This guide belongs to 100 Ways To Be Being Remarkable Series, a special project that brings you business and self-development advice from The Success Manual.

Walk groundly, talk profoundly, drink roundly, sleep soundly.
- William Hazlitt

There is no future in any job. The future lies in the man/woman holding the job.
- George Crane

THE WAY OF THE RAT
When talking to a colleague about work, stop listening...all you need to do is catch the adjectives the talker uses. Then simply repeat the adjective as a question. For example, "bad?"

Keep doing this and soon you might reach to the agenda behind the agenda - why the talker is saying all this.

…Plot. Gather evidence. Read You colleagues. Describe lines of power and patronage in your workplace. Insinuate your way into courts. Gather your courtiers. Reward useful spies by including them in your plans..

- Joep P M Schrijvers 'The Way of the Rat - A Survival guide to office politics'

One either meets or one works.
– Peter Drucker

It has been my experience that one cannot, in any shape or form, depend on human relations for lasting reward. It is only work that truly satisfies.
- Bette Davis

When your work speaks for itself, don't interrupt.
- Henry J. Kaiser

People who work sitting down get paid more than people who work standing up.
- Ogden Nash

We aren’t knocking Dilbert. Who would dare? But we do believe that work can be cool. That the work matters.
– Tom Peters

GET SOME SKILLS
Ah, mastery ...what a profoundly satisfying feeling when one finally gets on top of a new set of skills ...and then sees the light under the new door those skills can open, even as another door is closing.
— Gail Sheehy

BE A GOOD EMPLOYEE
1. Show up
2. Pay attention
3. Don’t steal
4. Don’t lie
5. Go-getter
6. Don't attach to outcomes
7. Do what needs to be done
- Metafilter.com

A man who knows the court is master of his gestures, of his age and of his faces; he is profound, unpenetrable; he dissimulates bad offices, smiles at his enemies, controls his irritation, disguises his passion, belies his heart, speaks and acts against his own feelings.
– Jean De La Bruyere

Stay Sharp and don’t let anyone get the better of you.
- Anonymous

When you meet a swordsman, draw your sword; do not recite poetry to one who is not a poet.
– Buddhist Saying

I organize my day and think over issues while I run every morning.
– Anil Ambani, Industrialist

He is an old bore; even the grave yawns for him.
- Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree

Silence is one of the hardest thing to refute.
– Josh Billings

The man who strikes first admits that his ideas have given out.
- Chinese Proverb

Speak when you’re angry and you’ll make the best speech you will ever regret.
– Anonymous

THE EIGHT FUNDAMENTAL SKILLS NEEDED FOR SUCCESS IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY
1. Positioning (and, when necessary, repositioning) your business by zeroing in on the central idea that meets customer needs and makes money
2. Connecting the dots by pinpointing patterns of external change ahead of others
3. Shaping the way people work together by leading the social system of your business
4. Judging people by getting to the truth of a person
5. Molding high-energy, high-powered, high-ego people into a working team of leaders in which they equal more than the sum of their parts
6. Knowing the destination where you want to take your business by developing goals that balance what the business can become with what it can realistically achieve
7. Setting laser-sharp priorities that become the road map for meeting your goals
8. Dealing creatively and positively with societal pressures that go beyond the economic value creation activities of your business
- ‘Know How: The 8 Skills that separate people who perform from who don’t’ by Ram Charan

The workplace should primarily be an incubator for the human spirit.
- Anita Roddick

"Along this tree
From root to crown
Ideas flow up
And vetoes down."
- Peter F Drucker

Being a professional means doing your job when you don't feel like it.
- David Halberstam, Author, Journalist

11 LESSONS FOR THE OFFICE WORKER

1. How to talk to your boss.
Typically, your boss either already knows about the problem or doesn’t want to know about it. Your role is to provide answers, not questions.

