I wish I'd had this book when I first became a manager - I suspect that some of the people who worked for me wish I had as well. The title "inspirational" might sound a bit over the top but basically it's about being the sort of manager who gets the best out of his or her team. This is only management book I've read that seems to be based on the experiences of real managers - there are photos of them in the back of the book so they must be real people - and it shows, the stories sound real, not the usual two-dimensional stuff that passes for case studies in most books. The book is packed with useful ideas that have worked for other people in jobs just as difficult as yours or mine so they have to be worth a crack. One of its best features is the "action plan" at the end of each chapter that set you a list of tasks to achieve today, by the end of next week, next month and so on - they really help make the connection between what the book says and what you need to do yourself. This is one of the few management books that lives up to its marketing spiel.