Comments for Humans At Work

Comment on Possibilities by Jennifer

Jennifer — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 22:50:27 +0000

That is a good post. I found another one there that hit the spot for me today too. This one about making a list of reasons why we do stuff. I have those lists in my head and even one or two on my computer, but not in a written, handy, organized fashion for every important area in my life as he suggests. I saw right away the benefit for me of doing it because often when I'm talking myself out of doing something, I can't bring everything on those lists to mind. I've already started doing it, and I found some surprising (just because I hadn't thought of them) overlaps that are helping me sort out some priorities. Good Stuff. Thanks.

Comment on Hello, my name is Kelley by Kelley Eskridge

Kelley Eskridge — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 16:24:50 +0000

Matt, you’re right. That part of my post crosses a line between “being human” and remember that the goal is to communicate effectively with other humans. It’s true, politics is one of the Great Dividers, and there are enough communication pitfalls at work without adding to the mix.

I’ve edited the post as an object lesson for anyone else who might read it.

On my personal blog, I say whatever I like. Here, I try to model communication behavior that I’d like to see in the workplace. Sometimes they need to be different. Today, Matt is modeling the behavior by pointing out how I just made myself less effective.

Matt, thanks for calling it out in such a clear and non-threatening way — great example of how to tell someone they messed up without making them want to run away screaming.

Best to you as well.

Comment on Hello, my name is Kelley by Matt

Matt — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 06:52:18 +0000

PREFACE! This comment has nothing to do about politics or my personal political affiliation so please try to see through the initial reaction as an “anti-obama message”

I was in Berlin recently..observed something very powerful in a conversation among a group on a train ride.. the mere addition of a political or religious inclination into a conversation, in our current time, has the power to derail a message.

I love this post BUT, the message starts out with an unavoidable observation that Obama is awesome! Nothing at all wrong with this message..BUT since we are talking about humans..I wonder if the writer even realizes that a significant portion of his/ her readership feels alienated and MOST LIKELY won’t get to the real message of the post.

Now stop the natural reactions..”Oh if a person thinks like that they are not intelligent, or is lacking. blah, blah..it is the reality of today..religion and politics polarizes people and their attention span.

In the spirit of this blog and the great posts of this author I thought it would be worth while to interject here.

Best to all of you..no matter what your political sentiments are!

Comment on AA doesn’t get an A by Pierce Watters

Pierce Watters — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 11:11:49 +0000

Once people rise to a certain level a sort of blindness or brain freeze can set in. They no longer believe they are fallible, and sometimes begin to think they are perfect at everything. I have seen this so often in companies that I believe it is a very common occurence. I have my own three laws for business success and number 2 is “Hire professionals.” This has a sub-heading, “Then listen to them.”

Comment on All managers are leaders by BISIKAY, PhD, LONDON, UK

BISIKAY, PhD, LONDON, UK — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 23:12:41 +0000

Kelley has raised a great point of debate which could equally be translated to MANAGEMENT IS LEADERSHIP, AND LEADERSHIP IS MANAGEMENT? Are all leaders managers and are all managers leaders? Who is more inportant to a company’s productivity? Organisations and executives are constantly faced by this dilemma at various stages in their existence: to give priority to the STRATEGIC remit of the business LEADERSHIP or the EXECUTIVE remit of the MANAGEMENT. Often there are conflicts in organisations’ structure as to how emphasis should be laid, whereas both are very much required.
The sysyem to balance this is a new executive mode called LEADAGEMENT, a systematic, synergetic and symphonic integration or hybridisation of both LEADERSHIP and MANAGEMENT systems. It is addressed fully in the new book:
WHY MANAGERS CAN’T LEAD AND LEADERS CAN’T MANAGE by Dr BISIKAY (www.lulu.com / amazon.com)

Comment on Training makes a difference by Kelley Eskridge

Kelley Eskridge — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 19:19:46 +0000

Sue, some of the biggest resistance I find to the HAW curriculum in general is some version of “well, we’re doing training already” — which is great, except when employees of the same company tell me they wish they could get management training that would be useful to them. I think your point is a good one: HAW is certainly not the only good training in the world, or even necessarily the best training for many people: but the goal is to get people tools that are a fit for the company and for the people who want better skills in order to do the company’s work. Sometimes people know best what they need, and of course sometimes they don’t (the same way that sometimes people jump at solutions or “quick fixes” instead of considering what’s really wrong with the process on a deeper level). I imagine that navigating these issues is one of the particular challenges of your job.

Comment on Training makes a difference by Sue Maden

Sue Maden — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 14:43:56 +0000

The statement that “If you’re a manager whose company doesn’t support this kind of training, start finding your own resources.” is what grapped me. As someone tasked with education & training for my company, that’s an alarming situation to consider. You are right on target…if we don’t provide it, people will find it themselves. Those of us with this responsiblity need to step up and provide the tools so that we know they are a good fit for company culture. And if an employee does find something himself/herself, we need to be open to considering it and including it for others.

Comment on All managers are leaders by HARRIET

HARRIET — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 19:11:52 +0000

I am an I/O Psychology grad student. The reason I began this career goal is because I have spent years in the business industry in FL watching as management discounts and ignores the importance of the human element in the workplace, and feeling as though all the hard work in the world means nothing to short-sighted leaders. They also don’t give credence to the fact that without those humans, their business does not and cannot exist. Unless management celebrates their worker-bees and acknowledges their contribution to the work effort, they will rarely be successful. Even if their bottom line prospers, the turnover of unhappy, unappreciated employees costs money and time. A little appreciation goes a long way, and in these days of budget cuts and reorganizations, keeping good staff is tantamount to smart business practices.

Comment on Style is substance by HAW: Style is substance : kelleyeskridge.com

HAW: Style is substance : kelleyeskridge.com — Tue, 19 May 2009 00:01:49 +0000

[...] Today’s post at Humans At Work points you to an interesting interview in which executive Greg Brenneman is modeling the advice he is giving — be simple, be focused, be clear. I love seeing this kind of alignment in action. [...]

Comment on More on ground rules by barbara sanchez

barbara sanchez — Thu, 14 May 2009 04:38:49 +0000

When in trouble, when in doubt, run in circles, scream and shout. This was quoted by Plillip Caputo in his book about his Vietnam military service. It is neither the way to communicate or manage.