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The measure of the executive, Peter Drucker reminds us, is the ability to "get the right things done." This usually involves doing what other people have overlooked as well as avoiding what is unproductive. Intelligence, imagination, and knowledge may all be wasted in an executive job without the acquired habits of mind that mold them into results.

Drucker identifies five practices essential to business effectiveness that can, and must, be learned: management of time; choosing what to contribute to the practical organization; knowing where and how to mobilize strength for best effect; setting up the right priorities; and knitting all of them together with effective decision making. The author ranges widely through the annals of business and government to demonstrate the distinctive skill of the executive as he offers fresh insights into old and seemingly obvious situations. [via]