Herb Kelleher
Co-Founder & Former CEO, Southwest Airlines. On 1 show, 3 appearances. The Shows tab opens the full record on each.
founderexecutiveoperatorsouthwest.com ↗Wikipedia ↗
Herb Kelleher co-founded Southwest Airlines and served as its long-time CEO, pioneering the modern low-cost carrier model characterized by point-to-point routes and single-type aircraft fleets. He established an employee-first corporate culture that drove decades of consecutive profitability.
1shows
3appearances
62statements
40resolved
35supported
1contradicted
88%fully supported
37said about them ↓ Everything Herb Kelleher said on any show that made the record, most notable first. Each card names its show and opens the statement there.
Kelleher: Southwest was the most heavily unionized carrier in the US
“We were the most heavily unionized carrier in the United States. Our low costs were not due to being a non-union carrier, since we were more unionized than our competitors were.”
Kelleher: 4% Profitable Market Share Beats 90% Unprofitable Share
“Let's focus on profitability. And if we have four percent of a market and we're profitable, that's better than having 90% of a market and being unprofitable.”
Kelleher: Southwest kept low costs despite being the most unionized US airline
“Yeah, we were the most heavily unionized carrier in the United States. Our low costs were not due to being a non-union carrier, since we were more unionized than our competitors were.”
Kelleher: A profitable 4% market share is better than an unprofitable 90%
“So I said, let's focus on profitability. And if we have four percent of a market and we're profitable, that's better than having 90% of a market and being unprofitable.”
Kelleher: Companies that think small grow bigger; companies that think big shrink
“Think small and act small and we'll get bigger. Think big and act big, and we'll get smaller.”
Southwest maintained low costs despite being America's most unionized airline
“We were the most heavily unionized carrier in the United States. Our low costs were not due to being a non-union carrier, since we were more unionized than our competitors were.”
A profitable 4% market share beats an unprofitable 90% share
“So I said, let's focus on profitability. And if we have four percent of a market and we're profitable, that's better than having 90% of a market and being unprofitable.”
Kelleher: Having Zero Airline Experience Qualified Him to Build Southwest
“Well, I knew nothing about airlines, which I think made me eminently qualified to start one, because what we tried to do at Southwest was get away from the traditional way that airlines had done business. So I started with the tabula rasa blank slate, And I th…”
Kelleher: Southwest achieved 10-minute gate turns to run planes 12 hours daily
“10 minute turns at the gate. We bring that airplane in, and 10 minutes after it stopped at the gate, you know, It would be pushing back again. And we had airplanes that, ah, you know, were operating 12 hours a day sometimes, so each one of those additional fli…”
Kelleher: Asset mobility makes aviation more competitive than other industries
“I think that it's more competitive than other industries, and one of the reasons for that is that our principal capital assets, The airplanes move at 540 miles an hour. And, you know, if you have a shoe factory that, that fails in Seattle, as an example you ca…”
Kelleher: Passionate joy prevents burnout even during 100-hour workweeks
“It's easy when you have a passionate joy in what you're doing. You don't burn out.”
Kelleher: Incumbents used specious legal arguments to manipulate regulators against Southwest
“Well, you know, the arguments that they made in court were actually all kind of specious, and this is one illustration of where people attempt to use, to manipulate the government to prevent competition.”
Kelleher: The airline industry is uniquely competitive because its assets fly
“I think that it's more competitive than other industries. And one of the reasons for that is that our principal capital assets, the airplanes, move at 540 miles an hour. And, you know, if you have a shoe factory that, that fails in Seattle, as an example you c…”
Kelleher: Consistently rejected cash compensation increases in favor of stock options
“I always turn down pay increases, bonus increases, to set a good example, I thought, for all of our people. Of course, the stock that I got rose enormously in value, but that was in lieu of cash compensation.”
Zero airline experience qualified Kelleher to disrupt the industry
“Well, I knew nothing about airlines, which I think made me eminently qualified to start one, because what we tried to do at Southwest was get away from the traditional way that airlines had done business. So I started with the tabula rasa blank slate, and I th…”
Southwest pioneered 10-minute gate turnarounds to maximize aircraft utilization
“10 minute turns at the gate. We bring that airplane in, and 10 minutes after it stopped at the gate, you know, It would be pushing back again.”
