1001 Ways to Take Initiative at Work [Paperback]

Bob Nelson Ph.D. (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1999

1001 WAYS to Take Initiative at Work is about managing up--about employees taking ownership of their jobs, whether it's an assistant working for a manager or a VP working for the CEO. Third in the 1001 Ways series by bestselling business writer Bob Nelson, whose 1001 Ways to Reward Employees and 1001 Ways to Energize Employees have over 900,000 copies in print, TAKE INITIATIVE is the first management book for employees. Weaving together case studies, examples, quotes, research highlights, and the author's own "Tool Box" of management techniques and exercises, this practical handbook will show every reader how to develop self-leadership, set goals, create learning opportunities, take risks, build a team, sell ideas, and work both within and outside the larger organization. Taking initiative is about a former secretary at Johnsonville Foods who originated and now runs the company's thriving mail-order business. It's about a technical writer who created Xerox's popular "webmaster" website. And it's about you. As Bob Nelson proves, employees have much more power than they think--taking initiative is how to harness that power and reap its rewards. By the bestselling author of 1001 Ways to Reward Employees and 1001 Ways to Energize Employees, with over 900,000 copies in print.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In 1001 Ways to Take Initiative at Work, Bob Nelson applies the formula behind his two previous books, 1001 Ways to Energize Employees and 1001 Ways to Reward Employees, and shows how any employee can advance his or her career by taking action, questioning authority, and thinking "outside the box." The book is filled with hundreds of stories about how workers, through simple initiatives, have made a difference at their companies--from the familiar story about the origins of Post-Its at 3M to how a Home Depot store manager helped a customer in a wheelchair. These stories are flanked by dozens of sidebars filled with short prescriptions for bettering the workplace and one's career (e.g., "Tactics for Influencing Others," "Don't Settle for Just Good Enough"). For Nelson, the key to fostering initiative is getting past the roadblocks that inhibits creativity. He cites a UCLA study that showed that by the "age five we engage in creative tasks 98 times a day, laugh 113 times, and ask questions 65 times. By the age of 44, however, the numbers shrink to 2 creative tasks a day, 11 laughs, and 6 questions." If your professional aspirations center on just getting by, then take a pass on this one. Those looking for practical career advice, however, would do well to give 1001 Ways to Take Initiative at Work a good look. --Harry C. Edwards

From the Back Cover

Bob Nelson has done it again! In this practical, timely book, he describes what employees can do to take more initiative in any job. Any employee (and supervisor, manager or owner) will find this book of enormous value! - Dr. Dean Spitzer, senior consultant, IBM Corporation, and author of SuperMotivation

"Bob Nelson's book shows how employees who take initiative not only create value for their organizations, but for themselves personally and professionally." - Dieter Huckestein, President, Hotel Division, Hilton Hotels Corporation

Whether you're an entry-level assistant or a VP working with the CEO, there's only one person responsible for your career--you. And here to help you realize your potential for success is management guru Bob Nelson, bestselling author of the 1001 Ways series. A unique motivational manual, 1001 Ways to Take Initiative at Work brings together hundreds of real-life examples, advice from business leaders, and the author's own techniques and exercises to show readers how to draw on inner creativity, develop self-leadership, set goals, take risks, and sell ideas.

"The biggest mistake you can make in life is to think you work for somebody else." -- Bob Nelson

TAKE ACTION--Elaine Crawford, a secretary at Johnsonville Foods, discovers an overlooked market segment, figures out how to reach it, pushers her idea through, and now runs a $3 million mail-order department.

QUESTION AUTHORITY--Feeling that the corporation is poorly managed, IBM programmer Jay Elliot writes a 20-page detailed letter to chairman Tom Watson, Jr.--and his career skyrockets.

THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX--Frustrated by bookmarks that keep falling out of his hymnal on Sundays, 3M engineer Art Fry creates the Post-It, today a $300 million business.

TRUST YOUR INTUITION--While still an administrative assistant at Zerox, Joanne Griffin senses opportunity in a project no one wants, directs a team to implement it, and is today a corporate Vice President of Enterprise Rent-A-Car.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Workman Publishing Company; 1 edition (October 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 076111405X
• ISBN-13: 978-0761114055
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 6.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #427,766 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Bob Nelson, Ph.D., is president of Nelson Motivation, Inc., a founding board member of the National Association for Employee Recognition (NAER), and bestselling author, including the 1001 Ways series and Managing for Dummies. Dr. Nelson lives and works in San Diego, California.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Misleading Title...For the Real Deal, Look Elsewhere!, January 9, 2001

By 

biz_buzz "biz_buzz" (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: 1001 Ways to Take Initiative at Work (Paperback)

What a misleading title! This book should have been entitled 'Chicken Soup for the Worker.' It is that genre of books that this one should be compared to, not any book that REALLY provides genuine advice to "take initiative at work" (see some "real deal" suggestions below).

As others have already pointed out, this book consists of anecdotes about people making a difference at work...and that's really it. Some shreds of 'advice' are included, almost seemingly as an afterthought. Save yourself some money and read these kinds of cutesy anecdotes in any number of magazines.

A review of 2 or 3 stars may be defendable but the misleading title annoys me to the point where I took stars away because of it. Not impressed.

For the real deal; for books that REALLY advise you on "Ways to Take Initiative at Work" as well as your career, check out Tom Peters' "The Brand You 50" and Jeffrey Fox's "How to Become CEO." Good luck!

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing, December 31, 2000

By 

Pelke (Austin, TX United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: 1001 Ways to Take Initiative at Work (Paperback)

This book should be renamed "1001 Stories About People Who Took Initiative at Work". There was very little actual advice to guide the reader on how to take initiative at work. Almost the entire book was composed of short anecdotes about others who did something special on the job. I found these stories to be somewhat interesting for the first 50 pages or so, but tired of them quickly. If you're looking for inspiration on how to increase your performance at work, I'd recommend looking elsewhere.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars More initative after taking initiatives, January 31, 2000

By 

Doris Liang (Hong Kong) - See all my reviews

This review is from: 1001 Ways to Take Initiative at Work (Paperback)

This book is useful in "initiating" the reader to build up his/her initiatives. I have made use of some of the suggested ways and cases to review my career again, and doing my mid-year apprasial! The book will be more easy to read if less examples are listed and more emphasis put on the suggestions.