In Use Your Head to Get Your Foot in the Door, only a stellar team could have gotten the job done:

Ron Beyma can take a diamond in the rough and turn it into a sparkling gem. His masterful editorial judgment, trend-spotting abilities, and superior organizational skills combine to keep me on track. He delivers, rain or shine, at the speed of light. Ron has been a valued member of my editorial team because he truly knows how to use his head!

The term chief of staff understates the pivotal contributions Greg Bailey has made to this book in every way. Greg continues to be my right hand—and so much more—in the entire spectrum of my professional life. An inexhaustible source of topic leads; an unparalleled administrator in marshaling all of this book’s supporting resources; an incredible eye for detail as well as proportion in sizing up a manuscript and helping me set direction. And this always is done with an effortless ease with people that is awesomely low-key.

Margie Resnick Blickman—an editor whose eye for excellence is unsurpassed—is foremost a loving sister and friend. Hey, not even Stradivarius could imagine a better sounding board.

To call Mary Anne Bailey a proofreader doesn’t begin to do justice to her discerning judgment in weighing a phrase or her mastery of detail in polishing prose. She’s a consummate professional with an uncanny sense of rightness in the written word.

My agent, Jan Miller, is the prototype of a new generation of dynamo in the publishing world: people friendly, resourceful, and unbelievably efficient. Jan and her staff of energetic young professionals have sent a fresh wind rustling through the publishing industry. Her A-team roster of authors are the All Stars of the business and motivational world.

When I wrote Swim with the Sharks, I praised the professionalism, poise, and friendship of my then editor Adrian Zackheim. That respect has only grown in luster over the years. Adrian is more than tops in the industry, he’s a publishing legend who is building the Portfolio imprint of Penguin Books into a powerhouse.

You’ll doubtless note the deft touch of David Moldawer, an exacting editorial talent and a gifted ear for what matters to today’s audiences. I thank David for helping to polish the structure and to road test the messages.

Allison Sweet McLean, the third member of the Portfolio team, is the outfit’s publicity whiz. She knows the magic steps in building buzz in the book market and has the boundless energy to play all the cards with verve.

Scott Mitchell, CEO of MackayMitchell Envelope Company, has a sixth sense for modern management priorities. That includes what execs look for when hiring others.

As to Neil Naftalin, the reason why things run so well in our world of books, columns, and speeches is we live by the adage “Run it by Neil”—the closest person I know to the gold standard of judgment and a trusted friend and adviser for more than fifty years.

Jan Beyma is both a resourceful researcher who knows the ways of the Web and a dedicated document manager who understands how to present text and track changes with easy-to-cipher precision.

Kathy Hanlin, my administrative assistant, is the unrivaled utility player on our team. Effortlessly, she shifts her skills and attention to the varied needs of an often hectic office and closes loop after open loop.

If you want to dress up a book, Rachel Roddy is your lady. What Paris and Milan can do to make design on the catwalk sizzle, Rachel delivers for a book jacket time and again—ironing out every last wrinkle till it lies just right.

Judy Olausen is the world’s #1 serial photographer—and the best, too. Not only has she photographed me for the cover of every one of my books, she managed to photograph me for this one more times than all the others combined!

Planned Television Arts has proven itself as much the master of publicity in the age of twitters and tweets as it has been in the rapidly evolving world of print. That’s because it has such agile knowledge workers as David Hahn at the helm of its campaigns.

Teresa Mazzitelli—whom we affectionately term “the Bulldog” at MackayMitchell Envelope Company—gave me an eagle-eyed view of the executive recruiting business. She also unearthed inspiring stories of folks who became stellar successes in a sour economy. Her relentless determination to find talent has helped us time and again.

If you enjoy the wry chuckles from the New Yorker that dot these pages, part of the thanks goes to Merrideth Miller, the Cartoon Bank administrator who helped arrange their appearance.

I thank Sam Richter, the guru of warm call sales strategy, for sharing the ingenious ways you can apply door-opening sales gambits to getting your foot in the door of even the most tightly shut employment offices.

The pros at United Feature Syndicate, who zip my weekly column to publications throughout the country, deserve a big thank you as always. My columns helped secure valuable reader input about job experiences and successes in these trying times.

I want to extend appreciation to everyone at MackayMitchell Envelope Company, especially our human resources manager, Elaine Sampson. Our employees have taught me a lot about people priorities in business, and you have my respect and admiration every day.

Two family members helped with the book’s jacket, my film-director son, David, and my ever-loving wife, Carol Ann. Her encouragement and patience have enabled each of my books to come to fruition. She pushed me over the cliff when she said, “You have to write this book!”