It is management training I’ve always needed. I realised this yesterday when I walked into a training session I thought was Internet training I’ve been expecting. I ran out as soon as I realised it was for management , and rushed down to the coffee bar. But before I had a chance to remember that I’ve given up coffee, I was called back and told that I was indeed expected for management training.
“I don’t manage anybody”, I said defiantly, “I’m on own and I like it that way”.
Ignoring my solitary status, the organisers persuaded me to stay. “There will be muffins and tea at half-time”, I was told. So I sat down, warming to the idea of a morning of doodling, daydreaming, and a muffin.
I noticed though after a while there was stuff to listen to. As a manager, I heard, “you need to be competent not only in leadership, but also in planning, organising, and controlling the efforts of others”. You, dear manager, need to learn to enable people to work together to achieve objectives that will satisfy your needs. My needs? Albeit this stuff isn’t applicable to my day job but I can certainly take home some tips for my family. I might not manage anybody at work, but I certainly manage a coterie of small people at home. Parenting is all about persuading these little things to do exactly what you want them to do. To achieve a few simple goals involves countless instructions. There are a few long term goals too, and some planning to do. The crucial thing to remember always is that these small people don’t have much ability to listen. They barely communicate.
The ways and means of achieving all these family goals, according to the management gurus is to use manager leader skills. You need to enable and empower your team members (read children). They must enjoy what they are doing. You must motivate them (sound familiar?). Don’t expect them to do things they aren’t able to to do. You need to set “clear standards and paramaters” and “evaluate their performance”. All sounds good. But what I noticed was that the management style, the natural leader, we were dissuaded from using is the one we mostly use at home. A natural leader, that’s a parent, tends to be more autocratic. A natural leader will probably “make most of the decisions for their team”, “question, reverse or disparage decisions made by their subordinates” and “make their subordinates ‘toe the line’”. Sound familiar?
Something tells me that the more autocratic style of natural leaders works far better with children. I will try both but I am pretty sure my instinct is right. In the meantime I was told I could implement my new skills upwards and sidewards at work. I don’t know how my boss will feel about me telling him to “get up, eat up, hurry up and be good”.
And btw those muffins never arrived. Maybe next time.

Related posts:

1. Don’t be shy. Self-promote. I’ve been reading Mrs Moneypenny’s book Careers Advice for Ambitious...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.