I have the freedom to take chances, to say no. I have the freedom to be who I really want to be, rather than have to conform to this or that just to stay alive.

I've always liked speed. I own a car that I shouldn't be talking about because I'm an environmentalist, but the 1955 Porsche Spyder 550 RS is the finest sports car ever made.

Sport is a wonderful metaphor for life. Of all the sports that I played - skiing, baseball, fishing - there is no greater example than golf, because you're playing against yourself and nature.

I think the environment should be put in the category of our national security. Defense of our resources is just as important as defense abroad. Otherwise what is there to defend?

The ambition and focus that propel you to success can also be your downfall.

My theory on an existing crisis is that you have to be very strategic about each case's unique elements. If a crisis involves a legal component, you need a communication strategy that complements the company's legal objective. A strategy for a plea deal is different than a case going to trial.

A wonderful quality about America is that we love redemption stories. We're quick to lash out and assign blame, but we also draw from deep reservoirs of forgiveness.

Most of the time, you think the problem is not as big as it is - because it says something negative about you or your company or your leadership. Face the reality: The facts are not as you want them to be.

Nothing kills a CEO's credibility faster than legal, regulatory, and/or ethical questions.

Stop being a critic and be a light; don't be a judge, be a model. I think we are far too critical. I think the best way to correct behavior is to accentuate and affirm positive behavior and to ignore negative behavior. Generally speaking, there is a time to correct, of course; but my biggest advice would be, 'Affirm your child.'

I think the greatest challenge between child and parent is communication.

Ask any successful person, and most will tell you that they had a person who believed in them... a teacher, a friend, a parent, a guardian, a sister, a grandmother. It only takes one person, and it doesn't really matter who it is.

The average teen today spends about 35 hours a week in front of a screen of some kind: iPod, movie, TV, video. And a lot of it is good, but a lot of it's not. And so I think you've got that five hours a day of media coming into your kid's head that's creating a lot of havoc out there.

Having the courage to say no when all your friends are saying yes is one of the most difficult things you'll ever have to do. Doing it, however, is one of the biggest charges you can ever make to your personal battery. I call this 'won't power.'

What I've learned from my own journey, and from my family's experience with cancer, is how important it is to stay positive and move forward. Not every day is going to be perfect; that's life. But staying positive is going to get you to the next day.

I don't fear anything.

It's sad to know I'm done. But looking back, I've got a lot of great memories.

This Olympics is almost a little sad. It is my final Olympics. There are a lot of good memories.

I never could have achieved the success that I have without setting physical activity and health goals.

Anytime you ride against the best in the world, it becomes a learning process.

I just hope I can get another personal best. If I can do that, I'll be satisfied.

I've had a lot of success; I've had failures, so I learn from the failure.

I swim like a fish and I have an amazing kick.

There's a bond among a kitchen staff, I think. You spend more time with your chef in the kitchen than you do with your own family.

Find what's hot, find what's just opened and then look for the worst review of the week. There is so much to learn from watching a restaurant getting absolutely panned and having a bad experience. Go and see it for yourself.

If I can give you one strong piece of advice, when you go away for that romantic weekend, whatever you do, do not accept or take the upgrade to the honeymoon suite.

I want my kids to see me as Dad, for God's sake, not a television personality.

If you want to become a great chef, you have to work with great chefs. And that's exactly what I did.

The pressure on young chefs today is far greater than ever before in terms of social skills, marketing skills, cooking skills, personality and, more importantly, delivering on the plate. So you need to be strong. Physically fit. So my chefs get weighed every time they come into the kitchen.

My wife, a schoolteacher, very disciplined. If you think I'm tough, trust me, and wait till you see when the children are on the naughty step. It's hilarious. So we decided that I'm going to work like a donkey and provide amazing support for the family.

My father was a swim teacher. We used to swim before school, swim after school.

I'd like to think I'm a great teacher.

When you're a chef, you graze. You never get a chance to sit down and eat. They don't actually sit down and eat before you cook. So when I finish work, the first thing I'll do, and especially when I'm in New York, I'll go for a run. And I'll run 10 or 15k on my - and I run to gain my appetite.

I grew up in a funny way.

I've never been a hands-on dad. I'm not ashamed to admit it, but you can't run a restaurant and be home for tea at 4:30 and bath and change nappies.

I hid myself in food.

There's no success story. Everybody's got a ghetto story. You always want to make it bigger than what it is.

I don't care about how I look; I'm dedicated to the laughs. You know, I used to be a clown, so - my name was Smoothie the Clown. All the training I had, all my training is geared toward making people laugh, and I didn't care about being cool.

I learned hard lessons in life; I had to because I had so much happen: My mother died my sophomore year in high school. The next year, same day, my brother dropped dead. Two years after that, I got married because my girlfriend got pregnant. The year after my wedding, my father - who I had only recently met - died.

I have so much respect for what's funny.

I'm funny. I'm a comedian. I'm not a clown.

When I get a chance to play golf or go on a boat with good people, take the boat out and put some lobsters on the grill, get the ice-cold beer and the cigars - that's heaven here on earth.

I've always been a reserved cat. When I play sports, there's people used to get mad at me because I didn't hang out and things like that. I've never been that kind of person. Nothing has changed in that regard. I've never been posse, and all that. I'm a quiet storm.

I hate to let people down. I was like that in sports and I was like that in comedy. I was like that at work. When I worked General Motors and stuff like that, when I say something, I mean it.

My humor had changed from foolishness to making sense.

I want to have fun. Life ain't no dress rehearsal. I want to have fun. I'm a comedian; I ain't no politician. So everything I do is with humor, with love.

You know you poor when you eatin' breakfast food late. You fryin' toast? At nine o'clock at night? With bacon? You're broke.

I don't want to be linked to anything negative. I don't want negative energy. I want everything positive around me.

There are curveballs that are thrown at you, and you just have to get over it and forgive... if you believe you're perfect, and you don't believe in forgiveness, you're not meant to be married.

Any woman can make pole dancing a regular part of their exercise routine - and a fun part of their romantic life!