A leader is the one who:
- Makes the team add up to more than the sum of the parts
- Has vision and communicates to inspire
- Manages team climate
- Is trusted and respected
- Backs the team at all times
- Is approachable and understands the team
- Empowers the team, creates more leaders
- Takes them to places they have never been before
- Is open, flexible, honest and a hear-a-holic
- Is positive, optimistic
- Is courageous in decision-making, always works in the interest of the team
- Is secure, willing to surround himself with people better than himself
- Can accept responsibility and give credit
- Serves as team glue
Source: "The Winning Way" - by Anita and Harsha Bhogle
About Me ...
- Chinmaya
- Chennai, TN, India
- I am a Software Engineer since Aug 2004. Master of own space, Fun loving but within a limit, hate pulling other's leg, twinkling brain thinking of surroundings, blend of culture and sanskar, priest of music, always ready with a helping hand and a smiling face, Mr Attitude for people who deserve it, but a true and great friend for my friends ...
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Team player ...
A team player is the one:
- Who has a ‘greater-than-me’ perspective
- Who puts more into the team pot than he takes out
- Who is willing to give up the ‘me’ for the ‘we’
- Who is willing to pass the ball especially when the other guy is in a better position to score
- Who is willing to play in whatever position the team requires him to
- Who gives 100 percent, everytime, under all circumstances
- Who plays by the team rules
- Who is encouraging and is happy to see teammates do well
- Who is proud of belonging to his team
- Who is unafraid to express his opinions
Source: "The Winning Way" - by Anita and Harsha Bhogle
- Who has a ‘greater-than-me’ perspective
- Who puts more into the team pot than he takes out
- Who is willing to give up the ‘me’ for the ‘we’
- Who is willing to pass the ball especially when the other guy is in a better position to score
- Who is willing to play in whatever position the team requires him to
- Who gives 100 percent, everytime, under all circumstances
- Who plays by the team rules
- Who is encouraging and is happy to see teammates do well
- Who is proud of belonging to his team
- Who is unafraid to express his opinions
Source: "The Winning Way" - by Anita and Harsha Bhogle
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Symptoms of Losing Teams ...
- Bureaucratic; delaying decisions
- Egos, internal competition, groupism
- Getting credit more important than getting the job done
- Lack of focus, energies spread thin
- Not enough back-up plans
- The same few people perform, no new people or ideas
- Too many or too few processes
- Crab mentality
- Blaming others or the environment for failure
- Weighed down by past failure
Source: "The Winning Way" - by Anita and Harsha Bhogle
- Egos, internal competition, groupism
- Getting credit more important than getting the job done
- Lack of focus, energies spread thin
- Not enough back-up plans
- The same few people perform, no new people or ideas
- Too many or too few processes
- Crab mentality
- Blaming others or the environment for failure
- Weighed down by past failure
Source: "The Winning Way" - by Anita and Harsha Bhogle
Managing Success ...
- Success must be analyzed with the same rigour as failure
- Success is in the context of time, space and scale
- Keep what still works and discard the rest
- Managing success is as difficult as achieving it
- Winning comes with side-effects: ego, over-confidence, complacence
- ‘The Disease of Me’ can lead to ‘The Defeat of Us’
- Chronic winners need to guard against satisfactory underperformance
- Adversity separates champions from challengers
Source: "The Winning Way" - by Anita and Harsha Bhogle
- Success is in the context of time, space and scale
- Keep what still works and discard the rest
- Managing success is as difficult as achieving it
- Winning comes with side-effects: ego, over-confidence, complacence
- ‘The Disease of Me’ can lead to ‘The Defeat of Us’
- Chronic winners need to guard against satisfactory underperformance
- Adversity separates champions from challengers
Source: "The Winning Way" - by Anita and Harsha Bhogle
Goals...
- Goals are dreams with deadlines
- Goals can be out of reach, but not out of sight
- The goals you set tell the world what kind of person you are
- What you achieve is a function of what you think you can
- As players become bigger, their goals become more precise
- Performance goals make you focus on the variables that can be controlled
- Individual goals must always be aligned with team goals
- Setting up a goal is important as scoring a goal
- Clarity of the role and goal is critical to winning
Source: "The Winning Way" - by Anita and Harsha Bhogle
- Goals can be out of reach, but not out of sight
- The goals you set tell the world what kind of person you are
- What you achieve is a function of what you think you can
- As players become bigger, their goals become more precise
- Performance goals make you focus on the variables that can be controlled
- Individual goals must always be aligned with team goals
- Setting up a goal is important as scoring a goal
- Clarity of the role and goal is critical to winning
Source: "The Winning Way" - by Anita and Harsha Bhogle
Symptoms of Winning Teams ...
