Table of Contents
Author's Note xi
Introduction 1
Part 1 Surrounded by Bad Bosses
1 Really Bad Leadership-and Its Appalling Consequences 11
2 Why You Should Choose Your Boss, Instead of Your Employer 21
3 Leadership Is a Process of Communication 29
4 How to Understand and Predict Your Boss's Behavior 44
5 The Most Common Color Combinations and How to Recognize Them 53
6 Why You Sometimes Feel Stressed at Work 63
7 Why You Definitely Want a Red Boss 79
8 Why You Should Hope for a Yellow Boss 91
9 Why a Green Boss Is the Best Option 100
10 Why a Blue Boss Is the Ultimate Solution 109
11 Why We Do What We Do: What the Colors Don't Show 119
12 The Author's Profile and What You Can Learn from It 131
13 Distinguishing Between Colors and Driving Forces 140
14 The Difference Between Your Personality and Your Behavior 150
15 How to Adapt Effectively to Your Boss's Color 155
16 The Missing Piece of the Puzzle: When Colors and Driving Forces Aren't Enough 165
17 Surrounded by Superfluous Bosses 180
Part 2 Surrounded by Lazy Employees
18 Why It's So Hard for Your Staff to Get the Job Done 189
19 How to Read Your Staff's Colors 203
20 Whip or Carrot-How to Motivate Your Staff 212
21 Leader-or Specialist? Your Job as a Boss 225
22 If You're an Efficient Red Boss 238
23 If You're an Inspiring Yellow Boss 253
24 If You're a Caring Green Boss 267
25 If You're an Analytic and Objective Blue Boss 279
26 The Best Way to Put a Team Together 291
27 Helping Your Team Become Active Participants 299
28 When Everyone Agrees but Still Doesn't Do Anything … 316
29 Where the Real Slackers Come From 326
30 Feedback … the Hardest Part 342
31 Why "Why" Is the Most Important Question 358
Final Words: People Quit to Leave Their Boss, Not Their Job 368
Resources 377
Index 379
About the Author 387