30 principles after walking 720 km

Almost ten years ago, in September 2010, I walked 720 km from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port to Santiago de Compostela after I quit my job. And as I look back now, I concluded these 30 principles:

1. Don´t infect yourself with your own image.
2. Don´t infect yourself with the company´s gimmick.
3. Take care of your loved ones and your family life.
4. Don´t let other people put their monkeys on your shoulder.
5. Keep it short & simple.
6. Remain authentic and realistic – Supermen & Superwomen are highly appreciated - …but only in movies.
7. Stick to your promises – but better: - do not make promises at all.
8. Never make a plan and be a shining light - and then you´ll make another plan – neither will be right.
9. Don´t manage on the principle of C & C (Compromise & Consensus). Manage on the principle of C & C & C (Constructive Conflict Culture)
10. Catch people doing things right – and tell them that you realized and appreciated it.
11. Don´t talk around in confused circles – Use straight lines for communication.
12. Don´t feel guilty saying “No”.
13. Do not threaten.
14. Feel guilty for every “Yes” during the budget process.
15. Don´t accept budget planning without a written documentation of the assumptions, on which the budget is based, such as input prices, exchange rates, investments.
16. Do not blame other people for your own mistakes – if you want to cooperate with them.
17. Negotiate, don’t bargain.
18. Do not practice the policy of “either-and-or” – a company is not a diplomatic corps.
19. Stop the corporate sickness of "meetingitis".
20. Do not try to solve problems by fooling around with e-mails.
21. Tell your staff that you would not tolerate any blind copies on e-mails or sending copies of e-mails to people which are not directly concerned with the issue.
22. Demonstrate that you do not accept mobbing and demonstrate on a concrete example that your staff may not even think about it.
23. Do not try to solve group problems by conducting hidden and secret 1 ↔ 1 talks.
24. Never conduct meetings without agenda and 5 W-action minutes (“Who is doing what when where how and why?”)
25. Don´t follow the illusion that you are being paid to provide results only.
26. Never forget that you are as well being paid to stay healthy and being a good representative of your company.
27. Keeping yourself in good physical and mental condition is a “nobrainer”, (matter of course). Therefore there is no need to explicitly state this important fact in your contract.
28. Focus on implementation.
29. Your word should be Yes>Yes, No>No.
30. Don´t believe the bullshit management gurus and consultants are telling you ;-)