- Band of boys atmosphere, happy and relaxed
- Ability to pass the ball
- Living in the present, planning for the future
- Carrying everyone along – backing up underperformers
- A ‘can do’ approach
- Common shared vision
- Strong personal goals yet subordinate to team goals
- Focusing on competition, not internal differences
- Non-negotiable work ethic
- Bringing in new people, ideas to prevent staleness
- Nurturing or culling at the right moment
- Hunger, passion, energy
Source: "The Winning Way" - by Anita and Harsha Bhogle
- Ability to pass the ball
- Living in the present, planning for the future
- Carrying everyone along – backing up underperformers
- A ‘can do’ approach
- Common shared vision
- Strong personal goals yet subordinate to team goals
- Focusing on competition, not internal differences
- Non-negotiable work ethic
- Bringing in new people, ideas to prevent staleness
- Nurturing or culling at the right moment
- Hunger, passion, energy
Source: "The Winning Way" - by Anita and Harsha Bhogle
Saturday, July 16, 2011
His name is 'Today' ...
We are guilty of many errors and many faults,
But our worst crime is abandoning the children,
Neglecting the fountain of life.
But our worst crime is abandoning the children,
Neglecting the fountain of life.
Many things we need can wait
But the child cannot.
But the child cannot.
Right now is the time;
His bones are being formed,
His senses are being developed
His blood is being made...
His bones are being formed,
His senses are being developed
His blood is being made...
To him, we cannot answer, “Tomorrow”,
His name is “Today”.
His name is “Today”.
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Traits of an Efficient Manager ...
In today's business world, an efficient manager can be rarely found. An efficient manager is the one who helps to run a business or an organization smoothly and effectively. He is like a captain of the ship who is responsible for the proper guidance of the other team members.
The following are the top five traits of an efficient manager.
Enthusiasm
A manager should be full of enthusiasm and have a positive attitude. Enthusiastic managers are more committed towards their work. They inspire the other team members to be optimistic for achieving a certain goal in the business organization. Managers with enthusiasm have a ‘can do’ attitude; they don't give several reasons for not being able to handle a project.
Communicates Consistently, Clearly, Concisely
An efficient manager should know the art of proper communication. A manager without proper communication skill communicates too infrequently. Therefore they fail to develop confidence between the team members. An efficient manager communicates regularly, clearly and concisely; thereby giving better direction to the team members or in finding a solution to a problem.
Needs to have a sense of humor
An efficient manager should know the art of being humoristic. A bit of laughter or wit can take him to a long way. Although controlling the work of a business or an organization is a serious task one cannot be an efficient leader without having good sense of humor.
Cool Under Pressure
In a business organization, projects are demanded to be delivered on time and under budget without major problems or obstacle. But projects do have problems as everything around does not work perfectly. Efficient managers consider the major problems interesting. They keep the problems aside and coolly tackle the problems as a great opportunity to prove their managing skills.
Truly Humble
This is one of the most important characteristic of an efficient manager. Managers, who are truly humble with a good character, influence people to work with them. Nobody wants to work with a selfish or a self obsessed person.
Courtesy: SiliconIndia
The following are the top five traits of an efficient manager.
Enthusiasm
A manager should be full of enthusiasm and have a positive attitude. Enthusiastic managers are more committed towards their work. They inspire the other team members to be optimistic for achieving a certain goal in the business organization. Managers with enthusiasm have a ‘can do’ attitude; they don't give several reasons for not being able to handle a project.
Communicates Consistently, Clearly, Concisely
An efficient manager should know the art of proper communication. A manager without proper communication skill communicates too infrequently. Therefore they fail to develop confidence between the team members. An efficient manager communicates regularly, clearly and concisely; thereby giving better direction to the team members or in finding a solution to a problem.
Needs to have a sense of humor
An efficient manager should know the art of being humoristic. A bit of laughter or wit can take him to a long way. Although controlling the work of a business or an organization is a serious task one cannot be an efficient leader without having good sense of humor.
Cool Under Pressure
In a business organization, projects are demanded to be delivered on time and under budget without major problems or obstacle. But projects do have problems as everything around does not work perfectly. Efficient managers consider the major problems interesting. They keep the problems aside and coolly tackle the problems as a great opportunity to prove their managing skills.
Truly Humble
This is one of the most important characteristic of an efficient manager. Managers, who are truly humble with a good character, influence people to work with them. Nobody wants to work with a selfish or a self obsessed person.
