Welcome to WM8C's Team Building Guide
Youth Team Building Activities Article
. For a permanent link to this article, or to bookmark it for further reading, click here.
You may also listen to this article by using the following controls.
Trust Withheld; Micromanagement Unveiled
from: Eileen McDargh
Managers preach empowerment and yet, if the results are not right, who gets the blame?
Micromanagement and lack of trust are cries often heard in today's business arenas. In this age of accountability, downsizing, larger spans of control, complex global competition, and job uncertainty, all managers are faced with getting results through people. Managers preach empowerment and yet, if the results are not right, who gets the blame? And so, I think, the issue of trust resembles a crystal with four facets. The first facet has to do with that term "empowerment". Too often management throws out the term without clarifying what are the limits or parameters in which employees may make critical decisions. When boundaries are not clear employees naturally think the manager is sending mixed messages. When employees feel micromanaged, they're basically saying, "Stop looking over my shoulder I can do this. Stop checking upon me. Why must I report in every step of the way?" Good question. Why? Clarify for yourself first, and then with the employee, what is the performance outcome you need. The more quantifiable, the better. Note the word "outcome". This is not the same as "do it MY way". As long as you get the outcomes and results keep the team and ethics intact, who cares HOW they got the job done. Ask yourself what are your "twitching" points. That's my term for those areas in which you have special sensitivity, where you get a knot in you stomach or the hairs stand on the back of your neck. The sensitivity might be caused by demands which your manager has placed on you. Share these demands and then find out how your colleagues can help you meet them. You might have other "twitching points". For example, I value relationships. Form letters, bored telephone voices, disregard for returning phone calls, and impoliteness drive me crazy. These are all things which I think show a lack of concern for the relationship. If I micromanage in these areas, it could be that I have not either trained my support staff well, have hired wrong, or have failed to explicitly state my sensitivity. Another facet of trust has to do with authenticity. "At the core of becoming a leader is the need to connect one's voice with one's touch," wrote Max Dupree, former chair of Herman Miller. Is what you say and what you do in line? I am constantly amazed at the systems, practices, and behaviors found in corporate America which send mixed messages. ... like the manager who claimed he had an "open door policy" but greeted anyone who entered with the statement "and this better not be a dumb question." ... like the company which touted itself as "innovative" and yet used a one-size-fits-all budget scheme for its diverse operations. ... like the vice president who sent around articles on TQM but refused to allow employees to go for training. ... like the executive who wanted her managers to learn leadership, communication, problem-solving, team-building, and visioning in a two-day training because "learning is important." ... like the vice president who sent around articles on TQM but refused to allow his employees off the job to attend TQM training. And the list goes on. Never, I'm convinced, intentional. And always detrimental. The third facet of trust has to do with fear. Of what are you afraid? What is your worst fear and what's the chance of it really happening? Are there checkpoints or fail safe measures which you and your employees could put into place to short-circuit a negative outcome? And once done, relax and enjoy. As Mark Twain said, "I've had 103 catastrophes in my life, only two of which actually occurred." The fourth facet of trust rests in self-reliance. We all have heard the dictum that a strength overused becomes a weakness. Perhaps our life's experience has taught us that we depend solely by our own wits and wiles. Too many people have let us down. Or perhaps we take great pride in Frank Sinatra's mantra "I did it my way" . Our world is too complicated and interdependent to live solely by our singular guts and brain power. We need the insights and ideas of others. Too much now lies out of our control and coronaries await for those who attempt to do it all. In the final analysis, trust is also a four-letter word; love. When people know we care about them, they respond in kind. Easy to say. Harder to do. Practice in action is the only key and trust blooms as a result.
Eileen McDargh, CSP, CPAE, is an international speaker, author and seminar leader. Her book ‘Work for A Living and Still Be Free to Live’ is also the title of one of her most popular and upbeat programs on Work/Life Balance. For more information on Eileen and her presentations, please call 949-496-8640 or visit her web site at http://www.eileenmcdargh.com.
© 2000 by Eileen McDargh. All rights reserved.
About the Author
Eileen McDargh is founder of McDargh Communications, a consulting and training company specializing in inner and interpersonal skill development for the purpose of improving the life of a business and the business of life. Visit Eileen at http://www.EileenMcDargh.com or http://www.theresilientspirit.com.
Youth Team Building Activities News
Clark is at center of Winthrop/Lynn girls' hockey team success - Boston.com
 Boston.com | Clark is at center of Winthrop/Lynn girls' hockey team success Boston.com The Lynn teen spent two days on campus, shadowing the players and taking part in team-building activities, hopeful of joining the squad next season as a player. Clark has led the cooperative Winthrop/Lynn girls' hockey team to a 10-2-1 start this ... |
Norwich's international football team feels Community Cash boost - Norwich Evening News
 Norwich Evening News | Norwich's international football team feels Community Cash boost Norwich Evening News The Norwich International Youth Project organises team-building and integration activities for young people settling into Norwich. The Norwich International Youth Project helps young people, including asylum seekers and refugees, to integrate into ... |
Boston Celtics' Youth: Building Blocks or Trade Chips? - Bleacher Report
 Bleacher Report | Boston Celtics' Youth: Building Blocks or Trade Chips? Bleacher Report Each of the young players had the opportunity to shine when veterans missed games. Rondo, Jermaine O'Neal, Chris Wilcox, Keyon Dooling, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and Bass have missed 43 games combined this season. When the team is healthy, ... |
Ulster town to offer graffiti and DJ classes - Belfast Telegraph
Ulster town to offer graffiti and DJ classes Belfast Telegraph By David Young Graffiti art and DJ-ing classes are the unlikely activities being used to bring young people together in one of Northern Ireland's most divided towns. Protestant and Catholic youngsters from Lurgan will also be invited to take part in ... |
County Council sets a new standard in youth support - Harrogate News
 Harrogate News | County Council sets a new standard in youth support Harrogate News Working groups of young people have had an input into the building's design, advice about resources and equipment, arts projects and sport development and many other aspects of the project. In Northallerton the Insite Youth Support Centre team provides ... |
Youth movement should anchor Monglia's basketball future - UB Post
Youth movement should anchor Monglia's basketball future UB Post In the frigid winters, the games move indoors to school gyms and sport centers. At Naraantuul Market and the city's 3rd District shops are filled to the ceilings with the jerseys of some of the game's most popular players; the team colors of Wade, ... |
Eau Gallie High's recent successes were built on a solid foundation - Florida Today
Eau Gallie High's recent successes were built on a solid foundation Florida Today Bill is Bill Sinclair, long-time Commodores softball coach who took his team to five state tournaments while building an Eau Gallie program respected around Florida. Jeremy Salmon had a different perspective, coming to the job of Eau Gallie principal ... |