Companies spend billions trying to create compelling brands. Jello. Kleenex. Hellmann’s Mayonnaise. People have brands, too, and as a manager you surely have a brand in the eyes of your employees. Whether you know it or not. I recently went to my official, well organized digital card storage file …
coaching
The Big Foam Finger
I think that every manager should go out and get one of those big foam fingers you see at sporting events. In the office, let’s call it the Flying Finger of Blame. There is an epidemic at the workplace called the blame game, where blaming someone/anyone/everyone else is now the norm. And it …
Better Communication.
'Better communication' is possibly the most overused phrase in business. And probably the #1 most desired outcome. How to do it? The answers fill thousands of books and websites, but here’s a new rule for communication that just might be an answer for you: The person initiating the communication is …
How To Operate – YOU
Operating instructions come with every electronic item we buy. Even the simple stuff. The manual for an iron shows how to plug it into the wall. Flight attendants still show us how to insert the strap into the seatbelt clip. (Why do they still demonstrate that??) We might not read the …
Fantasyland is in Orlando
Here is the Fantasyland definition of management: expecting people to show up, memorize their job descriptions and “just do their job.” In other words, it's not real. And here is another pretend definition of management: any sort of nonsense that includes things like hitting the number or growing …
Right Person Right Job
This is nothing new. You've read it, heard it, discussed it, debated it and you have surely tried it. Right person - right job. And sometimes you get it right. And sometimes you get it wrong. And wrong. And wrong. And wrong. I say this endlessly, but I think the #1 skill that a manager must …