James Monroe is the author of “Don’t Be a Dick Manager: The Down & Dirty Guide to Management,” (and its workplace-friendly companion, “Don’t Be a Jerk Manager”). The book is based on his experience managing teams of creative people, technical people, and salespeople in the media, technology, and service industries for more than two decades.
He now works to help managers see their roles through new eyes and break old patterns that cost companies time, energy, and money.
You know who they are. They are the rock-star sales managers, the gifted product leaders, the creative visionaries. Almost everything they do is wildly successful.
They believe—and the company agrees—that they have a golden gut: flawless instincts, essential relationships, or uncanny intuition, and the confidence to act.
We all know managers have a tremendous impact on the productivity and engagement of their teams. And we know that not everyone can manage people: Gallup says only 10 percent of people are natural managers and another 20 percent are coachable [1].
Why is becoming a manager so great? Because finally, after all those years of butt-kissing, pride swallowing, teeth clenching agony, it’s your turn on top. You’re the boss now. It’s time for people to kiss your butt and fear your wrath. What you say goes.
In Silicon Valley, people see failure as a necessary part of innovation. If you don’t fail, you’re not taking the risks that can lead to a breakthrough. You’re not risking enough little things to come up with the next big thing.
Every company has outstanding managers. These are the people who lead happy, productive teams, who easily motivate others and inspire innovation. They wear leadership like a comfortable sweater.
If you take a moment, you can probably name a few of these excellent managers in your organization.
And that’s the problem. There are only a few, and they are so rare, you can easily remember their names.
