Scouts and got my Queen Scout and my Baden Powell Award and that was quite fantastic.
Dick Smith
[On naming Dick Smith Electronics] Originally I was going to call the business Alltronics And a relative of mine in advertising said, ‘That's crazy. Use your own name.’ I was so self-conscious, I thought it wouldn't work. People with a Mercedes will never come in to a place called ‘Dick Smith’. Luckily he said, ‘Yes they will, use your own name.’ It was the best thing I could have done.
Dick Smith
I've been wise enough never to get into a business unless I know there's a good chance of success and in fact I've never been on an adventure unless there's a good chance of success. So far I've succeeded because I'm realistic.
Dick Smith
There's a formula for being successful in business. That's a simple formula. Copy the success of others, ask advice and work damn hard, keep the overheads low, of course. It's so easy, I've never had problems in making money.
Dick Smith
I’m not religious, but I make a point of trying to leave this world better than when I came into it.
Dick Smith
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