People Who Feel Good About Themselves Produce Good Results
The young man nodded as he began to see the obvious. "I get more done when I'm feeling good about myself," he responded.
"Of course you do," the manager agreed. "And so does everyone else."
The young man raised his index finger with new-found insight. "So," he said, "helping people to feel good about themselves is a key to getting more done."
"Yes," the manager agreed. "However, remember productivity is more than just the quantity of work done. It is also the quality." He walked-over to the window and said, "Come over here, young man."
He pointed to the traffic below and asked, "Do you see how many foreign cars there are on the road?"
The young man looked out at the real world, and said, "I see more of them every day. And I guess that's because they're more economical and they last longer."
The manager nodded reluctantly and said "Exactly. So why do you think people are buying foreign cars? Because American manufacturers did not make enough cars? Or," the manager said without interrupting, "because they did not make the quality car the American public really wanted?
"Now that I think of it," the young man answered, "it's a question of quality and quantity"
"Of course," the manager added. "Quality is simply giving people the product or service they really want and need."
The older man stood at the window lost in his thoughts. He could remember, not so long ago, when his country provided the technology that helped to rebuild Europe and Asia. It still amazed him that America had fallen so far behind in productivity.
The young man broke the manager's concentration. "I'm reminded of an ad I saw on television," the visitor volunteered. "It showed the name of the foreign car, and over it came the words If you're going to take out a long-term car loan, don't buy a short-term car."
The manager turned and said quietly, "I'm afraid that's a rather good summary. And that's the whole point. Productivity is both quantity and quality."
The manager and his visitor began to walk back towards the couch. "And frankly, the best way to achieve both of these results is through people."
The young man's interest increased. As he sat down, he asked, "Well, you've already said that you're not a participative manager. Just how would you describe yourself?"
"That's easy," he responded without hesitation. "I'm a One Minute Manager."
The young man's face showed surprise. He'd never heard of a One Minute Manager. "You're a what?"
The manager laughed and said, "I'm a One Minute Manager. I call myself that because it takes very little time for me to get very big results from people."
Although the young man had spoken with many managers, he had never heard one talk like this. It was hard to believe. A One Minute Manager— someone who gets good results without taking much time.
Seeing the doubt on his face the manager said, "You don't believe me, do you? You don't believe that I'm a One Minute Manager."
"I must admit it's hard for me even to imagine," the young man responded.
The manager laughed and said, "Listen, you'd better talk to my people if you really want to know what kind of manager I am."
The manager leaned over and spoke into the office intercom. His secretary, Ms. Metcalfe, came in moments later and handed the young man a sheet of paper.
"Those are the names, positions and phone numbers of the six people who report to me,"
"Which ones should I talk to?" the young man asked.
"That's your decision," the manager responded. "Pick any name. Talk to any one of them or all of them."
"Well, I mean who should I start with?"
"I already told you, I don't make decisions for other people," the manager said firmly. "Make that decision yourself." He stood up and walked his visitor towards the door.
"You have asked me, not once, but twice, to make a simple decision for you. Frankly, young man, I find that annoying. Do not ask me to repeat myself. Either pick a name and get started, or take your search for effective management elsewhere."
The visitor was stunned. He was uncomfortable, very uncomfortable. A moment of embarrassed silence seemed like an eternity.
Then the One Minute Manager looked the young man in the eye and said, "You want to know about managing people, and I admire that."
He shook his visitor's hand.
"If you have any questions after talking to some of my people," he said warmly, "come back and see me. I appreciate your interest and desire to learn how to manage. I would, in fact, like to give you the concept of the One Minute Manager as a gift. Someone gave it to me once and it's made all the difference to me. I want you to understand it fully. If you like it, you may want to become a One Minute Manager yourself someday."
"Thank you," the young man managed.
He left the manager's office somewhat dumb founded. As he passed the secretary she said understandingly, "I can see from your dazed look that you've already experienced our One Minute Manager."
The young man said very slowly, still trying to figure things out, "I guess I have."
"Maybe I can help you," Ms. Metcalfe said.
"I've phoned the six people who report to him.
Five of them are here and they have each agreed to see you. You may be better able to understand our 'One Minute Manager' after you've spoken with them."
The young man thanked her, looked over the list and decided to talk to three of them: Mr. Trenell, Mr. Levy and Ms. Brown.
HEN the young man arrived at Trenell's office, he found a middle-aged man smiling at him. "Well, you've been to see the 'ole man.' He's quite a guy, isn't he?"
"He seems that way," the young man responded.
"Did he tell you about being a One Minute Manager?"
"He sure did. It's not true, is it?" asked the young man.
"You'd better believe it is. I hardly ever see him."
"You mean you never get any help from him?" puzzled the young man.
"Essentially very little, although he does spend some time with me at the beginning of a new task or responsibility. That's when he does One Minute Goal Setting."
"One Minute Goal Setting. What's that?" said the young man. "He told me he was a One Minute Manager, but he didn't say anything about One Minute Goal Setting."
"That's the first of the three secrets to One Minute Management," Trenell answered.
