My book Embrace The Lead has been on the market for about 9 years now. I've made enough sales to have gotten my money back, but I wouldn't be mad at having more sales. However, my belief is that the book has been out long enough to share my outline, if you will, of the book and its talking points. I figure since the book is about 192 pages, if this little bit turns out to be all you need and it hurts further sales, then fine. If this whets your appetite for more, even better.

Managing people is easy if you know what you’re doing, and if you know how to talk and relate to people. Of course there are courses that will help people learn these points in more detail; I teach some myself. But some people will do fine just reading this. If it makes you think, that’s a good thing. No one ever failed from thinking.

1. Different people have different ways they got into management. Recognizing this is a first step towards understand why people get into management in the first place. The ways it occurs are:

A. Earned promotion
B. More money
C. Good at a job
D. Been around a long time
E. Afraid to turn it down; loss of future opportunity
F. Believes they can do a better job
G. So someone else doesn’t get it
H. It looks good on a resume
I. Stepping stone towards another job

2. There are 3 different ways of managing, so be truest to your own personality.

A. Hands off manager
B. Bossy manager
C. Consensus builder

3. A good manager has to learn how to delegate. You can’t do it all yourself, so use the help you’re given well.

4. Allow the people who actually do the job to help make some of the decisions. You’ll be amazed at how helpful they’ll actually be.

5. Always try to see all sides of the issues, no matter which way you may lean. If you’re perceived as being fair everyone will want to work well for you.

6. People aren’t always wrong; try listening to them every once in awhile. Accept their help when you can.

7. Change for change’s sake is never good. Don’t be afraid to make changes, but don’t make them if there’s no real benefit to them.

8. A manager will be most successful if he or she can get others to buy into their concept. If you can get others to follow your plans, you’ll have the best chance of succeeding in your team goals.

9. Employees need to know what the ultimate goals are. If they don’t know why they’re doing something, they certainly won’t understand what they’re doing.

10. A bad decision is better than no decision at all. If you don’t do anything, nothing gets done.

11. Think out the reasons, pro and con, for every decision. Preparation is the key to getting people to buy into your ideas.

12. Managers need to be ready to make the unpopular decision. If you’re the person on the line, you need to do the right thing, regardless of how popular it may or may not be.

13. Don't always agree just because it's the easiest way out. Honesty and consistency will make you more credible in the eyes of your employees and co-workers.

14. Don't be afraid to say “I don't know”. A wrong answer instead of a late but correct answer will hurt you more.

15. You never have a right to yell at anyone. Treat people how you’d like to be treated, and you’ll benefit from it.

16. There are no universal words to use in every situation. Try to say the right thing at the right time, even if it’s nothing.

17. People don't need to know everything about your life. They need to understand the essence of you, not your life story. Don’t try for sympathy; try for respect.

Section II

18. There is no company loyalty, only personal loyalty. The former was a myth; the latter should be your goal.

19. Identify employee types. If you can understand this process, you’ll understand how to relate to different people no matter where you go in life.

A. child
B. passive
C. Know-it-all
D. aggressive
E. Speedy
F. Socialite
G. Hyper
H. Moody
I. Sickly
J. Anarchist
K. Paranoid
L. Go-getter
M. Lazy; more a byproduct of the others

20. Make sure people can understand what you’re saying to them. You may have to change how you speak depending upon circumstance, but make sure you can communicate what needs to be known.

Section III

21. Diversity is a good thing; embrace it. It’s a ever-changing world, with many different people, so get into the mix and have fun with it.

22. Humor is a good thing, not a bad thing. If you can laugh more than you want to cry, and your employees can do the same, your office will be a much nicer place to be.

23. Harassment; if you do it or see it and don’t do anything about it, you’re guilty. You don’t have any waffle room here; protect yourself and your company by doing the right thing.

24. Dress codes; run away as fast as you can! Keep it simple, and if you can let the employees set the policy.

25. Conflicts are inevitable; how you get out of them determines how successful you will be. Don’t sweat the small stuff, and don’t let others sweat it either.

26. Office etiquette; little nagging issues that can make or break your office. Don’t allow the minutiae to bog down the progress of your office.

27. Employees actually have other lives. So do you, and if you don’t then find one. If you can identify with your employees on this issue, then you’re one of them.

28. At least learn your co-workers names. Is that really too much to expect from you?

29. Employees need to know how they’re doing all the time, not only for job reviews. Consistent feedback on job performance helps them, which in turn helps you and your staff work better.

30. Personal work relationships; be cautious. Don’t expect too much in the way of friendships. If a personal relationship occurs, be sure to keep it separate from your working relationship. And whatever happens, don’t let it impede your job performance.

31. Tell people when they do well and when they’re doing bad. As long as you show that you can do both, people will respect you for your honesty and consistency.

32. The people who work for you might not be as good at the job as you were. Each person has their own strengths and weaknesses. Make sure people work up to their own capabilities, not to your unreachable expectations.

33. You’re going to lose people eventually; just make sure it’s not because of you. The more stable an environment your office can be, the better the performance in the long run.

34. Don’t fear managing people. Someone has already shown great confidence in you by promoting you; don’t let yourself down by fearing the challenge.