Courtesy: SiliconIndia
Men vs. Women Manager
Managing a team is not an easy task and it needs lot of hard work, patience, management skills. They are the persons responsible for planning and directing the work of a group of individuals, monitoring their work, and taking corrective action when necessary.
Men and women managers have different traits to lead a team. As they are polls apart, they use different ways to manage a team. But who can be a better manager that is a debatable topic. Many people have different views on working under men and women managers. Have you ever found managers of one gender to be easier or more difficult to work with?
Here are some characteristics that men and women managers have:
Men and women managers have different traits to lead a team. As they are polls apart, they use different ways to manage a team. But who can be a better manager that is a debatable topic. Many people have different views on working under men and women managers. Have you ever found managers of one gender to be easier or more difficult to work with?
Here are some characteristics that men and women managers have:
Behavioral differences
Men and women mangers differ in their behavior towards their employee. They have different leadership style to handle a team. Men managers are mostly task oriented. They give command and try to control their team with their power. Moreover they are more into punishment oriented, for e.g. if any of their employee made any mistake they are ready to punish them rather making them understand the problem. They are more practical towards work life.
However women managers are vulnerable to office politics. Moreover emotion takes a very important part in their life and sometime it comes between them and their work life. But they can understand the problem of their employees well and are ready to sort it out.
Different ways to dealing a team
Men managers lack sensitiveness; with the managerial power they try to dominant their subordinate. But women have the sensitiveness in them and they believe in proper communication with their team. They use smoother way to express work-related demands and needs. Women managers empathize with their employees and give them task that they are good at. This positive act make the employees perform better and faster.
Balancing professional and personal life
Women can play the role of mother, wife and a professional. They play a versatile role between their work and personal life. They can balance both their personal life and professional. They have the quality of nurturing and understanding of people. They can manage well in their work and life stress situations. However men need not balance everything as there are always women who take care of their home. Men tend to burst out their problem at office if they have any personal issues.
Courtesy: SiliconIndia
Men and women mangers differ in their behavior towards their employee. They have different leadership style to handle a team. Men managers are mostly task oriented. They give command and try to control their team with their power. Moreover they are more into punishment oriented, for e.g. if any of their employee made any mistake they are ready to punish them rather making them understand the problem. They are more practical towards work life.
However women managers are vulnerable to office politics. Moreover emotion takes a very important part in their life and sometime it comes between them and their work life. But they can understand the problem of their employees well and are ready to sort it out.
Different ways to dealing a team
Men managers lack sensitiveness; with the managerial power they try to dominant their subordinate. But women have the sensitiveness in them and they believe in proper communication with their team. They use smoother way to express work-related demands and needs. Women managers empathize with their employees and give them task that they are good at. This positive act make the employees perform better and faster.
Balancing professional and personal life
Women can play the role of mother, wife and a professional. They play a versatile role between their work and personal life. They can balance both their personal life and professional. They have the quality of nurturing and understanding of people. They can manage well in their work and life stress situations. However men need not balance everything as there are always women who take care of their home. Men tend to burst out their problem at office if they have any personal issues.
Courtesy: SiliconIndia
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Time to Quit !!! (The pink-slip)
If you are among the talented ones in your office and is supposedly getting more attention than your Boss then you should be seeing a pink slip coming your way anytime. There are some good hard working employees, but sometimes their attitude or personality does not take them far in a workplace. But we have another set of employees who are exceptional and are determined to go beyond their bosses, which will end them up in making more enemies than friends. Employees who show up for work, do their duties very well, and their overall job is betted good then it is difficult for Managers, supervisors and corporate figureheads to put employees on probation or fire them if they have done nothing wrong to warrant such actions.
But how will you know that your boss wants to secretly get over you? What might be some signs that a boss gives out when he wants to get rid of his potential threat? Here are a few:
But how will you know that your boss wants to secretly get over you? What might be some signs that a boss gives out when he wants to get rid of his potential threat? Here are a few:
Concentrates on you for no reason:
If you have a your boss checking your minute to minute work, keeping a watch on when you come and leave office, checks who are on your chat list and who you are chit chatting with; then you will have to gear up as he is determined to point your errors more than once. Whether big or small, making you feel guilty is what matters and he will keep repeating it until you turn out humble in your attitude or either get frustrated and leave the job. Either way a boss may reason that he or she won't have to put the person on probation and cause him or her possible feelings of resentment or fire this person. Whatever happens, the boss just wants the potential "problem" to go away.
Insults you in front of others:
Pointing out errors will never be a private affair when a boss wants to get rid of a potential employee. He always makes sure that, people in the organization get to know your mistakes and how incapable you are of handling the job. Your confidence tends to weaken when you are insulted in front of your colleagues and friends. However, if the employee has noticed an increase in negative statements, this is a clear sign that there is something about the employee that bothers him or her.
