Book Review: Lead Well and Prosper by Nick McCormick

Being a good manager (self-management and team management) is essential ingredient of success in today’s business environment. Looking at all the bad examples of poor management around, we all know what good management is not.

This week, I read a book titled Lead Well and Prosper: 15 Successful Strategies for Becoming a Good Manager by Nick McCormick. Nick was kind enough to send me a signed copy for review.

This book is a very handy tool for young managers and aspiring leaders to lead well and prosper. This book outlines 15 successful strategies for becoming a good manager. The book focuses on a simple yet profound management truth – When you are managing people, be human and treat your people well to get the most out of them.

The book is broken down into short chapters which start with a situation and a cartoon, which makes it interesting to read. If you are time-challenged, you can also read the concluding part of each chapter which has bulleted list of Do’s, Don’ts and Action Items. It just makes the ideas more practical to apply.

Here are some key ideas from the book:

“Teaching is quite often the precursor to effective delegation.”

“When do you teach? Essentially, you teach all the time. Team members will be constantly observing you. There are also more formal opportunities you should use, such as honest feedback sessions or monthly one-on-one sessions.”

“As a manager, you must maintain positive attitude. That doesn’t mean that you ignore the ugly realities. It does mean that you must work to improve things you can control, and chip away at those you can’t do without allowing them to be all-consuming.”

“When you are among your peer managers, don’t vent. Your energy is much better spent on finding creative solutions to problems”

“Most managers are ‘too busy’ because 1) They are disorganized and 2) They are working on wrong things.”

This is one of those books I would hand over to a young manager, ask him/her to read and review themselves against these key points on a periodic basis. A great tool for the beginners in management.