Your Last 5 Zingers (revisited – October 2007)
October 14, 2008 by David Zinger
Filed under Business
Going, going…
by David Zinger
Here is a classic from October of last year. I have 7 posts left for Slacker Manager.
What would be the last 5 statements you would voice to other managers if you knew those statements were the last 5 things you could say?
This was a very thoughtful and emotional post to write. It builds upon Phil’s post: The 5 things to say at your last team meeting.
The Last 5 Zingers:
1. People are people not human resources. You manage people. Living, breathing, feeling, imperfect, lovable, exasperating people. People will enliven you, deaden you, excite you, disappoint you, thrill you, and contort you into many different shapes. In short people will have a profound impact on you. As a leader, always remember you are also doing this to them.
2. Be strong. Tap into your own deep well of strengths and make sure you bring them to the surface. Your strengths are your gift to your community. They say we only use about 10% of our brain, I don’t know about that but I do know we only use about 10% of the full strength of the workplace. Be strong enough to pull the strengths out of the people you manage. List your strengths. Love your strengths. Live your strengths. Leverage your strengths in the service of the people you manage.
3. Plan and improvise. By all means have goals and develop plans. Work on strategies and tactics. Also learn to improvise as the world of work is changing faster than the color changes a chameleon experiences walking across a kaleidoscope. Here are some quick lessons from improviser, Patricia Madson:
- say yes,
- start anywhere,
- just show up,
- pay attention,
- make mistakes please,
- enjoy the ride.
Balance GTD (Getting Things Done) with CPC (Conscious Playful Collaboration).
4. Let me level with you, you can’t do this alone.The organizational pyramid is ancient, crumbling, transforming, and inverting. Always be on the level with the people you manage even if you have different responsibilities. The old dictum: if it is to be it is up to me has transformed into if it is to be it is up to we. Strive for the highest quality of interactions with everyone you meet.
5. Live now. This is the moment. This is the only moment. Don’t wait for some magic promotion or milestone to make you feel alive. Bring your living into the moment. It is never too early. It is never too late. Always remember: you only have moments to live.
“People are people not human resources” Couldn’t be more spot on. I’ve said for years, you can chart the moment the respect went out of the workplace and it always correlates exactly with when the department turns from “Personnel” to “Human Resources”.
I have my little revenge, though, I ALWAYS call it Personnel. It’s amazing how often Personnel staff gets pissy when you do that. You’d think you were calling their child ugly or stupid…”Uh, it’s HR now, not Personnel”. “Yeah, I’ve heard that, but I’m a person, not a resource. I’ll keep my self-respect, thanks.”
People are assets NOT liabilities! It wasn’t until the 70’s that people were considered liabiites. If WE are such liabilites then lets see you run your companies WITHOUT people!
People (employees) bring in customers, sales, and provide services. People should be on the ‘positive’ of the equation – not the negitive!
Reminds me of the old TLZ where the ‘boss’ slowly replaced people with robots – only to be replaced by a robot himself!
Spoonman:
I like you personnel perturbing of HR.
CK
We are on the positive side of organization even if some organizations fail to know this.
David
1. You’re the sum of your decisions.
2. Lead by example — don’t ask anybody to do what you won’t do yourself.
3. It’s easier to withdraw from the bank of credibility than to make deposits.
4. If it’s not working, change your approach.
5. Focus on strengths, not on weaknesses and carry the best forward.