Boardroom Marathoner Pillows

Management Marathon

"I'm going to bombard you with graphs until you agree with me."

"Can I savor this for a few moments? The ball's never been in my court before!"

"Marshall, somewhere out there, just waiting for us, is a loophole in the system."

'It's a chart of office morale. This is where you went on vacation.'

"I'm razzled, but not dazzled."

'And I'm happy to say, that since the merger...'

"Thank you for that summation of the charts."

"My report to the board was perfect. They did not understand a word of it and now think I'm smarter than them."

'Great news this quarter! Losses are up in smoke, profits are high, and we're seeing lots of green!'

'The good news is, we did as well as expected last quarter. The bad news is, we didn't expect to do too well.'

"In the event of an actual S.E.C. investigation, legal representation will drop from the ceiling."

"Tell the vice presidents they've downsized enough."

"Oh dear...I don't think negotiations are going too well..."

"I see we're going up against the Big Guys."

'To close the deal, I had to make some minor concessions.'

"Before I read the financial report I have to ask... do any of you have a weapon?"

'Congratulations Smith, you got that promotion. Commiserations Reid, you got that demotion.'

The Importance of Planning Thoroughly in Advance

"We need to think outside the pentangle."

'Well, I'm not very satisfied with our customers, either.'

'By the time I climbed up to this job, I was too tired to do it.'

'You can't put him out to pasture - he owns the pasture!'

Although not felt by everone, Wanda's powrful jargon sent seismic shock waves through some of the more geologically unstable department in the organization.

"He's not sleeping. He always dims his display while downloading data."

'Maybe you should reconsider those place cards, Ms Harris?' (Negotiation talks/Good Guys/Bad Guys)

'This merger will cut jobs 40%, reduce salaries 30% and increase the work hours 25%. Your job is to make this look like the best thing that ever happened to our employees.'

'You're closer to the Big Guy than anyone. Will you help us kill him?'

'Who wants the talking stick?'

'I've chosen you for fresh, new ideas.'

Presentation Skills: 1. Be Prepared.

'It's lonely at the top unless you count lawyers.'

"I'm not only a Guardian Angel, I'm also an expert at turnarounds."

"When everyone's an 800 pound gorilla, nobody's an 800 pound gorilla.".

'I say, let's not be hasty in enforcing the mandatory retirement age.'