Everyone knows the saying, “money can’t buy happiness.” But what about success? What if you could have both? Carlos Slim Helú is a prime example of this.
He is the richest man in Mexico and one of the richest people in the world, but he doesn’t let his wealth get to his head. In fact, he has some amazing insights on money, success, and life that everyone can learn from. Check out these Carlos Slim Helú quotes for yourself!
1. “Competition makes you better, always, always makes you better, even if the competitor wins.” – Carlos Slim Helu
2. “When you live for others’ opinions, you are dead. I don’t want to live thinking about how I’ll be remembered.” – Carlos Slim Helu
3. “Anyone who is not investing now is missing a tremendous opportunity.” – Carlos Slim Helu
5. “Any personal crisis—you have to use it to get stronger.” – Carlos Slim Helu
6. “All times are good time for those who know how to work and have the tools to do so.” – Carlos Slim Helu
7. “Success is not about doing things well or even very well, or being acknowledged by others. It is not an external opinion, but rather an internal status. It is the harmony between the soul and your emotions, which requires love, family, friendship, authenticity and integrity.” – Carlos Slim Helu
8. “Most people try to make a better world for our children when what they should be doing is making better children for our world.” – Carlos Slim Helu
9. “Well, when I was very young, maybe 12 years, I began to make investments.” – Carlos Slim Helu
10. “Poverty isn’t solved with donations.” – Carlos Slim Helu
11. “Firm and patient optimism always yields its rewards.” – Carlos Slim Helu
12. “Staying occupied displaces preoccupation and problems, and when we face our problems, they disappear.” – Carlos Slim Helu
13. “I’ve always said that the better off you are, the more responsibility you have for helping others. Just as I think it’s important to run companies well, with a close eye to the bottom line, I think you have to use your entrepreneurial experience to make corporate philanthropy effective.” – Carlos Slim Helu
14. “Money is not a goal. The goal is to make companies grow, develop, be competitive, be in different areas, be efficient to have a great human team inside the company.” – Carlos Slim Helu
15. “The truth is, you leave this world with nothing. What you are is a temporary administrator, and you must administer well… the wealth in your care, and generate more. The surplus can be used to do many things for people.” – Carlos Slim Helu
16. “If you are in business, you are not enjoying. You are working.” – Carlos Slim Helu
17. “The only way you finish with poverty is with jobs.” – Best Carlos Slim Helu Quotes
18. “In this new wave of technology, you can’t do it all yourself, you have to form alliances.” – Carlos Slim Helu
19. “It’s very important for leaders in business to work to create human capital, a team that has the same sense of purpose and alignment.” – Carlos Slim Helu
20. “Work well done is not only a responsibility to yourselves and society; it is also an emotional need.” – Carlos Slim Helu
21. “Choose the right employees and then set them loose.” – Carlos Slim Helu
22. “When we decide to do something, we do it quickly.” – Carlos Slim Helu
23. “In business, you invest when things are not in good shape. When you invest at these times, you take a better position than your competitors. When there is a recession and your competition does not invest, they are giving you the advantage.” – Carlos Slim Helu
24. “People need to feel very good about their achievements. They get pride from what they are doing.” – Carlos Slim Helu
25. “All businesses make mistakes. The trick is to avoid large ones.” – Carlos Slim Helu
26. “One of the big errors people are making right now is thinking that old-style businesses will be obsolete, when actually they will be an important part of this new civilization. Some retail groups are introducing e-commerce and think that the bricks are no longer useful. But they will continue to be important.” – Carlos Slim Helu
27. “You cannot have people in your organization who are pessimists. They take you to mediocrity.” – Carlos Slim Helu
28. “Courage taught me no matter how bad a crisis gets… any sound investment will eventually pay off.” – Carlos Slim Helu
29. “Focus on essentials and try not to get distracted and bogged down by things that don’t add value to the bottom line.” – Carlos Slim Helu
30. “When we face our problems, they disappear. So learn from failure and let success be the silent incentive.” – Carlos Slim Helu
31. “You cannot live without doing something.” – Best Carlos Slim Helu Quotes
32. “I learned from my father that you continue to invest and reinvest in your business – including during crises.” –Carlos Slim Helu
33. “Anything that has privileges have responsibility and all people that is clear about their responsibility has compromise.” – Carlos Slim Helu
34. “When you are convinced what to do and what you need to do, it’s not hard to do that.” – Carlos Slim Helu
35. “Live the present intensely and fully, do not let the past be a burden, and let the future be an incentive. Each person forges his or her own destiny.” – Carlos Slim Helu
36. “When there is a crisis, that’s when some are interested in getting out and that’s when we are interested in getting in.” – Carlos Slim Helu
37. “Mistakes are normal and human. Make them small, accept them, correct them, and forget them.” – Carlos Slim Helu
38. “Technology is going to transform people’s lives and society everywhere in the world. I spend most of my time studying new technologies. My main task is to understand what’s going on and try to see where we can fit in.” – Carlos Slim Helu
39. “Do not allow negative feelings and emotions to control your mind. Emotional harm does not come from others; it is conceived and developed within ourselves.” – Carlos Slim Helu
40. “The biggest things in life are not materials.” – Carlos Slim Helu
41. “Life’s road is very long, but it is travelled fast.” – Carlos Slim Helu
42. “You have to have an international reference of competition. You have to go beyond your home.” – Carlos Slim Helu
43. “What is most valuable in life does not cost anything but is very precious.” – Carlos Slim Helu
44. “When you give, do not expect to receive, fragrance clings to the hand that gives the rose.” – Carlos Slim Helu
45. “If you’re in business, you need to understand the environment. You need to have a vision of the future, and you need to know the past.” – Carlos Slim Helu
46. “To think that happiness comes from buying things is crazy. That happiness come because you have many material issues – to have 20 cars or 30 cars or the biggest one and 40 watches and – I think that’s not happiness.” – Carlos Slim Helu
47. “Wealth should be created by investing to create more wealth. Income is the fruit of wealth. If you do not do that, you will not have more income.” – Carlos Slim Helu
48. “Distribute a good part of the fruits, not the branches of the tree, and ‘reinvest’ part of the fruit sees to grow more trees and create wealth.” – Carlos Slim Helu
49. “Wealth should be best to create more wealth.” – Carlos Slim Helu
50 “If you’re in business, you need to understand the environment. You need to have a vision of the future, and you need to know the past.” —Academy of Achievement, December 2, 2007
Carlos Slim is a business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. He is the chairman and CEO of Telmex and America Movil. These quotes from Carlos Slim offer valuable insights into running a successful business.
What do you think? Do any of these quotes resonate with you? Can you see yourself applying them in your own life or work? We would love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!
Diksha
A graduate of the IIMC, Diksha enjoys writing about marketing, Saas products, and making money online. Her goal is to help others make more informed purchases of tech products and services. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling, watching movies, and listening to music. An ardent reader loves to be surrounded by technology. You can follow her on LinkedIn and Instagram