{"id":5939,"date":"2018-04-23T17:38:04","date_gmt":"2018-04-23T17:38:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/repeatright.com\/engine\/?p=5939"},"modified":"2018-04-23T18:08:59","modified_gmt":"2018-04-23T18:08:59","slug":"iacocca-lee","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.repeatright.com\/engine\/iacocca-lee\/","title":{"rendered":"IACOCCA, Lee"},"content":{"rendered":"
[vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453315804311{margin-top: -40px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1449531588223-e020d87d-f7dd094f-cf635381-89e55869-584f”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cA country\u2019s competitiveness starts not on the factory floor or in the engineering lab. It starts in the classroom.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Lee Iacocca<\/strong>, American automotive executive<\/p>\n

Talking Straight<\/em> (1988) with Sonny Kleinfeld, New York, NY: Bantam Books, July 1989 edition, p. 236<\/p>\n

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Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>: [From a book of autobiographical essays & thoughts on various topics. Quoted excerpt appears in chapter XIII: \u201cThe School Crisis\u201d]\n

\u201cA country\u2019s competitiveness starts not on the factory floor or in the engineering lab. It starts in the classroom<\/span>. We\u2019ve got to get cracking on education \u2013 at all levels \u2013 or we\u2019ll get run over by the Far East.\u201d (p. 232)\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1449531589797-29580b31-8c50094f-cf635381-89e55869-584f”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

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Source<\/em><\/span><\/strong>: Library \u2013 Talking Straight<\/em> (1988|July 1989 Bantam Book edition) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-553-27805-3<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315829087-ce67c619-0fbc5381-89e55869-584f”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cI\u2019d really love to meet the guy I\u2019m supposed to be. I\u2019d hire him in a second.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Lee Iacocca<\/strong>, American automotive executive<\/p>\n

Talking Straight<\/em> (1988) with Sonny Kleinfeld, New York, NY: Bantam Books, July 1989 edition, p. 55<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315829475-7c82a017-1e625381-89e55869-584f”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>: [From a book of autobiographical essays & thoughts on various topics. Quoted excerpt appears in chapter III: \u201cFame and Faith\u201d]\n

\u201cThe fact is, the myth about me has gone so far beyond the reality that it\u2019s ridiculous. I\u2019d really love to meet the guy I\u2019m supposed to be. I\u2019d hire him in a second.\u201d (p. 55)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1453315829682-63e8fade-cf4c5381-89e55869-584f”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

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Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Library \u2013 Talking Straight<\/em> (1988|July 1989 Bantam Book edition) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-553-27805-3<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315828001-b5e2e52e-ea1e5381-89e55869-584f”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cIn a completely rational society, teachers would be at the very tip of the pyramid, just above \u201cking,\u201d not near the bottom. In that society, the best of us would aspire to be teachers, and the rest of us would have to settle for something less. Passing civilization along from one generation to the next ought to be the highest responsibility and the highest honor anyone could have.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Lee Iacocca<\/strong>, American automotive executive<\/p>\n

Remarks to the National Education Association (3 March 1989) transcript in \u201cI gotta tell you\u201d: Speeches of Lee Iacocca<\/em>, ed. Matthew W. Seeger, Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 1994, p. 298<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-ban” add_icon=”true” title=”Misquotes” tab_id=”1453315828190-b4d7b461-d58d5381-89e55869-584f”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Misquote notes<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Some Internet websites have shared an abbreviated version of Iacocca’s quote, and often the altered quote changes the Iacocca’s “settle for something less” to “settle for something else.”<\/p>\n

Although it’s possible that Iacocca repeated this same idea in another written or spoken work, to date we have not been able to locate a source linking him to the paraphrased version:<\/p>\n

Original text<\/span><\/em>: \u201cIn a completely rational society, teachers would be at the very tip of the pyramid, just above \u201cking,\u201d not near the bottom. In that society, the best of us would aspire to be teachers, and the rest of us would have to settle for something less<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Misquote<\/em><\/span> (or re-quote<\/span>, yet unverfied): \u201cIn a completely rational society, the best of us would be teachers and the rest of us would have to settle for something else<\/strong><\/span>.\u201d<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315828385-86abfac4-79bf5381-89e55869-584f”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>: [Speech to meeting of the National Education Association (NEA)]\n

