3 Management Secrets For Frustrated Managers

Once I had figured out what my Unique Ability might be, I realized why the day-to-day management of people and administrative processes had always been a challenge. That’s why my first hire with two of my companies was a General Manager.

In both cases, finding a GM was an accident. The first time was with my telemarketing business, unique from the run-of-the-mill boiler room model. We only worked with clients whose call lists were “warm”. That is, lists of those they had either already done business with (former or current clients, workshop attendees, etc.) or had been referred to by others.

I hired my GM as a caller but she kept saying, “I can take care of that for you. You need more time with clients.” I realized almost immediately that I could be way more productive if I simply let her take over all that admin.

With my publishing business, it was my daughter, Brenda who within weeks had shown herself to be much more than an executive assistant. I relied on her for pretty much everything that wasn’t one of my super powers (no, I’m not Wonder Woman, but have you ever seen me and Wonder Woman in the same room at the same time?). Brenda was and is an excellent manager, both of her own time and that of others.

I, on the other hand, struggled with that role. I used to let little things go by because I thought them too unimportant to deal with at the time. Then I would get so frustrated with the mythical straw that broke the camel’s back, that I’d become far too emotional to keep proper perspective.

It’s a good thing that I’ve always read a lot of books and soon discovered one that helped me deal with my impatience and saved me and the rest of the team a lot of stress over the years.

A Keeper for Your Business Library

The One-minute Manager by Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson, is a remarkable book about management. It is about the search for a manager who can coax big results from people in very short bursts of attention.

In the course of seeking that very effective manager, the authors discover these Three Secrets to Effective One Minute Management…

FIRST SECRET: One Minute Goals

One minute goal setting is about being aware of what is expected from the beginning. It is recorded on a single sheet of paper and should only take one minute to read it. It works because it provides immediate clear direction and motivation.

Say, for example, if  you ask an employee to set up a filing system, he or she might not know exactly what you expect. Depending on the organizational style desired, you might both have completely different ideas of what will work best for all those who must access files later.

On the other hand, if you ask to establish a hanging file system organizing client files in one section and supplier files in another, each in alphabetical order by last name for clients and by company name for suppliers, the employee will know exactly what you need. At any time during the process, it will be obvious to both of you exactly what is left to be done. One minute goals help your staff to produce efficient results.

SECOND SECRET: One Minute Praisings

This secret is extremely important. Why? Because there’s a tendency to only notice others when they make a mistake. And surveys show that being acknowledged for your good work is higher on the job satisfaction list than even money.

The idea here is to catch people doing something right.  There is no need to elaborate when you can simply say that he or she did something well and you noticed it. One minute praisings include praising others immediately, telling them what they did right, how you feel about it and encouraging them to do more of the same. Being specific matters. A simple “good job” does not provide enough direction and becomes as non-personal as saying “nice weather we’re having today”.

THIRD SECRET: One Minute Reprimands

One minute reprimands are given as soon as an employee does something wrong. A one minute reprimand has three parts. One: praise them for their usual good work and reliability.  Two: point out the error and let them know it’s unacceptable.  Three: Remind them how much they’re capable of , and that you value them and trust them to make the necessary improvements in their performance. And once it’s over, it’s over.

This is not a discussion or an opportunity to defend one’s actions. It is you communicating clearly and effectively with your employee without wasting anyone’s time.

One minute reprimands are highly effective because the feedback is immediate, unlike the annual reviews where an employee might be rated for things committed several weeks or months ago. If a mistake is pointed out as soon as it is made it can easily be corrected. Since one mistake is pointed out at one time, the person hears it seriously and can take action to correct it.

If you need help with the nuances of implementing one-minute management strategies in your company, feel free to contact me for a complementary coaching call. 780-908-0309 or MaryLou@MagneticBusinessSolutions.com .

© 2020 Mary Lou Gutscher, Success Mentor