Deploys spies who report back to him about your actions:
So how long was she in office? Did he complete the work that I had given him? Was she chatting with a person from the other department? Were they on time for work this week? Where did they go after the meeting? These are few of the questions that your boss will shoot at your spies so that he can build a very strong file against you. Records your daily actions to show how viable are you to be fired.
Ignores you and does not expect any feedback from you:
Your boss calls you for a meeting, tells you what to do and then the meeting is adjourned. Now this may not have been happening before. However, if these are some sign that your boss portrays then you need to understand that he no longer cares for your inputs.
Offers lesser responsibility:
One fine morning you come to office and you find out that you are stripped of your responsibilities and maybe your team is divided without your knowledge. Then it is a sure sign that there is something unpleasant on the horizon. After all, your boss cannot fire a person who's got a ton of important work to do, with many people underneath you. So over time, he will reduce the work given to you, reduce the people under you and eventually a new job title of which you have no clue about. Eventually you will have a hard time finding anything of real value to do all day.
Gives you impossible tasks that cannot be achieved:
If your boss cannot bend your attitude then he will pin you up with an impossible task that cannot be achieved by you, at least something that cannot be achieved in the near future. Trying to prove him wrong, you end pushing yourself harder and the people around you. This could lead to a level where you get irritated, frustrated and leads you to quitting.
Are you longer in the information loop?:
You go on a business trip and when you come back, your whole working system is changed. After a day at office you realize that you were not informed about any of these changes and all that you have to do is adopt yourself to the new system. This is a huge telltale sign. Suddenly you're finding out about company news from the cleaning lady or the new girl in accounting. If you were formally in the know about all things business related, but now suffer from "the company's doing what??!" disease, the writing is probably on the wall.
Uses psychological warfare on you:
Mental peace is very important at workplace and a psychological warfare by boss will just wipe out all the tranquility you had in your job. He will make you work overtime, disturb when you are on vacation, blow up things out of proportion and keep picking on you for silly problems. All of these sneaky ways are designed to stress the employee so much that it will make you start posting those resumes of yours to other employers.
Encourages you find job elsewhere:
Sometimes your bosses can be quite bold, especially after a disagreement, and say something like, "Well, if you are not happy here, why don't you just find another job?". It is a clear sign that he no longer wants you around him. Although you need to pay attention as to know how the suggestion was made since the last disagreement. If your boss is repeatedly reminding you of finding a new job then it is a complete red flag.
Impossible to get an idea approved:
Think back. A long time ago, people would give a green light for your projects faster than the traffic signals. But that's no longer the case. The boss is suddenly silent when it comes to approval. You're being passed around for middle-manager to middle-manager. The silent treatment is a sure sign of pink-slip disease.
If you have a your boss checking your minute to minute work, keeping a watch on when you come and leave office, checks who are on your chat list and who you are chit chatting with; then you will have to gear up as he is determined to point your errors more than once. Whether big or small, making you feel guilty is what matters and he will keep repeating it until you turn out humble in your attitude or either get frustrated and leave the job. Either way a boss may reason that he or she won't have to put the person on probation and cause him or her possible feelings of resentment or fire this person. Whatever happens, the boss just wants the potential "problem" to go away.
Insults you in front of others:
Pointing out errors will never be a private affair when a boss wants to get rid of a potential employee. He always makes sure that, people in the organization get to know your mistakes and how incapable you are of handling the job. Your confidence tends to weaken when you are insulted in front of your colleagues and friends. However, if the employee has noticed an increase in negative statements, this is a clear sign that there is something about the employee that bothers him or her.
Deploys spies who report back to him about your actions:
So how long was she in office? Did he complete the work that I had given him? Was she chatting with a person from the other department? Were they on time for work this week? Where did they go after the meeting? These are few of the questions that your boss will shoot at your spies so that he can build a very strong file against you. Records your daily actions to show how viable are you to be fired.
Ignores you and does not expect any feedback from you:
Your boss calls you for a meeting, tells you what to do and then the meeting is adjourned. Now this may not have been happening before. However, if these are some sign that your boss portrays then you need to understand that he no longer cares for your inputs.
Offers lesser responsibility:
One fine morning you come to office and you find out that you are stripped of your responsibilities and maybe your team is divided without your knowledge. Then it is a sure sign that there is something unpleasant on the horizon. After all, your boss cannot fire a person who's got a ton of important work to do, with many people underneath you. So over time, he will reduce the work given to you, reduce the people under you and eventually a new job title of which you have no clue about. Eventually you will have a hard time finding anything of real value to do all day.
