As I began this list of management ABCs, I was determined not to confuse management with leadership. There are leaders at all levels, whether we identify them with a special title or simply recognize their ability to direct their colleagues. Managers, on the other hand, have responsibilities to the organization to achieve results, often by working with the leaders.

Here are my thoughts on what managers need to know:

A is for advice. Good advice doesn’t get old. Good advice is never cheap, and cheap advice is never good.

B is for bringing out the best in others to get them to believe in what you believe in: your employees.

C is for caring is contagious. Help spread it around.

D is for diverse. You get the best results from people with diverse ideas who respect each other and are committed to each other’s successes.

E is for excellence. Managers should demand nothing less than excellence because they have set an example of demanding excellence from themselves.

F is for first. Running your own business is no endeavor for anyone who feels anything other than the urge to be the first person in the door in the morning and the one they have to drag out at night.

G is for good. The trick isn’t to get good at everything in your business. The trick is getting to know what you are good at and figuring out how to get better.

H is for hero. As much as you would like to be a hero, look to the heroes in your company and acknowledge and encourage their contributions.

I is for impression. What’s the easiest way to check the first impression you’re making? Have someone call your company to check up on how the call is handled. Find out what your customers already know about your business.

J is for judging. We consciously or unconsciously judge a lot of companies by the attitudes of their average workers -- the store clerk, driver, receptionist and so on. Don’t underestimate their impact.

K is for kindness. Treat yourself and others with respect. Plant seeds of kindness by doing something kind every day.

L is for listen. You can’t learn anything if you are doing all the talking. Listen to your staff because they often have great solutions and ideas for improvement.

M is for money. Managing money is as important as managing people. If you don’t manage your resources well, you’ll have to manage the mess you’ve made.

N is for nice, as in nice guys can and often do finish first. N should never be for nasty or negative.

O is for obligation. Your first obligation to your company and employees is to set them up for success.

P is for pride. Take pride in your company. Take pride in your employees. Take pride in your products. But check your personal pride at the door.

Q is for qualifications. Help your employees develop the qualifications they need to take the next step in their careers.

R is for right. Always make time to do it right the first time. Otherwise you’ll have to take time to do it over.

S is for sales. A manager needs to sell ideas, plans and products to staff before a project can take off.

T is for team. The people who make it big in business are those who are able to put together a team and know what to do with it.

U is for up-front. Being up-front builds trust. Customers and employees appreciate honesty and will be more willing to work with people who respect them enough to tell them when there’s a problem.

V is for versatile. Of the many skills managers need to bring to the job, versatility is key to understanding the different challenges they face daily.

W is for walk your plant or office floor at least once a day. Be visible and available.

X is for eXpert. Spend at least 10% of your budget on the best professional advice available before you spend a nickel on anything else.

Y is for yesterday. The decisions you made yesterday will determine where you go tomorrow.

Z is for zenith. An exceptional manager guides a company to its zenith.

Mackay’s Moral: Managing people is an art; strive for a masterpiece.

One afternoon, a boy was walking through a field when he came upon an apple tree. “It sure would be nice to have an apple to eat right about now,” he thought as he stood below the tree.

The windfall apples scattered on the ground were inedible, as they’d been half-eaten by various critters. There were a few pieces of ripe fruit hanging from some limbs, but most of these branches were just out of reach.

The boy was unable to climb the tree and unable to jump up to grab a piece of fruit. As he walked away, empty-handed and hungry, he mumbled, “Stupid tree. I bet the apples aren’t any good.”

Was he disappointed in the height of the tree or in his failure to find a way to pick the apples? In either event, circumstances were beyond his control.

These days, it often feels like disappointments are everywhere. So many parts of our lives have been disrupted, and the future seems very uncertain at times. It would be simple to give up hope and just let the chips fall where they may. But don’t give in to that mindset.

Disappointment is part of life. It happens to everyone. To avoid being disappointed is to avoid being human. The more expectations you have, the more disappointments you will encounter, especially if you go outside your comfort zone. People who expect the best are often let down the most.

Maybe it’s missing out on a promotion, losing an account or frustration with the “new normal.” Disappointments come in all sizes. Some may be small, others life-changing. How you handle such occasions will determine how fast you are able to move on with your life and career.

When disappointment happens, let yourself experience the emotions that come with it. For example, I want to remember how I felt so it drives me to never feel that way again. The important thing is not to dwell on your disappointment so long that it turns into discouragement.

