I can not recall a single manager of my acquaintance who at some time has not complained about the avalanche of email they confront at work almost daily. As a manager you can not simply ignore email entirely. Nor can you allow email to occupy an unreasonable amount of your time. I have struggled with […]
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Tag Archives: Self-Management
WHY A MANAGER’S DEMEANOR MATTERS
April 13, 2012 
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You are on an airplane, 35,000 feet above the ground, flying from the East Coast to the West. Summer thunder storms have stirred up the atmosphere and the ride has been choppy for some time. The Pilot’s first “seat belts please” message included the statement that this moderate turbulence would last for some time. Moderate you’re […]
Read moreTHE ART OF MOVING ON
April 6, 2012 0 Comments
Leaving one management job for something else — within management or outside of the profession — generally happens in one of two ways: reassignment for some reason or you choose to change assignments or professions yourself. Both forms of departure involve their own special personal challenges you must navigate successfully if you are to fully take hold of […]
Read moreWATCH THAT “FIX IT” MODE
March 30, 2012 0 Comments
We have all heard the axiom “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. By extension of that logic, I suppose that means if it is broke, then fix it. Observing the behavior of many managers over the years, I believe many of them possess a powerful urge to do just that: FIX THINGS. In fact, many […]
Read moreA MANAGER’S FIRST YEAR
February 21, 2012 1 Comment
It surprises me that I have not turned to this subject sooner in this series of articles, since it is such an important topic. So much of value happens in a manager’s first year — both good and bad — that most of us who have managed for many years, still maintain quite vivid memories […]
Read moreMEETINGS: THOSE THAT SHOULD AND SHOULD NOT BE HELD
February 7, 2012 0 Comments
It is almost impossible to imagine modern business, non-profit, or government work getting accomplished, without people gathering in a seemingly endless round of meetings every day. Meetings are so much a part of our everyday work life that we rarely ever question their necessity, although we complain about their number incessantly. The only thing that […]
Read moreARE YOU ABOUT TO LOSE YOUR JOB?
January 19, 2012 0 Comments
Right-sized, down-sized, cut lose, laid off , let go, declared excess, victimized by a company’s collapse, or fired, losing one’s job — for whatever reason — is just plain AWFUL and very painful in most cases. I was involuntarily let go once. I was 19 years old and a busboy at a resort hotel in Florida. […]
Read moreWHEN SUBORDINATES ARE DOING THE BOSS’S WORK
January 11, 2012 0 Comments
Delegate! Delegate! Delegate! It is almost impossible to take a management course or read a management book that does not drive home the importance of delegation, if a manager is to do her or his job properly and succeed. And when the discussion turns to managers who have delegation difficulties, these discussions tend to focus […]
Read moreMINIMIZE THOSE SYMBOLS OF POWER
December 20, 2011 0 Comments
A LITTLE THING THAT MATTERS —- When one becomes a manager in many organizations, there are numerous symbols of power and authority that often accompany this newly acquired status. An office, for example, is generally construed as quite a status improvement over a cubicle in the bullpen. Perhaps the office comes with a window to […]
Read morePITCHING IN
December 11, 2011 0 Comments
A LITTLE THING THAT MATTERS – The scene was the US Army’s 5th General Hospital in Stuttgart — what was then — West Germany. I was a First Lieutenant in the Army Medical Service Corps and was serving as Officer of the Day, occupying, as usual, a small corner of a very crowded Emergency Room. […]
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