Asset mobility makes the airline industry uniquely competitive, says Kelleher
“Our principal capital assets, the airplanes, move at 540 miles an hour. And, you know, if you have a shoe factory that, that fails in Seattle, as an example, you can't, within hours, transport that shoe factory to Chattanooga, Tennessee to compete there. But i…”
Kelleher: Most American Adults in the 1960s Had Never Flown Due to Costs
“Most of the adults
In the United States of America haven't been able to fly because of the cost barrier.”
Kelleher: Kept Southwest alive in 1969 by litigating for free and paying court costs
“And during that time, the company ran out of money, and in 1969, the board of directors had a meeting and talked about shutting the airline down, shutting the company down. And I said, well, how about if I litigate for nothing and pay all the court costs out o…”
Kelleher: Blocking Southwest signaled a failure of the free enterprise system
“Well, first of all, I was idealistic about it, because I figured if they can prevent Southwest Airlines from introducing what Southwest Airlines proposes to provide to the consumer, Then that is a sign that the free enterprise system is failing, and one of the…”
Kelleher: Southwest flew a four-plane schedule with three planes after cash crunch
“We had to get rid of one airplane in order to meet our payroll right after Southwest started flying, and so we decided that we would fly a four airplane schedule with three airplanes.”
Kelleher: CAB fare increases drove up legacy airline ticket prices
“And during that time, if they had a little financial problem the CAB would just give them a fare increase, and so that's how their fares got so high as compared to what we were doing since we weren't regulated by the CAB.”
Kelleher: Southwest cut fares by $400 on long routes instead of serving meals
“And I said, no, we're not. We're gonna charge you 400 dollars less per trip, right? And I understand you can get a pretty good sandwich at Chasin's for 400 dollars.”
The other half of the tape: Herb Kelleher's own voice is left out of every number here. Other people bring the name up 33 times in 7 episodes across the shows. 4 statements on the record name them. every mention, with the transcript →
Who brings them up most David Neeleman 21Guy Raz 7
Statements about Herb Kelleher, by other people (4)
Southwest CEO Herb Kelleher vowed to fiercely enforce Neeleman's non-compete agreement
“About halfway through the non-compete, I called, or a couple, maybe a year and a half into it, I called Herb, and I said, hey, Herb, you know, I've consulted, you know, legal counsel. This thing is not really enforceable. I mean, I didn't get any consideration…”
Neeleman: Kelleher suggested Neeleman could eventually succeed him at Southwest
“I mean, he kind of led me to believe that if I just minded my P's and Q's that I would be a successor one day, you know, that I could, you know, follow in his footsteps”
Kelleher resolved a Southwest trademark dispute via a public arm wrestling match
“Herb Kelleher once resolved a trademark dispute with a rival airline. They were both using the slogan, plane smart. He resolved this not in court, but by challenging the other CEO to a public arm wrestling match, which Herb Kelleher lost.”
Guy Raz: Herb Kelleher resolved a trademark dispute via public arm wrestling
“Herb Kelleher once resolved a trademark dispute with a rival airline. They were both using the slogan, plain smart. He resolved this not in court, but by challenging the other CEO to a public arm wrestling match, which Herb Kelleher lost.”
Every mention by year
tap a year for its mentions
How I Built This 33
2026 3 mentions in 1 episode
2024 6 mentions in 2 episodes 3 per episode
2023 2 mentions in 1 episode
2019 20 mentions in 1 episode
2018 1 mention in 1 episode
2017 1 mention in 1 episode
One line per show, most statements first. The link opens Herb's full record on that show: the calibration, argument clarity, speaking style and every statement made there.
| Show | Role there | Eps | Statements | Record | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HOW I BUILT THISLEDGER | Co-Founder & Former CEO, Southwest Airlines | 3 | 62 | 88% 35/40 | full record on How I Built This → |