{"id":37992,"date":"2020-01-09T12:00:06","date_gmt":"2020-01-09T20:00:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/?p=37992"},"modified":"2020-01-09T12:00:10","modified_gmt":"2020-01-09T20:00:10","slug":"i-thought-i-was-a-good-manager","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/the-week-in-imaging-twii\/editors-blog\/2020\/01\/i-thought-i-was-a-good-manager\/","title":{"rendered":"I Thought I Was A Good Manager"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"239\" height=\"162\" src=\"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Butler-Street.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-37993\"\/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>When I joined Butler Street last spring, my first assignment was attending a leadership workshop for a new client. I remember sitting through a course listening to my new colleagues at Butler Street present the various coaching and leadership modules to a group of front-line sales leaders. After the workshop ended, I thought to myself, \u201cI was a good manager, but could have been a lot better.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Fast forward to a recent client meeting where one of the attendees (a successful sales leader) said basically the same thing\u2026 \u201dI\u2019m not as good as I thought I was.\u201d I had to laugh!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Each of us have had success and positively impacted our teams over the years. So why did we both say the same thing?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It is because we each quickly recognized that by sticking with the fundamentals and keeping things simple, we can be so much better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>How?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Practice<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As a manager or salesperson, it\u2019s easy to get stuck in the \u201cwhirlwind\u201d of 100 daily emails, endless conference calls, and the crisis of the moment. Unfortunately, we tend to accommodate the whirlwind by sacrificing time dedicated to practice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ask yourself how much time you spend each week as a team practicing the fundamentals such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Active listening skills <\/li><li>Role practicing your prospecting phone skills <\/li><li>Practicing and critiquing presentation skills <\/li><li>Reviewing and refining your insight stories and value statements<\/li><li>Practicing your pitch in front of teammates and managers <\/li><li>Handling common objections<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>In other words, are you doing enough to get ready for game time?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Consider this\u2026 All-Pro NFL players practice the basics of their craft every day. They are the \u201celite of the elite\u201d but recognize their edge will dull if they don\u2019t consistently work on fundamentals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We practiced, just not enough. Committing un-compromised practice time would have made my teams better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Manage Agreements<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Having written agreements with each member of a team that clearly state what we expect from each other is the foundation for order and consistency. Once agreements are established, uncomfortable conversations become more about the agreement and less about why something didn\u2019t get done. \u201cNothing personal\u2026 it\u2019s just business\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As a manager, I sometimes gave top performers a pass on certain activities when they were delivering new business. Albeit a small thing, I created drama for myself when it came time to enforce our agreements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The great thing about managing to an agreement is this\u2026 inevitably, the conversation can be steered back to the following script:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe have an agreement as a team that we will do X\u201d. (X = Outcome, Activity, Process, Behavior, Communication or Values- based agreement)?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cDo you agree that this is important?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cAre you willing to do this?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cDo you need anything from me?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Good teammates understand their commitment and want to hold up their end of the deal. If they don\u2019t, it may be a sign you don\u2019t have the right people on your team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Deliver Specific Coaching<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I&#8217;d like to think I gave recognition for jobs well done and constructive coaching on a regular basis. However, in retrospect, I could have done some things better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Effective coaching is a learned skill that great managers turn into a habit. Whether it\u2019s on-the-spot-coaching or defined time dedicated to coaching to strategy, activity or skill, Butler Street Leadership Effectiveness training helps managers understand the importance of positive feedback (the \u201cpsychological paycheck\u201d), the various forms of feedback and their impact, as well as steps to manage those difficult conversations more effectively. Putting into practice processes that begin with agreements and continues with consistent, clear communications that will result in higher team engagement and productivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As managers, getting better at what we do each day is what turns good teams into great teams. