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William Carl Thomas's avatar

Edna Marie and I met in 1970 when we worked at the Friendly Ice Cream shop in Coolidge Corner Brookline MA. She was a senior in high school and I a Boston University freshman. I was the last new hire of the new Friendly Ice Cream shop in March of 1969 in Mt. Kisco NY. By the following fall, when the graduating Class of 1969 seniors left for college, I was promoted to Shift Supervisor (I got to wear a bow tie!). This is the skill that got me hired in Coolidge Corner. I am forever grateful to my Friendly training, both for life skills learned, and the opportunity to meet my best friend. We celebrate our 49th year of marriage this fall.

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Darrell's avatar

“First, Break All The Rules

What the world’s greatest managers do differently”

….was the predecessor to “12: The Elements of Great Managing.” The second book broke down the questions in a more concrete manner why the first was more philosophical.

One of the things people miss in the best friend question that I found often led to confusion was the difference between best friend at work and “a” best friend at work, the latter being the actual question. People can have multiple “best friends” in different situations. If you think about you, you might have heard someone tell a story about their best friend “at work” as apposed to another best friend.

The point in the question is for people to have someone at work they trust to confide in and with whom they genuinely enjoy spending time. No surprise since we are such social animals. It might have been a surprise to corporate executive who typically see little value in the soft skills.

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