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| Peter Drucker Management Guru Exception |
You Are Also the Solution . . .
by Alex Hutchins
Is this a contradiction? On the surface perhaps, but, if you are a leader then you understand exactly what these two phrases are saying which incidentally have been the main theme of “self-help” books for years; yet, has still blinded us from realizing what we must do in the “real world” when managing people and the organizations in which they must work.
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| Dave Ramsey |
is a new phrase recently “coined” by Dave Ramsey as a result of, Dave’s need to develop leaders within his organization. His team was at a point where it was expanding and bringing on new people. Skilled leaders were needed to bring these new team members into the fold and help them succeed. He asked for volunteers to stay after work for an hour a couple times a week. During that time he went over leadership principals and shared vision with those who volunteered.
Dave’s course revolves around the following topics:
1. EntreLeadership Defined
2. Dreams, Visions, & Goal Setting
3. Time Management & Organization
4. Financial Peace for the EntreLeader
5. Team Math – Adding & Subtracting
6. Delegation
7. Making The Call
What caught my attention was the word, “entre” which obviously stands for entrepreneur or entrepreneurship.
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| Robert Reich Management Guru Exception |
Entrepreneurship is defined as: one who organizes, manages, and assumes the risks of a business or enterprise.
What are the characteristics of an entrepreneur?
1. Disciplined – across the board
2. Even-tempered – emotionally
3. Detail oriented – in all areas
4. Tolerance to risk – high not low
5. Time management – balanced
6. Interpersonal skills – “touchy/feely”
To see a list of 25 characteristics.
In my Entrepreneurial classes, on the first day, I ask the following questions:
Who are you?
What do you know?
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| Peter Senge Management Guru Exception |
If you do not know about and understand yourself, you will not, in my opinion, be able to properly manage people with “excellent” interpersonal skills, which, by the way, is not typically on any lists of Characteristics of an Entrepreneur. Even on long lists of entrepreneurial characteristics, one can see comments directed towards understanding the customer, do what you enjoy, or develop good negotiation skills; but, nothing on how to treat and care for one’s employees.
It is this omission that brings us back to understand that YOU are both the problem and the solution.
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| Rosabeth Moss Kanter Management Guru Exception |
All too often, WE, who manage and lead people, both inside and outside the classroom forget that our primary task is to believe in people so that they can believe in themselves; and, that it is our primary responsibility is to create the proper environment that allows and/or enables these people for which we are responsible to motivate themselves, and in so doing, will, in all likelihood achieve greatness.
For me, to understand that I am both the problem and the solution, is to understand that I must understand and become a “people” person; otherwise, all my actions will more than likely be perceived as “superficial.”
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| Tom Peters Management Guru Exception |
What all these “gurus” fail to understand (or take for granted) is that we manage and lead people. If you scrutinize their lists, one will see that being “people-oriented” is implied but never really stated as a “key” characteristic or quality.
At the end of every college class that I teach, I save a little time to ask the students to evaluate me and what I did that class period. I tell them that they are my customer and that it does not matter how I want to teach, but how they need to learn that is important. And, if I need to change the way I deliver my knowledge so that they can understand better, I will . . . and DO!
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| Stephen Covey Management Guru Exception |
Entrepreneurial characteristics can and oftentimes do find their way into most all of our businesses and corporations (regardless of size); but, how do YOU manage and lead the people that report to you?
And, how do YOU, the people respond; because, in order to be a good leader you must first be a good follower. . .
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