"Three secrets?" the young man asked,
wanting to know more.
"Yes," said Trenell. "One Minute Goal Setting is the first one and the foundation for One Minute Management. You see, in most organizations when you ask people what they do and then ask their boss, all too often you get two different lists. In fact, in some organizations I've worked in, any relationship between what I thought my job responsibilities were and what my boss thought they were, was purely coincidental. And then I would get in trouble for not doing something I didn't even think was my job."
"Does that ever happen here?" asked the young man.
"No!" Trenell said, "It never happens here.
The One Minute Manager always makes it clear what our responsibilities are and what we are being held accountable for." "Just how does he do that?" the young man wanted to know.
"Efficiently," Trenell said with a smile.
Trenell began to explain. "Once he has told me what needs to be done or we have agreed on what needs to be done, then each goal is recorded on no more than a single page. The One Minute Manager feels that a goal, and its performance standard, should take no more than 250 words to express. He insists that anyone be able to read it within a minute. He keeps a copy and I keep a copy so everything is clear and so we can both periodically check the progress. "Do you have these one-page statements for every goal?"
"Yes," answered Trenell. "Well, wouldn't there be a lot of these one-page statements for each person?" "No, there really aren't," Trenell insisted.
"The old man believes in the 80-20 goal-setting rule. That is, 80% of your really important results will come from 20% of your goals. So we only do One Minute Goal Setting on that 20%, that is, our key areas of responsibility—maybe three to six goals in all. Of course, in the event a special project comes up, we set special One Minute Goals."
"Interesting," the young man commented. "I think I understand the importance of One Minute Goal Setting. It sounds like a philosophy of 'no surprises'—everyone knows what is expected from the beginning."
"Exactly," Trennell nodded.
"So is One Minute Goal Setting just understanding what your responsibilities are?" the young man asked.
"No. Once we know what our job is, the manager always makes sure we know what good performance is. In other words, performance standards are clear. He shows us what he expects."
"How does he do that—show you what he expects?" asked the young man.
"Let me give you an example," Trenell suggested.
The First Secret: One Minute Goals
"One of my One Minute Goals was this: Identify performance problems and come up with solutions which, when implemented, will turn the situation around.
"When I first came to work here I spotted a problem that needed to be solved, but I didn't know what to do. So I called the One Minute Manager. When he answered the phone, I said, Sir, I have a problem. Before I could get another word out, he said, Good! That's what you've been hired to solve. Then there was a dead silence on the other end of the phone.
"I didn't know what to do. The silence was deafening. I eventually stuttered out, But, but, Sir, I don't know how to solve this problem.
" Trenell, he said, one of your goals for the future is for you to identify and solve your own problems. But since you are new, come on up and we'll talk. "When I got up there, he said, Tell me, Trenell, what your problem is—but put it in behavioral terms. 'Behavioral terms? I echoed. What do you mean by behavioral terms?
"I mean, the manager explained to me, that I do not want to hear about only attitudes orfeelings. Tell me what is happening in observable, measurable terms.
"I described the problem the best I could.
"He said, That's good, Trenell! Now tell me what you would like to be happening in behavioral terms.
"I don't know, I said.
"Then don't waste my time, he snapped.
"I just froze in amazement for a few seconds. I didn't know what to do. He mercifully broke the dead silence.
"If you can't tell me what you'd like to be happening, he said, you don't have a problem yet.
You're just complaining. A problem only exists if there is a difference between what is actually happening and what you desire to be happening.
"Being a quick learner, I suddenly realized I knew what I wanted to be happening. After I told him, he asked me to talk about what may have caused the discrepancy between the actual and the desired.
"After that the One Minute Manager said, Well, what are you going to do about it?"
" Well, I could do A, I said.
"If you did A, would what you want to happen actually happen? he asked.
"No, I said.
"Then you have a lousy solution. What else could you do? he asked.
"I could do B, I said.
"But if you do B, will what you want to happen really happen? he countered again.
"No, I realized.
"Then, that's also a bad solution, he said. What else can you do?
"I thought about it for a couple of minutes and said, / could do C. But if I do C, what I want to happen won't happen, so that is a bad solution, isn't it?
"Right. You're starting to come around, the manager then said, with a smile on his face. Is there anything else you could do? he asked.
"Maybe I could combine some of these solutions, I said.
"That sounds worth trying, he reacted.
"In fact, if I do A this week, B next week and C in two weeks, I'll have it solved. That's fantastic. Thanks so much. You solved my problem for me.
"He got very annoyed. I did not, he interrupted, you solved it yourself. I just asked you questions—questions you are able to ask yourself. Now get out of here and start solving your own problems on your time, not mine.
"I knew what he had done, of course. He'd shown me how to solve problems so that I could do it on my own in the future.
"Then he stood, looked me straight in the eye and said, You're good, Trenell. Remember that the next time you have a problem.
"I remember smiling as I left his office."
Trenell leaned back in his chair and looked as if he were reliving his first encounter with the One Minute Manager.
"So," the young man began, reflecting on what he had just heard
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