I have been in business for some time now. I love business and I love management. I have had my fair share of challenges, but I have learned something from each one.
Some years ago, as a new manager, I had a bad tendency to drop my boss’s name anytime I had to deliver bad news. I used to say “Ken said we need to work overtime” or “Ken said that we need to improve our quality.” In my mind, I was not the bad guy, so that would make my staff love me. I never had a problem delivering good news, only bad.
One day, after a particularly tough meeting, a meeting I probably dropped Ken’s name 15 or 20 times so to avoid being the bad guy, I had a visit to my office shortly after the meeting had ended. Tena came in, sat down and sheepishly asked if I had a minute. I had a good relationship with Tena, so her visits were normally pleasant and I invited her in. I could tell from her body language that this was not a normal visit.
YOU are the boss!
She began by telling me that she really liked me, and enjoyed working with me, but… A friend once told me that everything before the “but” is bull, so I waited for the rest of the story. She went on to say that I should stop using Ken’s name. She explained that she thought that by using his name, I lessened my own authority with the group. She suggested that I just needed to just say “I need you to do this by Friday” or “I am not happy with your quality.”
Well, I was a little taken aback by her critique, but also knew on a gut level that I was guilty as charged. I knew that I had been dropping Ken’s and other bosses names for years so to avoid responsibility for things. I was a little embarrassed by being called out on it, but I starting working on it immediately. I still had an instinct to do so from time to time, but anytime I did, I immediately took corrective action. As time passed, I stopped blaming Ken and took complete responsibility for the good and bad news.
That small change affected my management style forever. My team slowly began to respond to me differently, and my confidence, along with my personal authority grew.
If you are dropping names, or blaming others in your job, marriage, school, family or life in general, stop doing it today. You need to take complete ownership of your career and every other aspect of your life. Blaming others, even if they own part of it, will never pay off. And, if you are a boss, it will have an adverse affect on your standing with your staff.
Hope that helps!
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