CEOs say how you treat a waiter can predict a lot about character – The CEO’s Secret Handbook.

Office Depot CEO Steve Odland spilled purple sorbet onto the white gown of an obviously rich and important woman while working at an upscale French restaurant. But the woman dealt with it in a kind and dignified manner.

Office Depot CEO Steve Odland remembers like it was yesterday working in an upscale French restaurant in Denver.

The purple sorbet in cut glass he was serving tumbled onto the expensive white gown of an obviously rich and important woman. "I watched in slow motion ruining her dress for the evening," Odland says. "I thought I would be shot on sight."

Thirty years have passed, but Odland can’t get the stain out of his mind, nor the woman’s kind reaction. She was startled, regained composure and, in a reassuring voice, told the teenage Odland, "It’s OK. It wasn’t your fault." When she left the restaurant, she also left the future Fortune 500 CEO with a life lesson: You can tell a lot about a person by the way he or she treats the waiter.

Odland isn’t the only CEO to have made this discovery. Rather, it seems to be one of those rare laws of the land that every CEO learns on the way up. It’s hard to get a dozen CEOs to agree about anything, but all interviewed agree with the Waiter Rule.

By Del Jones, USA TODAY

Full Story: http://www.usatoday.com/money/companies/management/2006-04-14-ceos-waiter-rule_x.htm

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The CEO’s Secret Handbook.

IMAGINE A LIFETIME’S WORTH OF EXECUTIVE WISDOM, BOILED DOWN TO A HANDY POCKET-SIZE GUIDE. CORPORATE LEADERS SWEAR BY IT—BUT IT’S NOT FOR SALE. LUCKY FOR YOU, WE’VE EXCERPTED THE BEST PARTS.

By Paul Kaihla

(Business 2.0) – It started decades ago as flashes of insight scribbled on loose scraps of paper. Then it morphed into a PowerPoint presentation that distilled years of business wisdom into a handful of easy-to-remember aphorisms. Last year it became a 76-page spiral-bound booklet clad in a plain gray cover. Eventually, Warren Buffett received a copy—and liked it so much that he asked for dozens more to give to his CEOs, friends, and family.

The tiny handbook has become an underground hit among senior executives and management thinkers. Written by Bill Swanson, CEO of aerospace contractor Raytheon, Swanson’s Unwritten Rules of Management is part Ben Franklin and part Yogi Berra, with a dash of Confucius thrown in. Former General Electric CEO Jack Welch says there’s something about both the man and his management style that makes the gray book a worthwhile read for any CEO. "It’s a neat little manual, and each of these rules makes sense," Welch says. "It covers almost everything, and I like Swanson’s feet-on-the-ground approach." Bruce Whitman, president of FlightSafety International, a Berkshire Hathaway company that’s one of the world’s largest aviation training firms, goes even further: "The book is something you can carry around with you like a Bible and live by every day."

SWANSON’S UNWRITTEN RULES

1: Learn to say, "I don’t know." If used when appropriate, it will be used often.

2: It is easier to get into something than to get out of it.

3: If you are not criticized, you may not be doing much

4: Look for what is missing. Many know how to improve what’s there; few can see what isn’t there.

5: Presentation rule: When something appears on a slide presentation, assume the world knows about it and deal with it accordingly.

6. Work for a boss to whom you can tell it like it is. Remember, you can’t pick your family, but you can pick your boss.

7: Constantly review developments to make sure that the actual benefits are what they were supposed to be. Avoid Newton’s Law.

8: However menial and trivial your early assignments may appear, give them your best effort.

9: Persistence or tenacity is the disposition to persevere in spite of difficulties, discouragement or indifference. Don’t be known as a good starter but a poor finisher!

10: In doing your project, don’t wait for others; go after them and make sure it gets done.

11: Confirm the instructions you give others, and their commitments, in writing. Don’t assume it will get done.

12: Don’t be timid: Speak up, express yourself and promote your ideas.

13: Practice shows that those who speak the most knowingly and confidently often end up with the assignment to get the job done.

14: Strive for brevity and clarity in oral and written reports.

15: Be extremely careful in the accuracy of your statements.

16: Don’t overlook the fact that you are working for a boss. Keep him or her informed. Whatever the boss wants, within the bounds of integrity, takes top priority.

17: Promises, schedules and estimates are important instruments in a well-run business. You must make promises — don’t lean on the often-used phrase: "I can’t estimate it because it depends on many uncertain factors."

18: Never direct a complaint to the top; a serious offense is to "cc" a person’s boss on a copy of a complaint before the person has a chance to respond to the complaint.

19: When interacting with people outside the company, remember that you are always representing the company. Be especially careful of your commitments.

20: Cultivate the habit of boiling matters down to the simplest terms: the proverbial "elevator speech" is the best way.

21: Don’t get excited in engineering emergencies: Keep your feet on the ground.

22: Cultivate the habit of making quick, clean-cut decisions.

23: When making decisions, the "pros" are much easier to deal with than the "cons." Your boss wants to see both.

24: Don’t ever lose your sense of humor.

25: Have fun at what you do. It will be reflected in you work. No one likes a grump except another grump!

26: Treat the name of you company as if it were your own.

27: Beg for the bad news.

28: You remember 1/3 of what you read, 1/2 of what people tell you, but 100% of what you feel.

29: You can’t polish a sneaker.

30: When facing issues or problems that are becoming drawn-out, "short them to the ground."

31: When faced with decisions, try to look at them as if you were one level up in the organization. Your perspective will change quickly.

32: A person who is nice to you but rude to the waiter, or to others, is not a nice person. (This rule never fails).

33: Never be afraid to try something new. Remember, an amateur built an ark that survived a flood while a large group of professionals built the Titanic!

Postscript: The qualities of leadership boil down to confidence, dedication, integrity and love.

Full Story: http://money.cnn.com/magazines/business2/business2_archive/2005/07/01/8265517/index.htm