Jon Cooper: Put some bounce into spring - 8 thoughts to waken you from winter!

This is the time of year when everything starts to awaken, when we start viewing houses, booking holidays, spending money and generally cheering up as the weather moves from ridiculously cold and damp to merely, well, damp.

To help you mark the start of the annual transition from dark and gloomy to bright and booming, I thought I’d share with you some of my favourite pearls of wisdom from the mouths of inspirational leaders past and present.

1 - “If you don’t know every aspect of what you are doing, down to the paper clips, you’re setting yourself up for some unwelcome surprises.” - Donald Trump

(Donald should know; he’s been bust, in-between making Billionaire status twice)

2 - “I don’t consider myself to be lucky. I think luck is preparation meeting a moment of opportunity.” - Oprah Winfrey

(Winfrey is one of the world’s richest broadcasters, worth easily $2.5 Billion and named America’s most powerful woman)

3 - “There is one rule for industrialists and that is: make the best quality goods possible at the lowest cost possible, paying the highest wages possible.” – Henry Ford

(Credited with the invention of mass production, Ford laid the foundations for every manufacturing business since)

4 - “Keep your business affairs in your own hands. It's the only way to be happy.” – Martha Washington

(The first First Lady of the US controlled 15,000 acres of farmland by the time she married George)

5 - "I am always doing things I can’t do. That’s how I get to do them." - Pablo Picasso

(The Spanish child prodigy learnt to paint, draw and sculpt with equal aplomb)

6 - “Lack of direction, not lack of time, is the problem. We all have 24-hour days.” - Zig Ziglar

(Legendary business guru Ziglar practically invented the sound-bite, way before it had a name)

7 - "Seventy percent of success in life is showing up." Woody Allen

(Actor, author, director; Allen’s been showing up and succeeding for over half a century)

8 - “To cultivate kindness is a valuable part of the business of life.” – Samuel Johnson

(This last thought is from the great Midlands author, whose wise words are as fresh as ever 200 years on)

Jon Cooper is the founder of JupiterDawn.com business consulting, and an Accredited Business Adviser with the IBD group. Exclusive to Blog readers - contact jon@jupiterdawn.com for a free one-hour business mentoring session with Jon, worth £175. Follow Jon @jonnycooper.