Some reflections and lessons from this blog so far. Including nine ‘management maxims’ and some daily prompts.
Category: Line management
Popularity
Popularity in leadership is a contradiction. We rightly prize the leader who does not court popularity, who makes difficult decisions and does what is right. At the same time, in free societies, people only really lead by consent and, without a certain level of confidence and respect, leaders cannot do their jobs.
Humility
I hear a lot about humble leadership, and I don’t really believe it. By all means, avoid bluster and vainglory, avoid the strutting displays of power that mask only a deep insecurity. But humility?
Good meetings
You won’t have fewer meetings. Abandon that fantasy now. Meetings are to a manager what lessons are to a teacher. Plenty of vital work goes on around both, and you can have too much of a good thing, but they are the arena in which the work comes to fruition.
Silo working and career progression
This may be just me but in every large organisation I have worked in, and in every employee survey I have read, people complain about internal communication between departments and opportunities for career progression…
Visibility
People don’t always see us at our best. They aren’t always comforted and protected. We are really bad at secrets. But I think the effect is overall positive…
Defining leadership
Leadership can be defined as the combination of vision, initiation and persuasion…
Kindness
Reframe what you consider to be kindness and your concept of welfare. Think bigger. What may be kind in the moment can be cruel in the longer term. Indeed, is it kindness at all, or the avoidance of conflict?
Undelegation
It can be gratifying to have people working for us. The reality is that they should be working for something greater than us…
Management debt (review of The Hard Thing About Hard Things)
Managers think that their shortcuts and exceptions are invisible choices that lubricate the gears of the organisation. I can tell you straight: nothing is more visible…
Note to self 