r man behind it. A real man does not need a
lot of elaborate decorations. They annoy him.

There are two sides to this, however. Visitors from the outside are not
the only ones who are likely to waste the time of other people, and a
busy man has to protect himself from indoor nuisances as well as those
that drift in from the outside. Some do it by means of secretaries, but
a good executive needs no barrier at all between himself and his own
men. They learn soon enough--we are speaking now of a good executive,
remember--that there is no use in going to him unless there is some
definite reason why they should, and that the more briefly and directly
they present their problem the more likely they are to have it settled.

When an executive receives a caller (or when any man in a business house
receives a caller) he should _receive_ him and not merely tolerate him.
A young advertising man who began several years ago had two very
interesting experiences with two gruff executives in two different
companies. Both consented to see him, both kept on writing at their
desks after he entered and gave him scant attention throughout the
interview. Apparently they were both successful business men. Certainly
they both held positions that would indicate it. Yet both of them a few
years later came to the young advertising man at different times looking
for jobs. Needless to say neither found a place with him, not because he
held a grudge against them, but simply because he knew what kind of men
they were and that they could not help in the kind of business he was
trying to build.

From the beginning of the interview the host should do all he can to
make his visitor comfortable. You see a lot in certain magazines about
setting the visitor at a disadvantage by giving him an awkward chair,
making him face the light and grilling him with questions. It is pure
nonsense.

It is very gracious for a man to rise to greet a caller and extend his
hand, especially if the caller is young and ill at ease. It is
imperative if it is an old man or a woman. He should ask the visitor to
be seated before he sits down himself.

"Well, young man, what can I do for you?" is hardly a polite way of
opening an interview. The host should wait with a cordially receptive
air until his guest begins, unless he is in a great hurry. Then he
frankly tells the caller so and asks him to make his business brief.

Interruptions come even in the midst of conversations w