Ted Clark calls it knowing “when to show your teeth.” His new book, Shipping Clerk to CEO, puts forth the lesson in a sidebar summarizing one of Clark’s experiences with a pushy repeat customer.
He didn’t have a college degree and he didn’t have family connections, but what Ted Clark did have was curiosity, tenacity, and good instincts. Starting as a forklift driver and warehouse clerk, Ted Clark climbed the corporate ladder to become CEO of a $240 million company at age 42.
Chock-full of charming personal stories, information-loaded sidebars, and thought-provoking lesson summaries, Shipping Clerk to CEO boasts a mix of in-the-trenches first-person experience and visionary takeaways.
From death to three-martini lunches, bullying customers, and megamergers, Clark skillfully guides us through the 30 years of work that carried him to the top.
In this book, you’ll discover:
The subtle difference between creating change and adapting
Why we’re all salesmen and how to use it to our advantage
When to “show your teeth” to gain respect
How a “power walk” can revolutionize your work presence
And what it really takes to succeed as CEO
Building on his first principle—have a reason—Clark sets the tone like a charismatic mentor rooting for the success of underdogs everywhere. Entertaining and clever, his parables, self-assessment, and business tactics pave the way for a younger generation eager to cut its teeth outside the classroom.
