Management Rules for Success

A few weeks ago I posted some rules for salespeople, today I will post some rules for management.

1. Management is a practice just like medicine and law. It is not a science, it is a art. As with any art each person you manage is different and has different ways to be motivated. A good manager finds those "pressure points" and uses them to enhance the person's performance. Always, always remember employees are people and each is just as important as any person in the organization no matter what level of position.

2. Good leaders give credit to others, never allow themselves to be set apart from the people they manage. The person who did this best was Coach Dean Smith. No one ever was able to deflect praise and acclaim like Dean. That is what made him so special to his players, his staff, and the fans. Everyone knew he deserved the praise and Dean sincerely believed others deserved it. Take a look at today's leaders who can get things done and you will see the ability to allow others to accept credit for achievements. Ever wonder why almost all politicians are so disliked, this is the reason why. If you sincerely want others to get credit for the job done well you will be a good manager.

3. Top 10% of managers are not always the smartest people, nor did they have the always best grades in school. Management, unlike sales, is a leaned skill. Most importantly it is a skill that lends itself to the talent to get others to achieve goals. A unique talent for building a team concept and team atmosphere. Inspiration and hard work is more, much more important than how smart you are.

4. Great managers have attainable character traits. Qualities and habits that can be learned. The willingness to do whatever is necessary to achieve the shared goals and qualities such as realizing there are always alternatives to the way things are presently done. They also know that the people that came before them were not dumb as others and you might think at the time. They had purpose in how they did tasks and good managers do not waste time blaming those who came before them.

5. Good managers know their edge, their circle of competency. You can never be excellent and I do mean EXCELLENT at lots of skill sets. Therefore get really good at least one or two things and then use them to win competitive battles, Make sure those battles are fought on your turf. Being a professional means I know I can get it done, so get out of the way and let me do it.

6. Good managers do not cut corners. Integrity will get you through most any hard patch and win you converts be they your employees, your customers, or your boss.