Good Boss, Bad Boss
How to Be the Best. . .and Learn from the Worsts

by Robert L. Sutton
Read by Robert L. Sutton, Bob Walter

Robert Sutton, author of The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn't, has written a book that is primarily directed at bosses. First of all, the book will let them know that they are not as good or effective as they think. Secondly, even good bosses can learn from the bad ones. It is a book for both the good and the bad.

If you are not a boss and you listen to the program, you may respond as this reviewer did: There is a great deal of information and advice for all of us. We in education have used one of his suggestions—many years—have high expectations and students will rise to that level. Have low expectations and they will stay or drop to that level. After all, the suggestions that the author makes are not that radical— basically they remind bosses to be kind and understanding human beings.

The heart of the program is the research that went into formulating the ideas and suggestions for the bosses. Bosses and those who work under them will be surprised at the discrepancy between what bosses think they are accomplishing and what they actually are accomplishing. For this reason, it would be good for workers to listen/ or read the program.

Even though this book is based on research (which can be difficult and boring reading), Sutton writes in simple, easy to understand sentences. The listener is never in doubt as to what the man is talking about. Some listeners may go directly to the list of suggestions. Doing this would rob the reader because the lists would be less convincing.

The author gives us examples from both the good and the bad. His hope, and ours, is that the bad will learn from the good, and the good will get even better. It is to all our advantage that this happen because good bosses help produce more and more production helps us all as it makes our country greater.