Key ideas from Bernie Marcus

• Bernie Marcus was fired at 49 with nothing, but Ken Langone told him 'You've just been kicked in the ass with a golden horseshoe' - 18 months later Home Depot opened
• Bernie walked away from Ross Perot's $2 million offer over a Cadillac dispute, saying 'I'd rather starve to death' than work with the wrong partner
• Home Depot associates would literally chase customers into parking lots asking why they didn't buy anything, then drive to competitors to get out-of-stock items
• The company switched from sales catalogs to everyday low pricing after Sam Walton explained 'if you list the pros and cons, you would never do anything other than everyday low prices'
• Bernie's test for store health: timing how long it took associates to recognize him - if 45 minutes passed, 'nobody was making eye contact with customers either'
• Thousands of regular Home Depot employees became millionaires through stock options, including lumber workers and cashiers who joined early
• When professional manager Robert Nardelli replaced founder leadership, customer service scores plummeted and the stock went flat for years until culture was restored