\u201cWe\u2019re really upside down. In a completely rational society, teachers would be at the very tip of the pyramid, just above \u201cking,\u201d not near the bottom. In that society, the best of us would aspire to be teachers, and the rest of us would have to settle for something less. Passing civilization along from one generation to the next ought to be the highest responsibility and the highest honor anyone could have<\/span>.\u201d (p. 298)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1453315828572-dac97b48-68e05381-89e55869-584f”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

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Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Library \u2013 I Gotta Tell You: Speeches of Lee Iacocca<\/em> (1994) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-8143-2546-7<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1449531591105-7edf5f39-feaa094f-cf635381-89e55869-584f”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201c[M]aybe nothing says more about the decline of American education than what\u2019s happened to the prestige of classroom teaching in this country. The biggest difference between the American and Japanese schools may not be the test scores, but the fact that teachers in Japan are revered and honored, while teachers in this country are usually regarded…as just another public employee group.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Lee Iacocca<\/strong>, American automotive executive<\/p>\n

Remarks to the National Education Association (3 March 1989) transcript in \u201cI gotta tell you\u201d: Speeches of Lee Iacocca<\/em>, ed. Matthew W. Seeger, Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 1994, p. 298<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1449531591631-43861bc7-da28094f-cf635381-89e55869-584f”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>: [Speech to meeting of the National Education Association (NEA)]\n

\u201cAnd maybe nothing says more about the decline of American education than what\u2019s happened to the prestige of classroom teaching in this country. The biggest difference between the American and Japanese schools may not be the test scores, but the fact that teachers in Japan are revered and honored, while teachers in this country are usually regarded, I hate to say it, but it\u2019s true, as just another public employee group<\/span>.\u201d (p. 298)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1449531592891-f39e055b-a66e094f-cf635381-89e55869-584f”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

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Source<\/em><\/span><\/strong>: Library \u2013 I Gotta Tell You: Speeches of Lee Iacocca<\/em> (1994) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-8143-2546-7<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315828001-b5e2e52e-ea1e5381-89e55869-584f”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a world of difference between a strong ego, which is essential, and a large ego \u2013 which can be destructive.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Lee Iacocca<\/strong>, American automotive executive<\/p>\n

Iacocca: An Autobiography<\/em> (January 1984) with William Novak, Boston, MA: G.K. Hall, January 1984, p. 98<\/p>\n

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Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>: [Autobiography]\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a world of difference between a strong ego, which is essential, and a large ego \u2013 which can be destructive<\/span>. The guy with a strong ego knows his own strengths. He\u2019s confident. He has a realistic idea of what he can accomplish, and he moves purposefully toward his goal.<\/p>\n

But the guy with a large ego is always looking for recognition. He constantly needs to be patted on the back. He thinks he\u2019s a cut above everybody else. And he talks down to the people who work for him.\u201d (p. 98)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1453315828572-dac97b48-68e05381-89e55869-584f”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

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Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Library – Iacocca: An Autobiography<\/em> (January 1984) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-8161-3889-3<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1449531591105-7edf5f39-feaa094f-cf635381-89e55869-584f”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cTo me, education is the price of admission into our democracy. Having a strong long-term educational program is the core of a good strong nation.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Lee Iacocca<\/strong>, American automotive executive<\/p>\n

Talking Straight<\/em> (1988) with Sonny Kleinfeld, New York, NY: Bantam Books, July 1989 edition, p. 237<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1449531591631-43861bc7-da28094f-cf635381-89e55869-584f”][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>: [From a book of autobiographical essays & thoughts on various topics. Quoted excerpt appears in chapter XIII: \u201cThe School Crisis\u201d]\n

\u201cTo me, education is the price of admission into our democracy. Having a strong long-term educational program is the core of a good strong nation. It will take time to be developed, but it certainly shouldn\u2019t waver with a budget. I\u2019m all for spending cuts, but that\u2019s a gamble we can\u2019t afford.\u201d (p. 237)<\/p>\n

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Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Library \u2013 Talking Straight<\/em> (1988|July 1989 Bantam Book edition) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-553-27805-3<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]\n

Resources<\/h4>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css_animation=”none” el_class=”Wrapper-Author-Resources”]Learn more about Lee Iacocca <\/strong><\/span>| Here are a few good places to find out more –<\/p>\n