I don’t normally read business books. I actually own only a few – Hilary’s book, Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Social Media, but were afraid to ask…Building Your Business Using Consumer Generated Media, The Girl’s Guide to Being a Boss (without being a bitch), Can We Do That?! and a bunch of AP style books, but those don’t really count.

When we signed on a new client to help him promote his book, being the responsible publicist that I try to be, I of course read the book we were hired to promote. Ammunition: Essentials of Leadership by Alexander Pelaez (Link: http://www.amazon.com/Ammunition-Essentials-Leadership-Alexander-Pelaez/dp/0984095179) is a business novel (something I’ve never heard of before) and a really interesting way to read and learn about leadership.

In the beginning of the book, you are introduced to the main fictional character, Ryan Sheridan, a young Information Technology manager. You’re then taken on a journey through Ryan’s eyes and life/business experiences as he learns about leadership. Although each scenario he experiences is fictional, I ended up finding myself relating to some of his angst and feeling relief and satisfaction when he overcame a challenge or bettered his life.

As a young professional, being a good leader is something to strive for. I try to learn new leadership skills every day. It’s a very integral and important part of my job. Because of the way Ammunition: Essentials of Leadership, is written as a novel instead of a traditional business book, it was very easy for me to relate to the main character and put myself in his shoes. How would I have dealt with the “office politics” in that situation? Would I have been able to overcome these challenges? I’d like to think so.

For those of you interested in learning more about yourself as a leader and tired of the usual tip format of a business book, definitely check out Alex’s book. I promise you won’t be disappointed.

P.S. Here’s a plot summary for those of you wanting to know a little more before purchasing your own copy!

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Newly hired by Paltz, a sports equipment retailer, Ryan learns quickly the importance of trust and integrity by experiencing its absence from his managers, and, unable or unwilling to stand firm, he succumbs to the herd mentality, often found in corporate environments, when a situation develops causing one member of his team is terminated by his management, an experience that will shape Ryan’s decision making in the future.

When new management is brought in to mitigate some of the issues plaguing the retailer, Jay Alethia, Ryan’s new manager and eventual mentor, immediately empowers him to make changes. He learns quickly and capitalizes on the opportunity to shape the team into a well organized and efficient crew. Stacy, a strong willed member of Ryan’s team, becomes the most valued member of his because of her direct nature and willingness to constructively challenge Ryan, a quality Ryan will come to appreciate greatly. Subsequently, animosity driven by jealousy causes on member of the team, Phil to spread false rumors of Stacy having a romantic affair with Ryan, and as a result she noticeably and deliberately distances herself from Ryan, who will wittingly dispel the rumors an embarrass Phil simultaneously. In order for his team to be successful, Ryan will learn the importance of being empathetic to the needs of the individuals.

In an unexpected management shakeup, less than a year later, Ryan was dealt a major shock with the termination of his mentor Jay, which threatened the momentum of his group. Ryan’s new boss, Eric, is a hard-nosed financial Wall Street type who demands excessive hours and is the quintessential micromanager. Unfortunately for Ryan, Phil becomes a favorite of Eric, and is promoted out of Ryan’s group. Phil immediately seizes the chance to sabotage Ryan, and simultaneously spreads rumors about Stacy being a lesbian. Stacy became anxious and demoralized because she had diligently tried to keep her secret safe, and only told Ryan recently of her lifestyle.

Ryan works to protect Stacy and keep her on the team, but Eric, who had developed a great disdain for Stacy, waits for an opportunity to terminate her for insubordination. When Ryan refuses Eric’s demand for her termination, Stacy files a harassment complaint with Human Resources against Eric, and her allegations are corroborated by Ryan after he is unable to gain senior management support for her plight. In retaliation, Eric, who seeks Ryan’s capitulation to his authority, decides to teach him a lesson, and demonstrates his authority by firing Ryan’s next trusted manager Tim, who coincidentally told Stacy earlier in the day that he had been diagnosed days before with cancer. Tim would come to blame Ryan for his unexpected departure, and cease speaking with Ryan and Stacy, leaving them both scarred.

The thought of Tim’s firing as retribution for his defense of Stacy would haunt him terribly. Unable to cope with Eric and his implicit demands of capitulation, he leaves the company and coincidentally finds new employment at a competitor, SportsCentral. Stacy, although happy for Ryan, increasingly feels abandoned as the situation becomes increasingly unbearable amid her inability to find other employment.

As the head of development, he encounters a new set of challenges and must reorganize the team with a very bitter manager, Bill, who now reported to Ryan but who believed he should have been given the position. Ryan who later receives approval to hire Stacy places her along with Rebecca, a long time employee whose opportunities had been limited by Bill’s dominant personality, on a key project to Bill’s consternation. Bill, believing he was impervious, threatened to submit his resignation directly to the CEO, Bill’s brother-in-law, and to Bill’s astonishment, was immediately accepted.

Ryan learned that leadership required courage in the face of adversity, and while his team was still somewhat skeptical of his abilities, he would soon earn their respect. Ryan works hard to mold the group into a cohesive unit by empowering his team through key elements of successful organizations which include Trust, Intuition, Mission and Agreement. The lessons learned would be put to the test when a fire breaks out at their main warehouse forcing the team to quickly move a new inventory system into production to prevent the company from being paralyzed for four weeks with the old system. Its successful implementation along with rapid actions by the team to enhance their ecommerce site thwarts an attack to gain customers by their competitor, Paltz, which tried to capitalize on SportsCentral’s tragedy. Even with Ryan’s success, including winning an award for an industry trade magazine, he doesn’t quite feel complete, and questions why he isn’t satisfied.

