Book excerpt: Like many things in life, becoming a great manager is in fact a simple process – if only we knew how and changed our current habits. The authors in this book have identified 15 fundamental principles that are exhibited by great managers and which can easily be followed by mere mortals when they have something or somebody to manage. These fundamentals derive from the real experience of successful managers. One by one, the fundamentals are described and illustrative examples given of their use, especially in relation to what great managers do and importantly what bad managers fail to do. The objective is to give the reader a clear understanding of the meaning and importance of each fundamental. Stories, proverbs and aphorisms that will help the reader remember and apply these fundamentals are also included.