In His Own Words

Red McCombs was always delighted to share his large-than-life lessons learned from decades in business.

When Red McCombs spoke, people listened. It wasn’t just his thunderous voice that commanded everyone’s attention, it was what he said: plainspoken, typically witty, always wise.

Here’s a sprinkling of McCombs’ pronouncements that you may — or may not — have heard, culled from some of the many interviews and oral histories he did, as well as from his own writings, Big Red: Memoirs of a Texas Entrepreneur and Philanthropist and The Red Zone: Cars, Cows, and Coaches — The Life and Good Times of Texas Dealmaker.

On selling

“I had a product that people wanted.” (The peanuts he sold at age 10.)

“Once I saw that I was putting too many peanuts in there to sell for a nickel, well then that’s a lesson that stays with you your whole life.”

Decision-making

“Well, the best decision up and down from start to finish was marrying Charline.”

“Wherever I lived, I was fascinated by those who were in charge of things. I thought about it for hours on end: how do you get to be one of those elite few? I wanted to be in that role.”

Work philosophy

“I tell people if you want a better job, do a better job. Every manager notices who comes in early, who stays late.”

“You’ve got to do business in a way that makes people want to come back.”

“But it is interesting that money has never been a goal of mine. My goal was to be one of the guys that made the decisions. I wanted to be the best at whatever it was I was doing, and the money has just been a by-product of that.”

“I’m a master planner’s nightmare. The truth is I never have had a long-range plan to help guide me in business. I’m a today person.”

The life of the entrepreneur

“The beautiful thing is that I am a natural entrepreneur. Buying and selling and trading things and seeing business opportunities that others don’t see, that’s always been a part of me, even to the present day.”

“As far as I’m concerned ‘wheeler dealer’ is just another name for an entrepreneur with attention deficit disorder!”

“The wheeler dealer world isn’t for the faint of heart.”

“Everything I do business-wise revolves around cash flow. I’m gone if I can’t get a company’s cash flowing almost overnight.”

Attitude

“I’m big and I live big. I enjoy people, and I don’t mind crowds. When I’m in a good mood, the normal force of my voice can frighten the birds off of tall trees. I have tousled red hair, and people say I look like Grizzly Adams, without the beard.”

“Attitude is absolutely the most critical element in selling anything to anyone in America. You can’t fake attitude. You either have it or you don’t.”

Learning from failure

“I believe one of my assets is that I have no fear of losing. And I have no fear of people. By and large, I like most people, but I am not in awe of anyone I ever met.”

“I almost ignore defeats in things that don’t work. I just don’t want them around me. I don’t mind selling stuff at a loss. Fear of failure has never been a problem for me.”

The value of education

“I could never have had the access that I’ve had and to get in the position to do the things that I’ve done without The University of Texas.”

“Why does the University of Texas play such a big role in my life? Why do I devote so much time to that place? … I love the University but there’s a very selfish basic reason: because the place energizes me in a way nothing else does. … Whenever I walk through the campus, I am exhilarated by what I see.… The place literally is buzzing 24 hours a day with learning, discovery, and exploration.”

“Well of course I’m proud every time I hear the word McCombs School mentioned. Those gifts are going to touch somebody in real life from the minute you give them.”

—Compiled by Mary Ann Roser