"The ability to deal with people is as purchasable a commodity as sugar or coffee, and I will pay more for that ability than for any other under the sun."
— John D. Rockefeller
The Ability To Deal With People
The ability to deal with people is as purchasable a commodity as sugar or coffee, and I will pay more for that ability than for any other under the sun.
About this quote
Quoted in How to Win Friends and Influence People (1937) by Dale Carnegie, and traced by Wikiquote to an interview Rockefeller gave to William Hoster, published in John T. Flynn's God's Gold (1932). Rockefeller made the remark to illustrate his belief that interpersonal skill — the ability to understand, motivate, and cooperate with people — was more valuable than any technical expertise in building a great enterprise. It became one of the most cited passages in the history of business literature, thanks largely to Carnegie's bestseller, which used it to open its argument that human relations are the foundation of commercial success.
Source
Attributed in How to Win Friends and Influence People (1937)