Introduction
Some young man was looking for a good manager to work with him and learn from him. He spoke with managers from around the world, but again and again became convinced that there are tough managers whose organizations flourish, but the people who work in them suffer, and there are soft managers whose subordinates are happy, but the organizations are suffering.
And then one day he heard about a one-minute manager and went to his company to talk about his management method. The further narrative is built in the form of a conversation between a young man and a one-minute manager and his employees.
The main ideas are as follows.
Set one minute goals
If you ask the organization’s employees to list the goals of their activities, and then ask their leaders about the same goals, you’ll most likely get two completely different lists. This is due to the fact that people do not know well enough what is expected of them. Such control is like a blindfold bowling game - you never know where the pins are, and you can only evaluate hits by sound, until the boss tells you the results.
The main motivator is feedback. People like to know where, how and how successfully they move.Therefore, it is important to clearly define in advance what the work of each employee is and its quality implementation.
To do this, you can use cards on which the employee, after or during a conversation with the manager, writes down the goal and the plan for achieving it in no more than 250 words. Copies of this card remain with the employee and contractor. Then each of them can read it in one minute and refresh the task in memory, as well as track the process. Performers are encouraged to re-read the cards daily and track their progress towards the goal.
The book also involves the 20/80 rule. In this case, in order to reduce labor costs for such a description of goals, it is proposed to consider that 80% of the most important results are obtained when 20% of the goals are achieved, and focus on these 20%.
Give one minute praise
Typically, executives scold their employees for what they do wrong. So it’s easier for them to show themselves. Therefore, the idea of catching employees on what they are doing right is quite interesting. The bottom line is that if you scold your employees, they understand how not to do it, but they don’t understand how to do it. And if you praise, then they understand that they are moving in the right direction and are gradually developing.
In the book, the validity of praise for learning is given by a few examples. One of them is a dolphin that can jump over a rope stretched in the air. Of course, dolphins do not know how to do this from birth. They are simply awarded (for example, fish) for gradual training.First, for the fact that they will sail over the rope laid out at the bottom of the pool. Then the rope is lifted a little, and the dolphin is awarded only if it swims over the rope. And so on until the rope is pulled over the water and the dolphin learns to jump through it.
What managers usually do with employees resembles not only the expectation that a dolphin will immediately jump through a rope stretched above the water, but the periodic punishment of it with an electric shock for not jumping.
Praise is proposed as follows. Do not wait until the employee begins to do all the work perfectly from and to. Find a well-done piece of work and praise for it. This must be done personally, immediately after completing the task.
First clearly explain what exactly was done well, how this will help the organization and its employees, then pause to make the employee feel how pleased you are, and then try to encourage him to achieve even greater results. At the same time, it is recommended to establish contact with a person - to touch, shake hands, etc.
It is necessary to praise employees precisely for their work, even if things are not going well in other areas. It is noted that it is not necessary to praise constantly, over time, employees get used to notice their achievements themselves and praise themselves.
Reprimand one minute
Another important part is the one-minute reprimands. But at the same time, it is fundamentally important not to hurt the employee’s dignity, not to attack his personality, but to criticize his specific act.
Reprimands are proposed as follows. Warn a person in advance that you intend to express your work clearly. It is important to do this right away, and not to accumulate emotions - then the claims seem more fair and understandable.
As with praise, you need to scold immediately, personally - check the facts, clearly talk about what you are not comfortable with, maintain visual and / or tactile contact, and also pause so that a person can feel your words. After that, let the subordinate understand that you respect and value him, and the only reason for the reprimand is an annoying misconduct, which he could easily avoid. After this, it is better not to recall the reprimand - when it is completed, it is completed forever.
It is fundamentally important to first criticize and then praise. If you do the opposite, the effect is likely to not be achieved. It is also important to let the person feel that your reprimand is more concerned than reproach.
Of course, one-minute control is more of a metaphor. Sometimes these tasks may take longer. But this metaphor suggests that managing people is not as complex and time-consuming as many people think.
In addition to the three main ideas listed, the book contains several more valuable thoughts. We give them separately.
- Let people work on their own, do not try to get into their affairs until they ask for your help.
- Teach employees to solve problems themselves. Having done this once, in the future you will be able to transfer to them part of your work.
- It is important not only quantity, but also the quality of work.
- People who feel good achieve good results.
- Take a few minutes a day to face the people you control. You must understand that they are your main resources.
It is worth noting that the described methods are universal and are found in many similar books, for example, in recommendations for raising children.