2. How to survive a meeting that’s poorly run.
First, assume that most of what you’ll hear is pure, petty, ass-covering bull shiitake, and it’s part of the game. This will prevent you from going crazy. Second, focus on what you want to accomplish in the meeting and ignore everything else. Once you get what you want, take yourself “out of your body,” sit back, and enjoy the show. Third, vow to yourself that someday you’ll start a company, and your meetings won’t work like this.

3. How to run a meeting.
The primary purpose of a business meeting is to make a decision. It is not to share experiences or feel warm and fuzzy. With that in mind, here are five key points to learn about running a meeting:
(1) Start on time even if everyone isn’t there because they will be next time;
(2) Invite the fewest people possible to the meeting;
(3) Set an agenda for exactly what’s going to happen at the meeting;
(4) End on time so that everyone focuses on the pertinent issues;
(5) Send an email to all participants that confirms decisions reviews action items.

4. How to figure out anything on your own.
Armed with Google, PDFs of manuals, and self-reliance, force yourself to learn how to figure out just about anything on your own.

5. How to negotiate.
The only method that works in the real world involves five steps:
(1) Prepare for the negotiation by knowing your facts;
(2) Figure out what you really want;
(3) Figure out what you don’t care about;
(4) Figure out what the other party really wants (per Kai); and
(5) Create a win-win outcome to ensure that everyone is happy. You’ll be a negotiating maven if you do this.

6. How to have a conversation.
Generally, if you listen more than you talk, you will (ironically) be considered not only a good conversationalist but also smart.

7. How to write a one-page report.
The best reports in the real world are one page or less.

8. How to write a five-sentence email.
The optimal length of an email message is five sentences. All you should do is explain who you are, what you want, why you should get it, and when you need it by.

9. How to get along with co-workers.
In the real world the higher you rise in an organization, the less important your individual accomplishments are. What becomes more and more important is the ability to work with/through/besides and sometimes around others.

The most important lesson to learn: Share the credit with others because a rising tide floats all boats.

10. How to use PowerPoint.
In the real world, you need to limit yourself to ten slides, twenty minutes, and a thirty-point font—assuming that you want to get what you want.

11. How to leave a voicemail.
Very few people of any age leave good voicemails. The purpose of a voicemail is to make progress towards along a continuum whose end is getting what you want.

A good model is to think of a voicemail as an oral version of a compelling five-sentence email; the optimal length of a voicemail is fifteen seconds.

Two power tips: First, slowly say your telephone number once at the beginning of your message and again at the end.

Second (and this applies to email too), always make progress. Never leave a voicemail or send an email that says, “Call me back, and I’ll tell you what time we can meet.” Just say, “Tuesday, 10:00 am, at your office.”
- Guy Kawasaki, How To Save The World, 2006

In prison you spend most of your life looking through bars from the inside wanting to get out. At work you spend most of your time wanting to get out and inside bars.
- Unknown

Do the difficult stuff first.
- Anon

1. In any given work environment, almost everyone is focused on one goal: to make themselves look good. If you can change things around and focus on making other people look good, you’re well on the way to being awesome.
2. Showing up to work is expected. Showing up early, prepared, and with a good attitude is remarkable.
3. Present solutions, not problems.
4. Don't be cocky. Don't be flashy. There's always someone better than you.
5. Be nice and make friends. It's a small community.
6. Share what you've learned with others.
7. Have fun. The game is a lot more enjoyable when you're trying to do more than just make money.
8. Choose between actual jobs, not companies
9. Keep up with new technologies and ways of working
10. Don’t focus on job security
11. Don’t let money dominate your decisions
12. Always make sure you can leave your job if you’re not happy there
13. Participate in communities. Meet other useful people.
14. Get yourself noticed
15. Be nice to PAs/Secretaries/Receptionists/Doormen/Help/Orderly
16. Get up to speed with the office jargon
17. Manage without bosses
18. Do one thing at a time
19. Learn to listen: start by repeating what the other is saying (active listening)
20. Learn to ask questions: know when to ask open ended ("what do you think?") and close ("did you do this?") questions.
21. Distinguish sense from nonsense
22. Accept change as inevitable
23 Admit mistakes
24. Say it simple
25. Be calm
26. Smile
27. Know the problem: Come up with innovative solutions to make things better - even if there is no problem
28. Stay on top of the news and trends in your industry
29. Keep a blog or online portfolio of your expertise.
30. Seek the wisdom of your superiors

