On one of my many airplane rides, I picked up the “SKY” magazine out of the pocket in front of me. Flipping back and forth between advertisements and travel tips, I spotted a book review for “People Tools: 54 Strategies for Building Relationships, Creating Joy, and Embracing Prosperity.” After reading the review, I thought, “This book has everything I care to foster within my business.” Lucky for me, I had a layover and could go shopping for the book that had me so intrigued.

Fortunately, “People Tools” did not disappoint. I found the book to be funny, inspirational and full of practical advice that everybody needs now-and-then. Not only did it appeal to the businesswoman in me, but its strategies appealed to my personal relationships, as well.

The author, Alan C. Fox, is the founder and CEO of a company that owns and manages more than $1.5 billion in commercial real estate. The parallels in his business life ultimately led me to believe that he had experienced some of the same challenges janitors experience today.

The book is broken down into 54 different stories that range between one and three pages and cover a variety of practical lessons.

For example, one of my favorites is “People Tool #14 — Shrink the Glass.”
It states, “To me life is a succession of experiences. Our task is to make those experiences as pleasant for ourselves as we can.”

I like to say we need to be as nice to ourselves as we are to others. It is too easy to be hard on ourselves and other people if we allow it. But, if we “shrink the glass,” it is always full.

This book is an easy read and a perfect resource for busy people looking for solutions to everyday problems. The lessons are easily incorporated into my weekly staff meetings, and have proven to be effective tools to build relationships within our business.

In my opinion, the first and last lines were the most important sentences in the entire book:

“When we experience joy in our lives, what else do we really need?”
I think this is so true. We rarely get to take in joy and process it, without moving on to the next big thing. The book showed me that I really need to appreciate joy more, and be content with that emotion.

The cleaning business is about relationships. Getting along with others is the real secret to life success and happiness. This book will help you fill your mental toolbox with strategies you can employ to build and strengthen your relationships, and in turn, find greater joy and prosperity.


Jill N. Frey, President
Cummins Facility Services, LLC
Prospect, Ohio




Using his own experiences in business, as a husband, as a father, and as a son, author Alan C. Fox has created 54 “People Tools” that will help readers build better relationships. According to Fox, getting along with others is the secret not only for business success, but also overall happiness.

“People Tools,” published by SelectBooks, provides practical, easy-to-understand and quickly read solutions, colored with anecdotes and personal stories, that will lead readers to positive results in their lives.




POSTED ON: 5/21/2014