Ryan finds that leaving a legacy was the last missing piece for his understanding of leadership. He needed to leave the place in better shape than he received it, and he surmised that leaders would know what to do, and when to do it, and most importantly that they were not  infallible.  Having developed his team effectively he leaves the group in the capable hands of Stacy while Rebecca moves on to a similar position at another company elevating her career for which she thanks Ryan.

Ryan would be congratulated as a leader for his accomplishments and for developing his team. His legacy, as he would find, would be his persistence in creating a positive environment and empowering his team. There was no fanfare and no glory as he originally imagined, but the end result was unequivocally gratifying. The magic bullet on leadership he sought would never be found. Instead, he finds the right ammunition and learns how to apply it properly to become a great leader.

When I first met Richie Schwartz he was taking photos of babies and children.  He snapped some of the best photos of my children when they were little.  I still have the photographs hanging up in my house.  So when I recently reconnected with Richie, I was surprised to learn that he became a pet photographer.  I guess if you can do magnificent work with babies and children, dogs and cats are an easier act to follow? Or, maybe not…

Richie sent me this Youtube video of his work and I thought it would be nice to share with you.  He really does fantastic work and I would recommend him to you if you want to photograph your pet.

I can’t believe the summer is over.  It seemed so short.  September always marks a new year for me because it’s when the kids go back to school and the hectic schedules begin.

It doesn’t matter if your child goes to elementary, middle or high school. It’s all the same preparation — school supplies, new clothes, new backpack and new shoes! And, there are so many forms! Sometimes I feel like they are never ending — permission slips, physicals, PTA, etc.

If you have a college aged kid like me, it’s even tougher.  You spend the whole summer with your son or daughter just to turn around and have to bring them back to school for another year.  You pack up your car until it stuffed and you’re on your way.  Or, if you’re like me, you’ll “schlep” three huge duffle bags weighing more than 50 pounds each on a plane to your child’s school and get the rest from the storage company that you hired over the summer.

Today was unpacking day.  After my daughter and I rented a car and loaded it up with our BIG luggage, we drove to the school.  Unpacking wasn’t hard.  It actually went by pretty quickly.  The hard part came when a truck stopped in front of the dorms and emptied seven huge boxes on the ground that had to go up to her dorm room.  It took us nine hours to get her set up and believe it or not, we still need a few things!

I think the worst part was walking to the bookstore which was a few blocks away down a long hill.  Buying the books and other things that she needed for school and bringing them back up the hill to the dorm.  I realized at that point that I better continue working out because I was totally out of breath!

And as soon as I finish with her, it’s back to my hometown to get my son ready for his first day!

As I was walking on the boardwalk in Long Beach, I looked around and saw so many possible pictures to snap and yet, I didn’t have my camera.  If I did, this is what I would have taken…

The first snapshot would be the fierce water making big waves and hitting the white sand beach.  I would take the shot as it curled around and hit the ground.  Snap.

I kept walking and started to jog.

The next shot would be two muscle men training about six or seven women on the boardwalk.  Each woman was doing something different.  While one woman was doing ab work, another woman was climbing up and down from the bench lifting weights above her head.  And yet another woman was jumping rope while someone else was working her biceps.  Snap.

I continued to jog.  I saw a surf camp on the beach with dozens of children eager to learn how to surf.  No one was in the water yet but they all had their wet suits on and were ready to go. Here’s another good photo opportunity. Snap.

I started to sprint.

I saw four or five construction workers fixing the boardwalk.  They were replacing some of the warn wood with new.  They had a section of the boardwalk closed off.  Wearing their uniforms and hammering away, I thought another good photo. Snap.

I ran further.

A carnival was set up on the right side of the boardwalk on an empty block.  There were rides and things and I just wondered when it would begin. Snap.

I started to walk.  (I was getting tired of running.)

I came to the end of the boardwalk on New York Avenue.  There were a few people sitting outside of Vito’s eating pizza.  There was a guy doing dips on the Boardwalk.  And there were little children running by as their parents ran after them.  Snap. Snap. Snap.

With social media becoming so prevalent, a lot of people ask me if I think traditional media is going to die.  And you know what I tell them? Absolutely not!

Yes, there are a lot of newspapers and other media outlets closing their doors but that’s not the majority.  New publications come out every day.

I think that newspapers, magazines, television and radio will be around a very long time.  I really can’t see them disappearing altogether. Millions of people are still reading magazines like Vogue, Family Circle and Good Housekeeping.  Millions of people are still reading the traditional versions of the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and USA Today.  (I know it because when I’m on the train, I always get hit in the face by a newspaper trying to get folded!) People still watch the networks and also watch cable/satellite.  And lastly, people are still listening to the radio!

The other day, someone told me that he thinks that Satellite radio will go away.  I don’t think that’s the case.  I think there will always be a place for new modes of entertainment whether it be digital radio or social media sites.

In the public relations business, we focus on both traditional and social media.  Many of our clients want a full blown publicity campaign in traditional media only.  (We always provide extra value by putting links up on the social media sites.)  They know that it’s important to get awareness wherever they can.  The more awareness, the more people will know about your business, the more likely people will buy your products or services.

So if you hear that traditional media will be dead, think again.  There will always be a place for all types of media — online and offline!