Book excerpt: "Code Enforcement is at times an occupation of extremes. It involves cases ranging from the basic quality of life issues to serious health and safety issues. You will meet people on what is possibly the worst day of their life and you will be empathetic to their plight. But at times you will also get to witness their incredible strength and humanity. Some of your best days will be those where you are able to help a child or senior citizen who cannot help themselves, and help make a lasting improvement in their quality of life. Rural code enforcement officers face some different challenges than their fellow officers who are working in an urban environment. but many issues are the same wherever you are in this great country. Through this book I have tried to impart some of the wisdom that I gained through hard lessons learned during my 18 years in this profession. You must learn to work smarter, not faster or harder. The skill set that you are able to bring to this job, how you hone those many skills while on the job and how you conduct yourself with your customers will help determine if this career will hopefully bring you as much happiness as it did for me."