Management Stories

Jul 25th 2011 Always let your boss have the first say

A sales rep, an administration clerk and the manager are walking to lunch when they find an antique oil lamp. They rub it and a Genie comes out in a puff of smoke.

The Genie says, “I usually only grant three wishes, so I’ll give each of you just one.”

“Me first! Me first!” says the admin clerk “I want to be in the Bahamas, driving a speedboat, without a care in the world.” Poof! She’s gone.

In astonishment, “Me next! Me next!” says the sales rep. “I want to be in Hawaii, relaxing on the beach with my personal masseuse, an endless supply of pina coladas and the love of my life.” Poof! He’s gone.

“OK, you’re up,” the Genie says to the manager.

The manager says, “I want those two back in the office after lunch.”

Management Lesson: Always let your boss have the first say.

Source: Original source unknown but this story was sent to me by a reader named Jitesh

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Jul 11th 2009 Stephen Covey’s Big Rocks

An exercise and known as ‘Stephen Covey’s Big Rocks’. Imagine a bucket. Put three or four big rocks in. “Is the bucket full? ” “No” you reply. “Of course not” I say and put some smaller rocks in it to fill in the gaps. “Full now? “, “No”. I put in some sand, then some water. It’s full.

So, what’s the learning here? It’s to do with the order. What would happen if you’d reversed the order? Put the water in first, then the sand, then the small rocks. There would be no room for the big rocks. These big rocks are the important things in your life. You need to schedule them first, not try to squeeze them in after arranging the water (writing pointless reports), sand (unnecessary travel) or small rocks (staff meetings where no-one listens and everyone looks at the clock).

What are the big rocks in your life? For many it’s things like family, time to watch the children grow up, time to write that novel, time for themselves, time to make a difference. You decide. You identify 3 or 4 things you believe are important. The 3 or 4 things that will make a difference at your funeral.

Source: Real Time Management by Byron Kalies | LeaderValues

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Mar 19th 2009 Don’t let self limitations hold you back

The first [leadership lesson] I learned in the jungles of Bangalore, at an elephant camp. When you visit such a camp you see these gigantic elephants tethered with a small stake. I asked the trainer: ‘Why do they stay tethered when they could so easily pull up the stake?’ He told me: ‘Well, the elephant is tethered as a small calf; when it tries to pull up the stake, it learns it can’t do it … and it never tries again.’ That’s an amazing parable about how we always tend to underestimate ourselves. The lesson for me is: Don’t let self limitations hold you back.

Source: Vivek Paul | Knowledge@Wharton

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Feb 2nd 2009 Ability Development

In Ability Development from Age Zero, Shinichi Suzuki describes telling a violin student:

‘”Stop playing the violin for one week. There is something you must learn besides the violin. It is the spirit of doing things for other people. … To begin with, pick up your friend’s books when they have fallen…. Live by looking for things to do for other people. This is your homework for the week.”

[The student asked] “…what does doing things for other people have to do with violin practice?” …

“When listening to your performance, I could clearly feel that you were self-centered in your heart. If your heart is set to work for others, then your mind should be able to work more sensitively in an expanded world. If you do so, then more abundant, delicately beautiful expressions will enter your performance. …”

… art becomes higher as humans develop higher. …great talent and a deep, beautiful feeling in the heart are closely tied together.”‘

Source: Taken from Ability Development from Age Zero by Shinichi Suzuki, featured in hold this thought by Melissa Bledsoe Fischer

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Apr 18th 2007 Ask What’s It All For?

A corporate executive on holiday in a small Greek seacoast village was strolling by the docks and drinking in the local color. He complimented one fisherman on the quality of his catch.

“How long did it take you to get all those fish?” he wondered.

“Not very long,” answered the Greek. “An hour or two.”

“Then why didn’t you stay out longer to catch more?”

Shrugging, the Greek explained that his catch was sufficient to meet his needs and those of his family.

The executive asked, “But what do you do with the rest of your time?”

I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a nap with my wife. In the evening, I go to the village to see my friends, dance a little, play the bouzouki, and sing songs. I have a full life.”

The executive said, “I have an MBA from Harvard. I can help you. You should start by fishing longer every day. You’ll catch extra fish that you can sell. With the revenue, you can buy a bigger boat. With the extra money the larger boat will bring you, you can buy a second boat and a third one, and so on, until you have an entire fleet of trawlers. Instead of selling your fish to a middleman, you can then negotiate directly with the processing plants and maybe even open your own plant. You can ship fish to markets all around the world. In time, you can then move to New York City to direct your huge enterprise.”

“How long would that take?” asked the Greek.

“Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years,” replied the executive.

“And after that?”

“When your business gets really big, you can sell stock and make millions!” exclaimed the executive with zeal.

“Millions? Really? And after that?”

“After that you’ll be able to retire, live in a small village near the coast, sleep late, play with your grandchildren, catch a few fish, take a nap with your wife, and spend your evenings singing, dancing, and playing the bouzouki with your friends.”

Source: Managers Ignite! Now is the Time to Take Back Your Company, Your Career, Your Life by Vince Thompson / ChangeThis

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Jan 31st 2006 The doctrine of the prior agenda

…my wife, Carol [Bolles], is a well-known career counselor in her own right. She was meeting with a client who worked in the rubber industry — let’s call him George. George told her in their first session, “I’ve got to get out of the rubber industry.” So she gave him some homework to do before their next session. He came back the next week, and he hadn’t done a lick of the homework. My wife, rich with intuition, asked him, “What will happen if you don’t get out of the rubber industry?” George said, “My wife will divorce me.” Carol said, “Do you want your wife to divorce you?” He couldn’t keep the smile off of his face. She knew then that he would never change his job until it had given him what he wanted: a divorce, with his wife taking the initiative — and the guilt. Based on his behavior, my wife named this “the doctrine of the prior agenda.” You can’t help people change or find their mission when they have a conflicting prior agenda.

Source: What Happened to Your Parachute? / Daniel H. Pink, Richard Bolles / Fast Company, September 1999

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