This section serves to expand your regular vocabulary. What separates the men from the boys (or the women from the girls, if you want to equalize things) is v o c a b u l a r y. We cannot stress this point enough. People who have a larger vocabulary have been shown to make more money and get promoted more often.

K

kickback

(pronounced KIHK-bak)

If you’ve ever shot a gun, then you’ve experienced one kind of kickback: the swift, forceful reaction that a firearm produces after you shoot it. We hope, however, that you’ll avoid experiencing the other kind of kickback: the return of a portion of money received because of confidential agreement. For example: A vendor tells you that if you specify or purchase his product for a client, then he will give you a percentage of the sale back after the sale is complete and the client will be none the wiser. The majority of kickbacks are illegal and unethical, and what makes them so is that fact that they are not revealed to the client. The Lesson: Be honest and transparent with your clients, and all will be well.

Example: The dire straits that his firm had been experiencing in the last year had tempted Roger to accept the manufacturer’s offer of an 11 percent kickback on every order, but he knew in his heart that it was the wrong thing to do.