Re: Let's Become Better Managers and Leaders - Together

[Guest guest]

" We can't work together because we have a personality conflict. " I have often

heard this as a reason one health care professional cannot effectively work with

another.

Personality conflict is a vague term and is " an excuse to avoid addressing the

real causes of conflict " per the all knowing resource of Wikipedia. When this is

mentioned, a supervisor should ask for specifics in what is the actual issue

preventing two individuals from moving forward for the good of the department,

institution and patient care.

I may not want to go out after hours for a beer or two with everyone at work

but I still respect their knowledge and skills.

Bonnie Bauer Swafford, PT and now DPT (woo hoo, I just finished!)

PS. Congrats, , on your DPT

> Time to share some tips on being a better manager and leader. I'll go

> first. Then it will be your turn.

>

> -------------------

>

> " They just don't get it. I told them what to do but they didn't do it like

> I told them. And now it is all messed up. "

>

> I think every manager has been frustrated enough to think, if not say, those

> lines at some point in their career.

>

> I wish I had the answer to making sure that that frustration never happens

> to you, but I don't. The only thing I can really bring to this table is a

> long history of trying different things and seeing how they turn out. I

> suspect that I have an advantage over many of you because I have been around

> long enough to have made way more mistakes in my career than you have.

>

> Here are some of the things that I " think " I have figured out.

>

> 1. Saying or thinking someone does not " get it " is usually useless in it's

> generality. It may not be an incorrect assessment but it is very rarely

> helpful - other than as a way to label someone else. Usually part of that

> label identifies them as somehow " less than " what we want, expect, or need

> them to be. That label always puts up a barrier that most often becomes an

> obstacle to moving forward.

>

> My suggestion: work a bit harder to develop a better managerial diagnosis

> than " they don't get it " . Find out where the miscommunication occurred and

> how. Consider that you may really be the problem and work with your

> teammate to find a better solution together.

>

> 2. Except in the most simple, linear conversation or meeting, pronouns are

> to be avoided at all costs. I'm not so sure how your meetings and

> conversations work, but most of mine are streams of discussion items that

> sometimes have topics that overlap and intermingle. There is rarely any

> sort of " flow restrictor " to pace and focus the discussion even though we

> all try to do that. I find myself constantly asking " Who is the " she " you

> are referring to? " " Please specify the " they " you referenced in your last

> comment! " " Where is the " there " that you are talking about? " .

>

> You might say that my age is showing and confusion is to be

> expected. Eventually we all knew that this is what would happen to ,

> but no - EVERYONE struggles with these issues. EVERYONE is unsure of

> context in multi-track dialogue.

>

> My suggestion: Ban pronouns and demand specific references in your meetings

> and discussions. There will be less confusion and you'll notice much less

> confusion and greater efficiency once the meeting is over.

>

> 3. I used to go to a lot of meetings - even small 2 or 3 person

> meetings- where I would walk in and have to ask " Why are we all here? What

> is the objective we wish to meet that is best addressed with all of us in

> this room together? "

>

> Sometimes I would say that to myself, sometimes out loud. But I very

> frequently really needed to know the what and the why of our meeting. I

> always suspected that I was not the only one who had those thoughts,

> too. If I was lost and searching for the meaning of this meeting, so were

> at least half the participants, I bet.

>

> I'm pretty sure I wasted a lot of my time in those interactions. I suspect

> others did too. For those of you who know me, you probably figured out I am

> not big on time-wasting. Except on a golf course.

>

> My suggestion: Act like you are planning a speech. This is why we are

> here. This is what I want to accomplish. This is how I'm going to do

> that. This is what I want/need from you. This is what we decided. Here is

> the plan. Let's get to it.

>

> A beginning. A middle and an end with a plan.

> Give it a try. I think you'll be surprised how well it works.

>

> Ok, I just made three suggestions to help you be a better manager and

> leader. How many can you come up with to share with this esteemed group of

> PTManagers?

>

> Your turn!

>

> Kovacek, PT, DPT, MSA

>

>