--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I am my clients. I am defined by who I do…" description: "\"I am my clients. I am defined by who I do business with.\" — Tom Peters" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/476/tom-peters-967_business_i-am-my-clients-i-am-defined-by-who-i-do_3014505.png" --- # I am my clients. I am defined by who I do business with. ![“I am my clients. I am defined by who I do business with.” quote by Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/476/tom-peters-967_business_i-am-my-clients-i-am-defined-by-who-i-do_3014505.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/476/tom-peters-967_business_i-am-my-clients-i-am-defined-by-who-i-do_3014505.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/476/tom-peters-967_business_i-am-my-clients-i-am-defined-by-who-i-do_3014505.png) > “I am my clients. I am defined by who I do business with.” [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Business identity is defined by the clients you serve, implying that reputation follows clientele. **In simple terms:** Your business reflects its clients. Key Takeaway Choose clients that align with your values. Themes branding client relationships identity Mood strategic pragmatic focused Type business leadership When to use this quote - consulting - marketing strategy - networking events - client onboarding - business development Key Concepts reputation management value alignment Questions to Reflect On - What client types best represent your brand? - How can you maintain standards while attracting ideal clients? A Different Perspective May lead to compromising standards for high‑profile clients. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) ## Related quotes > [A business is not defined by its name, statutes, or articles of incorporation. It is defined by the business mission. Only a clear definition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/a-business-is-not-defined-by-its-name-statutes-or-articles-of/) [Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/) > [We must understand what is on clients' minds and what their needs are, and we must also be close to our teams who are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-sweet/we-must-understand-what-is-on-clients-minds-and-what-their-needs-are/) [Julie Sweet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-sweet/) > [“IT and business must be partners, must be able to speak the same language, finish each other’s sentences, to solve the well-defined business problems.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-zhu/it-and-business-must-be-partners-must-be-able-to-speak-the-same/) [pearl zhu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-zhu/) > [ Transforming leadership, \[is defined as\] leadership that builds on man's need for meaning, leadership that creates institutional purpose ... he is the value-shaper, the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/transforming-leadership-is-defined-as-leadership-that-builds-on-man-s/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [“Clients steer the ship in the sea of business.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/utibe-samuel-mbom/clients-steer-the-ship-in-the-sea-of-business/) [Utibe Samuel Mbom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/utibe-samuel-mbom/) > [I don't care about awards and public image. We know the business of entertainment. We worship our work, we worship our clients and we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shailender-singh/i-don-t-care-about-awards-and-public-image-we-know-the-business-of/) [Shailender Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shailender-singh/) > [I have learned that trying to guess what the boss or the client wants is the most debilitating of all influences in the creation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-burnett/i-have-learned-that-trying-to-guess-what-the-boss-or-the-client-wants/) [Leo Burnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-burnett/) > [Anybody who is an entrepreneur is a person who essentially has impaired judgment. The odds of success are zilch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/anybody-who-is-an-entrepreneur-is-a-person-who-essentially-has/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [Our focus in the client group had always been to build products and features that people wanted to use. That we wanted to use.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-zawinski/our-focus-in-the-client-group-had-always-been-to-build-products-and/) [Jamie Zawinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-zawinski/) > [Some men can be very rude. On the other hand, some clients are absolute angels. One john always brought me a gift every time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-sprinkle/some-men-can-be-very-rude-on-the-other-hand-some-clients-are-absolute/) [Annie Sprinkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-sprinkle/) > [It is the client who knows what hurts, what directions to go, what problems are crucial, what experiences have been deeply buried.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-rogers/it-is-the-client-who-knows-what-hurts-what-directions-to-go-what/) [Carl Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-rogers/) > [I want my clients to trust me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-goreski/i-want-my-clients-to-trust-me/) [Brad Goreski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-goreski/) > [I hear a lot of 'Top Model' girls say they are dismissed by clients because they recognize them, but it never happened to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fatima-siad/i-hear-a-lot-of-top-model-girls-say-they-are-dismissed-by-clients/) [Fatima Siad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fatima-siad/) > [My Client Brock Lesnar conquered the Undertakers Undefeated Streak at Wrestlemania](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-heyman/my-client-brock-lesnar-conquered-the-undertakers-undefeated-streak-at/) [Paul Heyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-heyman/) > [Amongst the financial Twitterati, the term 'muppets' has come to describe any client used and abused by some financial predator. I've adopted the term…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-ritholtz/amongst-the-financial-twitterati-the-term-muppets-has-come-to/) [Barry Ritholtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-ritholtz/) ## More by Tom Peters > [The market may never coalesce around one basic design, or even around two or three dominant devices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/the-market-may-never-coalesce-around-one-basic-design-or-even-around/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [If, as I anticipate, a wide array of personal, portable information/communication devices becomes increasingly important and widespread for information-intensive users, it will be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/if-as-i-anticipate-a-wide-array-of-personal-portable-information/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [Anybody who is an entrepreneur is a person who essentially has impaired judgment. The odds of success are zilch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/anybody-who-is-an-entrepreneur-is-a-person-who-essentially-has/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [Remember my mantra: distinct... or extinct.