Try to put a positive spin on your disappointment. I’m not a big believer in the blame game. This is a good time to have a sounding board, someone with whom you can talk things over.

Reframe your thinking and expectations. No one is perfect, so don’t set standards that you can’t meet. Examine what it will take to make you happy and feel fulfilled.

Stay optimistic. Positive thinking has no negatives. Positive thinking changes the way we behave. I firmly believe that when I am positive, it not only makes me better, but it also makes those around me better. I have found that good attitudes are contagious.

Maybe it’s a good time to take a break and regroup after being disappointed. Stress often gives a little thing a big shadow. Find your stress reliever. One of mine is sports -- attending a sporting event (when we could), playing golf or swimming. I’ve been known to play tennis and run marathons too. Find your stress reliever and use it. It could be music, reading, gardening, bird-watching or even parachuting.

Look at the big picture and get some perspective on what went wrong. Learn from it. Can it be corrected or changed? If that is not an option, then you may have to change course and move on and learn from the experience.

You can’t let disappointment cause you to procrastinate. Procrastination robs you of the one commodity that you just can’t replace: time. It throws off schedules. It exchanges accomplishment with inaction. Overcoming procrastination helps your to-do list become your all-done list.

Don’t lose hope and allow yourself to get beaten down. Believe in yourself. Make a plan to move forward. Set a small goal or plan that you can accomplish to get the ball rolling and feel confident about yourself.

“We must all suffer one of two things: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret or disappointment,” said my friend, the late Jim Rohn, American entrepreneur, author and motivational speaker.

The minister of a church discovered at the last minute that he hadn’t invited a sweet older lady congregant to come to his garden party, so he called her up and asked her to come out.

“It’s no use,” she informed him. “I’ve already prayed for rain.”

Mackay’s Moral: Don’t let disappointment cloud your thinking.

Like an old barn, many of us have been around a long time. We’ve withstood a lot of life’s storms, bad weather and hard times, but we’re still standing, even though we find ourselves leaning to one side occasionally.

The danger comes when we lean toward anger, bitterness, hatred, cursing and other negative or harmful things. We need to prop ourselves up away from these leanings so we will stand straight and tall again.

This little analogy is particularly appropriate for our times, as we see so much hatred and anger all around us. Those emotions cause so many problems not only in society, but also personally. Hate blocks clarity, clouding our judgment and causing us to be more impulsive and aggressive. Anger can lead to unacceptable actions that we immediately regret. Rather than enabling us to see possible solutions, we become so entrenched in our own position that we become irrational.

Experts say chronic hatred and extreme anger can add to our stress and take a toll on our physical and mental health. Apply that to a business, and the results are financially devastating. The cycle is deadly.

Psychologists say that carrying hostility around can kill us. Wishing evil on someone does more damage to us than to the objects of our anger and hatred.

Hate has a way of bringing out the worst in people. Used as a means to cover up feelings of fear or pain, hatred can quickly become all-consuming.

Most of us have experienced feelings of hatred at one time or another. If you have wronged someone, you should make amends or at least apologize.

Hate prevents you from seeing things that may be beneficial in solving problems. But attacking someone just because of who they are is destructive at every level. Learn to let hatred go, and instead look for positive points instead.

On the reverse side, you will encounter people who dislike you for petty reasons or out of jealousy. But don’t let that unjustified hostility get to you.

WikiHow offers up some great suggestions on dealing with haters.

Ignore them -- Bullies try to provoke a reaction, so don’t respond. Don’t engage them in any way. If the hater physically or verbally assaults you, get another person or someone in authority involved. Try not to provoke bullies.

Project confidence -- Self-confidence is your best defense against a hater because they start to realize they can’t get to you. Stay positive.

Avoid them -- Don’t hide, just stay away from situations where you might interact with haters. If you must confront haters directly, explain respectfully where you’re coming from.

Prove them wrong -- The best way to quiet a hater is to show them up. If they say you can’t do something, do it well. Let their hate fuel your ambition.

Nip it in the bud -- When you see a situation escalating, remind the other person that you are willing to work together but only in a respectful atmosphere. Let them know you have no intention of tolerating anything less.

An old Cherokee told his grandson a legend about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, “My son, the battle is between two wolves inside us all. One is evil and filled with anger, envy and hate. The other is good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, humility, kindness, generosity, truth, compassion and faith."

The grandson thought about this for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “Which wolf wins?”

The old Cherokee simply replied, “The one I feed.”