"The majority of the original enrolment of fifty members have followed the Course regularly. It has held the interest of the men throughout and has proved unusually stimulating and interesting.
"The official staff of the bank has given the class its hearty moral support, and, in addition, has offered to refund a part of the fee to those completing the Course successfully. We feel that this policy has not only encouraged the men, but has benefited the bank as well.
"Personally, I cannot speak too highly of the Course. I feel that the time I have given to it during the past few years could not have been employed to greater advantage."
Increased ability to handle men
There are just two factors that determine a man's competence to direct the work of other men:
1. His superior knowledge of the work in hand.
2. His ability to command respect.
As a matter of fact, the second factor is almost wholly included in the first. The man who really knows what he is talking about always commands respect. The man who is largely a
"bluff," no matter how "magnetic" or forceful his personality, is soon found out and retired in favor of the man of smaller pretensions, but more knowledge. The history of almost any business success demonstrates the truth of this statement.
Modern business affairs are so complex that it is wholly out of the question to put an untrained man in command. One might as well talk of putting an untrained man in charge of a modern battleship. In both positions broad-gauge knowledge and judgment are absolutely essential. The same principle applies equally to the minor commands. The leading business men of the country are for the most part quiet, self-controlled men, who think before they speak and who are constantly studying business problems. This is the type of man best fitted to control and direct the work of others.