Success Quote by Lee R. Raymond

Raymond’s line reads like a careful CEO confession that never quite becomes one. He frames the market as a moral obstacle course: “we are always challenged to do the right thing.” That phrasing is doing strategic work. It shifts ethics from being a set of rules into a perpetual personal trial, which subtly lowers the bar from accountability to intention. If the terrain is inherently difficult, then missteps become understandable, even expected.

The key move is his description of the market system as one that “allows a great deal of latitude for human choice.” Latitude sounds like freedom, even dignity. It also functions as a legal and reputational airbag: when harm occurs, it’s not the system that produces it, but individuals who “get carried away.” Excess becomes a behavioral lapse, not a structural incentive. That’s a familiar corporate narrative: capitalism is neutral; humans are messy.

Context matters because Raymond isn’t a philosopher; he’s an oil executive speaking from inside a sector where “excess” isn’t abstract. It can mean profiteering, regulatory corner-cutting, externalized environmental costs, and a culture that rewards short-term gains. The quote’s genial tone - the mildness of “carried away” - softens the brutality of what “excess” can look like at scale.

The intent, then, is reputational moderation: acknowledge moral risk without conceding systemic fault. It reassures audiences that business leaders see the ethical problem, while keeping the solution safely individualized: better choices, not tighter constraints.