Tommy’s Sticky Situation
Sure, Tommy knew the situation was probably going to be “a little sticky,” but until now he’d always been confident, approaching cocky, and was pretty sure he could handle almost anything. “Wrong,” said Tommy while shaking his head. Tommy was a foreman for one of the larger construction companies in the city, and proud that […]
The Courage to Supervise
“Courage” may seem a bit dramatic, but it gets at a truth. Supervisors do more than simply manage workflow or carry out orders from on high. Supervisors are the daily human face of the organization and, because of the way people are wired, virtually take up residence in a portion of an employee’s brain. It […]
A Different World
When I read business books, I often get the feeling that the work world I see isn‘t quite what those folks are thinking of when they write about what goes on in the workplace. The problems they focus on always somehow seem to boil down to different examples of essentially the same problems – poor […]
Not Just at Work
You’ve probably noticed that managers and supervisors – at virtually any workplace – are pretty good at remaining calm, conciliatory, and tend to “make nice” when they’re dealing with an angry customer, a client, or a problem with an employee. That’s because it’s basic and central to the job, it’s probably even written into the […]
It’s Not “Them” – It’s Us
I never thought we’d get here. I’ve always imagined a critical mass, a core group of competent, moderate people “out there” – with reassuring common sense and wisdom – who would pull us back from the brink, and protect us from our self-centeredness, our anxieties and weaknesses, and our lethal self-destructiveness. I was wrong. Like everybody, […]
Already Ripe
I’m a strong believer in “prevention.” Keeping bad things from happening rather than having to make “lesser evil” choices once things have broken wide open is always the way to go. So, as I look at my posts so far, I’m noticing that my commentary and examples are slightly skewed toward what I’ve come to […]
Employee Regret
I laughed out loud when I first heard the term “tattoo regret,” but I know first-hand that, in a human workplace, there’s a threshold moment when a manager realizes he’s got employee regret. An employee isn’t working out – but it’s not funny, and not easy to fix. The actual problem might be the employee’s […]
A Good Case
One of my favorite examples illustrating the many benefits of “coaching” a line supervisor happened also because of the flexibility provided by a good Employee Assistance Program (EAP.) A supervisor who had recently become the Office Manager of a very busy State bureau came to see me – supposedly – about a personal problem at home. […]
Workplace Coaching? Affirmative
The thing I like best about coaching is how straightforward it is: either our sessions are useful in a tangible way, or they’re not. If they’re not, the sessions should stop. Sometimes it’s crystal clear why the sessions are helping. The interactions are stimulating, validating, liberating, or something that feels right. Sometimes it’s less obvious, […]
Parallel Universes
When I read business articles, I often get the feeling that the work world I see isn‘t quite what those folks are thinking of when they write about the workplace. The problems they focus on always somehow seem the same – either non-strategic thinking or poor communication, or both. As I read, in my minds eye […]