Gives you impossible tasks that cannot be achieved:
If your boss cannot bend your attitude then he will pin you up with an impossible task that cannot be achieved by you, at least something that cannot be achieved in the near future. Trying to prove him wrong, you end pushing yourself harder and the people around you. This could lead to a level where you get irritated, frustrated and leads you to quitting.
Are you longer in the information loop?:
You go on a business trip and when you come back, your whole working system is changed. After a day at office you realize that you were not informed about any of these changes and all that you have to do is adopt yourself to the new system. This is a huge telltale sign. Suddenly you're finding out about company news from the cleaning lady or the new girl in accounting. If you were formally in the know about all things business related, but now suffer from "the company's doing what??!" disease, the writing is probably on the wall.
Uses psychological warfare on you:
Mental peace is very important at workplace and a psychological warfare by boss will just wipe out all the tranquility you had in your job. He will make you work overtime, disturb when you are on vacation, blow up things out of proportion and keep picking on you for silly problems. All of these sneaky ways are designed to stress the employee so much that it will make you start posting those resumes of yours to other employers.
Encourages you find job elsewhere:
Sometimes your bosses can be quite bold, especially after a disagreement, and say something like, "Well, if you are not happy here, why don't you just find another job?". It is a clear sign that he no longer wants you around him. Although you need to pay attention as to know how the suggestion was made since the last disagreement. If your boss is repeatedly reminding you of finding a new job then it is a complete red flag.
Impossible to get an idea approved:
Think back. A long time ago, people would give a green light for your projects faster than the traffic signals. But that's no longer the case. The boss is suddenly silent when it comes to approval. You're being passed around for middle-manager to middle-manager. The silent treatment is a sure sign of pink-slip disease.
Courtesy: SiliconIndia
Do first-time managers ruin your career?
Being a manager excites many - it gives the wings to dream big, but the language of responsibility and power injects nervousness to their nerves that might kill the careers of many subordinates. There are many reasons for the new managers failing to lead a team and the most important one is lack of training. It was revealed in a recent survey that more than 50 percent of managers received no training before starting the job. Most of the new managers get it wrong as they are not properly guided on their new roles and they recite the common myths and misperceptions that lead them to mistakes. Here are some of the most common mistakes by new managers that would ruin the career of many.
The Wrong Sense of Authority
Yes it's true that the chair of the manager is built of power and authority; however, many often forget that the chair is the citadel of respect to all - the subordinates, bosses, and friends. The other side of the coin is that many new managers feel very constrained in the new role as the load of responsibilities shrinks their freedom. Their expectation of wielding the designated power often vanishes once they climb into manager's chair. These wrong ideas of being a manager lead them to mistakes in dealing with the team members and the execution of plans often meets with troubles, which ultimately make the life of his subordinates miserable.
Never-Ending Changes
They say change is good, but their teammates say, not the unnecessary ones. The lack of experience in leading a team makes them jitter at the execution phase. It's when the new managers change their plans too often to meet the unexpected situations. Changing the routines and procedures without notification or adequate discussion lowers the employee morale. Sometimes the manager's excitement about a new change kills the interest of his subordinates as the change may not be needed or would invite unwanted results.
Hesitancy to Give and Receive Immediate Feedbacks
It takes one to be highly professional to give and receive feedbacks on time. The failure of managers to give apt, timely feedbacks to their team members closes the doors of growth before them. A harsh feedback can kill the employee morale too. Many develop an attitude of "I have all the answers" which makes it hard for them to solicit the feedbacks from subordinates. The stories of managers going after people who give feedback, that are meant to be positive, are often heard in the corporate world.
Focus Only on Tasks Not on People
New managers tend to live their previous routines where their sole focus was to accomplish the given tasks. However, they fail to realize that developing interpersonal relationship is an integral quality of leaders. The ideal motto of a manager is to help his subordinates to accomplish the tasks in an outstanding way and not just to focus on the budgets, reports or planning. The career of subordinates depends on the managers, and the inexperienced managers tend to make things very complex which will make life hard of the teammates. They fail to become the people managers, but rather become just task managers without realizing the needs of their subordinates.
Sets Intangible Goals
The excitement of being manager fills in ambitious aims which lead them to set targets that are unattainable and intangible. It obviously increases the work pressure that may leave the team members with no options but to call it a quit. Such targets kill the self-esteem and morale of the employees as they can never meet the deadlines. Making such a negative motivational effect on employees can be the worst thing a new manager can make.
Courtesy : SiliconIndia
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