More:
- Cultivate Compassion for Negative Coworkers.
- Conflicts with Others. Let your goal be “to make progress.” Don’t get caught up in trying to “be right” or to “win” the argument.
- Learn from Criticism.
- Pace Yourself, Especially on Bad Days.
- Take Everything in Stride. Deadlines, tough bosses, rude clients, slow computers.
- Break Negative Habits: For one day, observe yourself. Where do you face difficulties? With people? Certain people? Certain circumstances?
- Adapt: Be open to change. Give it a chance.
- Apply Creative Thinking to your job: Is your job boring? If so, take some responsibility in changing that. How can you make it more fun, more creative, more varied, etc.? What can you do that no one has done before? How could you grow enthusiasm at work? What is a new way that you could do old things? What processes could you alter to save time, work and money?

THE THREE ELEMENTS OF FULL EMPLOYMENT
1. Sales
2. Additive effort
3. Initiation
- Seth Godin

THE BRAZEN CAREERIST
by Penelope Trunk
- Work is never done: No matter how sure you are that you’ve done everything you can think of, there will always be something else to do when you wake up in the morning.
- When you start moving up that proverbial ladder, work becomes less and less sitting in front of a computer, and more and more talking, managing, and brainstorming.
- Everyone looks out for themselves: If you fail, your peers have a better chance of being promoted.
- Leading a company or starting a company requires much more. It requires social skills, vision, and creating work when there is nothing tangible there: Straight A’s will not make you a CEO, only a great entry level employee.

SKILLS THAT GOOGLE LOOKS FOR
1. Analytical reasoning.
2. Communication skills.
3. A willingness to experiment. Non-routine problems call for non-routine solutions and there is no formula for success.
4. Team players.
5. Passion and leadership.

The Purpose of an office is to create knowledge. That is an intellectual process, not a productive process.
- Duncan Sutherland

I sometimes wonder what sort of quality my work would have if I worked in a harsh, rectangular, smooth-surfaced, evenly-lit glossy office.
- Christopher Day

Benjamin Franklin did his best work in the nude and Martin Luther in the can….Mark Twain worked in his bed.
- Design Management Journal

The most important suggestion in this book:
When you go to work tomorrow, try to look at 'your place' as a fearful first-day employee would.
- From ‘The Tom Peters Seminar’

OFFICE ETIQUETTE BASICS
- On joining the company, newcomers must be formally introduced to colleagues. Their job profiles must be clearly defined and they must be told about seemingly trivial things.
- Be precise when asking someone to do something.
- If you’re asked to do something you haven’t fully understood, ask again.
- Avoid talking at length about personal matters.
- Avoid saying things that would upset or offend colleagues. Be helpful to visitors.

LETTERS ETIQUETTE
Letters show respect for the correspondent and remain a physical record of communication.
- Letters must carry your address and date, the addressee’s name, address and reference numbers, if any.
- The text should begin a little way down the page, with margins on either side. Almost all letters begin with “Dear”. If the correspondent’s name is unknown, write “Dear Sir” or “Madam”.
- But wherever possible, call up and find out their names, and check whether a woman likes to be addresses as Miss, Mrs or Ms. Doctors, professors and people with ranks, must be addressed accordingly.
- Effective business letters must be short and to the point, ideally using only one sheet of paper. Otherwise, the pages should be numbered clearly, preferable reiterating the date and number on each page.
- Avoid very formal language. If you enclose material in a business letter, put the letters “Enc:” at the end ,and enlist the enclosures. If you are sending copies to people, put the letters “Cc:” at the end , with a list of their names.

