A post by Dave Cheong got me thinking about the flood of literature on management and leadership. It’s insane how many books are out there offering the final, decisive, how-to guide for getting people to do what needs to be done.
But I think it starts with basic, essential people skills. Too many executives feel they know how to “run a business,” but don’t know how to interact with employees at various levels in their organizations.
As a local sales manager, you may know how to sell, but do you know how to teach people to sell? And before that happens, do you know how to show a genuine interest in the people who work for you? Can you absolutely, without guile, root for the members on your team so that they enjoy success for their reasons? Can you greet people enthusiastically each day? Do you go to bat for your people from time to time?
It’s one thing to be assertive in getting what you want. It’s quite another to be assertive in showing people your interest in them, and cultivating a help-others-grow mindset.
Mastery of decent, dignified people skills precedes any management and leadership skills, if you want the latter to stick.
Other resources: Lee Hopkins’ Eight Essential People Skills, Jim Rohn’s Qualities of Skillful Leadership (which focus on people interaction), Stephen Covey on Character,
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Hi Brandon,
Many thanks for the flattering link — that’s pretty impressive ‘linking’ company I am with!
Kind regards,
Lee
Hey Lee, I linked to it with pleasure. Keep up the great work.
You’re absolutely right. Genuine interest in the people around you will go a long way.
If you’re writing, checking numbers or some other task that can wait and one of your employees needs 5 minutes, give them your undivided attention while they are in front of you and they’ll work like dawgs for you when you aren’t in front of them.
I promise. Guaranteed.
Brandon,
Great post, and great link. I whole-heartedly agree about the necessity to focus on people first in today’s corporate world; not enough of that is done. Furthermore, I almost feel as though people who buy these leadership and management books, and even books on influence, are doing so in order to manipulate people and give the front that they are “people oriented” whereas they are not. As I mentioned on my site, I think that the approach towards addressing the needs of people needs to be sincere, and, if that is done, the rest will fall into place.
Oas