inluminent

How to Become a Great Boss, The Rules for Getting and Keeping the Best Employees, by Jeffrey J. Fox.

Sounds cheezy right? It is.

… but it’s also a fantastic read for anyone that is a ‘boss’ or has a ‘boss’ and aspires to one day become a ‘boss’.

The books is organized into 50 little anecdotal stories and lessons about being a great boss.

I picked this little gem up because it was one of the cheaper little books on the rack in the airport (during my 5 hour delay in Atlanta) and am pleasantly surprised by the insight offered my Mr. Fox in the first 10 or so chapters.

Each chapter is only two or three pages long, and they lessons make for great reading. Here’s one from the front of the book:

Chapter II

The Great Boss Simple Success Formula

1. Only hire top-notch, excellent people.

2. Put the right people in the right job. Weed out the wrong people.

3. Tell the people what needs to be done.

4. Tell the people why it is needed.

5. Leave the job up to the people you’ve chosen to do it.

6. Train the people.

7. Listen to the people.

8. Remove frustration and barriers that fetter the people.

9. Inspect progress.

10. Say “Thank you” publicly and privately.

That’s just one of the chapters. Chapter 4 address the topic “The Customer is the Real Boss” pretty much sums it up with this line at the end of the chapter:

The customer is the real boss. And the dissatisfied customer fires employees every day.

So true. Do yourself a favor. Buy the book… great reading. I’m thinking I’m going to read it a few times before I put it on the bookshelf. Maybe I’ll only read one chapter a day, but in that one chapter, I think I’ll learn more than I can actually apply than I will in a full day of training on how to be a leader.