Do: Write promptly; use short sentences; put separate ideas in separate paragraphs.

Don’t: Use a reference’s name without letting the person know; reply to a business letter without using reference numbers; make a phone call when a letter would be more appropriate.

BUSINESS DINNERS
- The lunch is for discussions. The afternoon tea is to nurture relationships. The Dinner is for special occasions and not for first meetings.
- Do not get right down to the business at such occasions.
- Leave paperwork to the office- do no take it to the table.
- Do not arrive late.
- Do not hop from table to table if you see acquaintances there.
- Do not discuss taboo topics – death, disease, destructions and other negative stuff.
- Do not dominate the discussion with the ‘I’s.
- Do not forget your table manners- talking with mouthfuls, upsetting place settings, drinking heavily.
- Do not fight over the bill – One who invites pays. Settle the check away from the table before it is presented.

Remember, business entertaining is always about business.

A Boss: Someone who's early when you're late and late when you're early.
- Anon.

Smile when picking up the phone. The caller will hear it in your voice
- Anon.

TYPES OF CALLS THATSSHOULD ALWAYS BE RETURNED AS SOON AS POSSIBLE (ASAP).
- I need to be responsive: When you have to show to the caller that you care.
- I need to need a promise.
- I need to keep a deal moving forward: Failing to return a call can also give the other party a handy excuse to stall or to delay negotiations.
- There is money to be made.
Source: Mark McCormack

HOW TO BE A STAR AT WORK
A Book Summary of the book with the same name by Robert E. Kelley

Become a Star Performer

1. Core
- Initiative
- Cognitive Ability
- Technical Competence

2. 2nd Layer
- Self-Management
- Networking

3. 3rd Layer
- Followership
- Leadership
- Teamwork
- Perspective

4. 4th Layer
-. Organizational Savvy
- Show-and-Tell

1. Take Initiative
2. Knowing Who Knows - proactively developing dependable pathways to knowledge experts who can help complete critical path tasks; share knowledge; minimize knowledge deficit
3. Managing Your Whole Life at Work - develop a portfolio of talents and work experiences so that value to the company increases; know your strengths and weaknesses

Core self-management skills
- find out what the critical path is for the organization and get on it by learning how to add value
- choose work that can leverage themselves, their talents, get into flow, and experience job satisfaction
- regularly review their personal productivity and devise ways to increase personal effectiveness and efficiency
- borrow shamelessly--techniques and methods for better self-management; careful observers
- don't fear experimentation; try new approaches
- make compelling case to management for changing job description and regulations that limit productivity
- adopt behaviors that allow minimization of interruptions with separating from the group
- work to avoid time-killer crises by planning for problems--building mistake-recovery time into the projects; write up personal damage-control plan
- develop procrastination-busting work habits--to-do lists, priority plans, building enjoyable assignments around drudge tasks
- learn to accept occasional unproductive days, even weeks of slump
- know personal productivity patterns

4. Getting the Big Picture - see in a larger context and through the eyes of the critical others
5. Followership - be actively engaged in helping the organization succeed while exercising independent, critical judgment of goals, tasks, and methods; work cooperatively even through differences
6. Small-L Leadership in a Big-L World - employs expertise and influence to convince a group of people to come together and accomplish a task; help create vision, create trust, find resources, shepherd completion
7. Teamwork - taking joint "ownership" of goal setting, activities, and accomplishments; help build team, deal with conflict, and solve problems
8. Organizational Savvy - navigate competing interests to promote cooperation, address conflicts, and get things done; communicate with individuals and groups; avoid conflicts; make allies out of enemies
9. Show-and-Tell - selecting information to pass along, developing effective format for persuading a specific audience; selecting the right message for an audience or vice versa

- ‘How to Be a Star at Work’ by Robert E. Kelley

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