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/remember-my-mantra-distinct-or-extinct/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [A good collection is more than just the sum of its parts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/a-good-collection-is-more-than-just-the-sum-of-its-parts/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [Leaders' careers will usually be determined by their handling of one or two critical events that no one could possibly anticipate or plan for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/leaders-careers-will-usually-be-determined-by-their-handling-of-one/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [I don't know what it means to manage the human imagination, but I do know that imagination is the main source of value in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/i-don-t-know-what-it-means-to-manage-the-human-imagination-but-i-do/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [Hire disrespectful people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/hire-disrespectful-people/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [Hire for attitude. Train for skill... More](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/hire-for-attitude-train-for-skill-more/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [If there is a single tragic flaw that mars our biggest enterprises, it is conservatism - the failure to fail, and fail big, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/if-there-is-a-single-tragic-flaw-that-mars-our-biggest-enterprises-it/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [Think about the market, think about the design, and think about who is going to design for that market. Hit the mark.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/think-about-the-market-think-about-the-design-and-think-about-who-is/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [“The “Excellence Standard” is not about Grand Outcomes. In Zenlike terms, all we have is today. If the day’s work cannot be assessed as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/the-excellence-standard-is-not-about-grand-outcomes-in-zenlike-terms/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [The day firing becomes easy is the day to fire yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/the-day-firing-becomes-easy-is-the-day-to-fire-yourself/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [Only pissed-off people change the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/only-pissed-off-people-change-the-world/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [What you decide not to do is probably more important that what you decide to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/what-you-decide-not-to-do-is-probably-more-important-that-what-you/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) [Explore all 316 Tom Peters quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) ## More Business quotes > [Companies with cultures that celebrate diverse opinions and encourage the exchange of ideas have an advantage when solving difficult problems. A company that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-mcmillon/companies-with-cultures-that-celebrate-diverse-opinions-and-encourage/) [Doug McMillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-mcmillon/) > [You can laugh at me, but I understand show business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ksenia-sobchak/you-can-laugh-at-me-but-i-understand-show-business/) [Ksenia Sobchak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ksenia-sobchak/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [I'm a business first and foremost so whatever my business is, it's separate from my personal. It's like whatever I do business wise, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/snoop-dogg/i-m-a-business-first-and-foremost-so-whatever-my-business-is-it-s/) [Snoop Dogg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/snoop-dogg/) > [Many early-stage entrepreneurs make one simple mistake: Describing this 'big picture' in vague concepts and words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunil-nagaraj/many-early-stage-entrepreneurs-make-one-simple-mistake-describing/) [Sunil Nagaraj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunil-nagaraj/) > [Nobody has a crystal ball, and part of evolving a business plan is to say, 'I might have said we're going left, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-kavanaugh/nobody-has-a-crystal-ball-and-part-of-evolving-a-business-plan-is-to/) [Ryan Kavanaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-kavanaugh/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [ “\[S\]ometimes, when you are a food person, the possible irrelevance of what you are doing doesn’t cross your mind until it’s too late. (Once,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-ephron/s-ometimes-when-you-are-a-food-person-the-possible-irrelevance-of/) [Nora Ephron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-ephron/) > [If you have a different mindset, you will have a different outcome: if you make different choices from your peers, your life will then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-ma/if-you-have-a-different-mindset-you-will-have-a-different-outcome-if/) [Jack Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-ma/) > [“Some say the Earth is angry Because he wants no company; I say the Earth is angry Because he lives alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/some-say-the-earth-is-angry-because-he-wants-no-company-i-say-the/) [N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/) > [ If the State does not acquire supremacy over \[vast private\] enterprises, it becomes their puppet, and they become the real State. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/if-the-state-does-not-acquire-supremacy-over-vast-private-enterprises/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [It's not just that families can't buy a home or start a business without some savings tucked away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cooper/it-s-not-just-that-families-can-t-buy-a-home-or-start-a-business/) [Jim Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cooper/) > [I'm not into business at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-mercury/i-m-not-into-business-at-all/) [Freddie Mercury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-mercury/) > [I've long believed one of the mainsprings of our own liberty has been the widespread ownership of property among our people and the expectation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-ve-long-believed-one-of-the-mainsprings-of-our-own-liberty-has-been/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) [Browse all 39,016 Business quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I am my clients. I am defined by who I do business with.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Tom Peters" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/i-am-my-clients-i-am-defined-by-who-i-do-business-with/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Business" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/i-am-my-clients-i-am-defined-by-who-i-do-business-with/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/476/tom-peters-967_business_i-am-my-clients-i-am-defined-by-who-i-do_3014505.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/476/tom-peters-967_business_i-am-my-clients-i-am-defined-by-who-i-do_3014505.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/476/tom-peters-967_business_i-am-my-clients-i-am-defined-by-who-i-do_3014505.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I am my clients. I am defined by who I do business with.” — Tom Peters", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Tom Peters", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I am my clients. I am...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/i-am-my-clients-i-am-defined-by-who-i-do-business-with/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/i-am-my-clients-i-am-defined-by-who-i-do-business-with/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```