Monthly Archive for October, 2008

Successful bosses concentrate on the “big picture” and leave the nitty-gritty details to the troops. Micromanagers never make it to the top.

Those are two of the biggest myths in management lore.

Micromanagement has gotten an undeserved rotten reputation.

Bosses who dig deep into details are often labeled as meddlesome, small-minded operators without a vision.

It is true that bosses who spend too much time on small details and hover over their direct-reports can demoralize a team and hamper growth and development of employees. But those who fail to pay attention to details are asking for trouble.

“When a top executive begins to grill an associate with some tough questions, all the person on the receiving end needs to say is “Let me do my job. Don’t micromanage me’,” says Adam Hanft, CEO of Manft Unlimited. “Suddenly a concerned boss is nothing but a busybody, inappropriately concerned with details that should be left to the employee.”

Most of the problems–the real tragedies and failures–result from bosses failing to see to the details. It is doubtful that the meltdown in the global financial structure and corporate scandals–the Enrons and Fannie Mae–would have happened if those at the top had been paying attention to details.

Successful managers strike a balance. They pay attention to details in order to assure that resources are being properly used and that actions lead to the attainment of goals. At the same time, they back off enough so that their employees are empowered to perform to the maximum.

I wish you career success!

Ramon Greenwood, Head Career Coach
Common Sense At Work

Procrastination…that’s the plain and simple answer. It’s the rare person who is not gridlocked at some point by putting off that vital first step of getting off our butts and taking that first step.

Why?

To escape unpleasant tasks. The undertakings seem too large to overcome. Fear of failure.

The results of procrastination are always the same: frustration, anxiety, missed opportunities, defeat.

Some wise person has said, “…dreading work is always harder than doing it.”

Getting started with work toward a goal is to be half way there. After that first big step a second wind takes over, just as it does for a runner. The next steps become easier and more rewarding. Rewards come when goals are achieved.

The keys to overcoming procrastination are:

• Have a plan with a clearly stated goaL.
• Break down the actions to be taken into bite-size pieces.
• Get going.

DO.
DO IT.
DO IT NOW.

I wish you career success!

Ramon Greenwood, Head Career Coach
Common Sense At Work

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