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Butler Street \u2013 Management Consulting, Training &amp; Research<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em><a href=\"http:\/\/www.butlerstreet.com\">Butler Street<\/a> enables organizations to develop, implement and execute their business strategies through great client relationships and high performing leaders and teams. At Butler Street, we are knowledge-sharing operators;  a combination of highly experienced CEOs, COOs, VPs of Sales and VPs of  Operational Excellence. Butler Street\u2019s key differentiation is that we,  as operating executives, have successfully implemented the client and talent development solutions and we have developed the techniques required to customize them with actionable insights specific to your business.<\/em>  <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Butler Street was recently recognized as a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.butlerstreetllc.com\/top-10-leadership-development\">Top 10 Leadership Development Training\/Coaching Company<\/a> by HR Tech Outlook<\/em>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When I joined Butler Street last spring, my first assignment was attending a leadership workshop for a new client. I remember sitting through a course listening to my new colleagues at Butler Street present the various coaching and leadership modules to a group of front-line sales leaders. After the workshop ended, I thought to myself, \u201cI was a good manager, but could have been a lot better.\u201d Fast forward to a recent client meeting where one of the attendees (a successful sales leader) said basically the same thing\u2026 \u201dI\u2019m not as good as I thought I was.\u201d I had to laugh! Each of us have had success and positively impacted our teams over the years. So why did we both say the same thing? It is because we each quickly recognized that by sticking with the fundamentals and keeping things simple, we can be so much better. How? Practice As a manager or salesperson, it\u2019s easy to get stuck in the \u201cwhirlwind\u201d of 100 daily emails, endless conference calls, and the crisis of the moment. Unfortunately, we tend to accommodate the whirlwind by sacrificing time dedicated to practice. Ask yourself how much time you spend each week as a team practicing the fundamentals such as: Active listening skills Role practicing your prospecting phone skills Practicing and critiquing presentation skills Reviewing and refining your insight stories and value statements Practicing your pitch in front of teammates and managers Handling common objections In other words, are you doing enough to get ready for game time? Consider this\u2026 All-Pro NFL players practice the basics of their craft every day. They are the \u201celite of the elite\u201d but recognize their edge will dull if they don\u2019t consistently work on fundamentals. We practiced, just not enough. Committing un-compromised practice time would have made my teams better. Manage Agreements Having written agreements with each member of a team that clearly state what we expect from each other is the foundation for order and consistency. Once agreements are established, uncomfortable conversations become more about the agreement and less about why something didn\u2019t get done. \u201cNothing personal\u2026 it\u2019s just business\u201d As a manager, I sometimes gave top performers a pass on certain activities when they were delivering new business. Albeit a small thing, I created drama for myself when it came time to enforce our agreements. The great thing about managing to an agreement is this\u2026 inevitably, the conversation can be steered back to the following script: \u201cWe have an agreement as a team that we will do X\u201d. (X = Outcome, Activity, Process, Behavior, Communication or Values- based agreement)? \u201cDo you agree that this is important?\u201d \u201cAre you willing to do this?\u201d \u201cDo you need anything from me?\u201d Good teammates understand their commitment and want to hold up their end of the deal. If they don\u2019t, it may be a sign you don\u2019t have the right people on your team. Deliver Specific Coaching I&#8217;d like to think I gave recognition for jobs well done and constructive coaching on a regular basis. However, in retrospect, I could have done some things better. Effective coaching is a learned skill that great managers turn into a habit. Whether it\u2019s on-the-spot-coaching or defined time dedicated to coaching to strategy, activity or skill, Butler Street Leadership Effectiveness training helps managers understand the importance of positive feedback (the \u201cpsychological paycheck\u201d), the various forms of feedback and their impact, as well as steps to manage those difficult conversations more effectively. Putting into practice processes that begin with agreements and continues with consistent, clear communications that will result in higher team engagement and productivity. As managers, getting better at what we do each day is what turns good teams into great teams. Butler Street \u2013 Management Consulting, Training &amp; Research Butler Street enables organizations to develop, implement and execute their business strategies through great client relationships and high performing leaders and teams. At Butler Street, we are knowledge-sharing operators; a combination of highly experienced CEOs, COOs, VPs of Sales and VPs of Operational Excellence. Butler Street\u2019s key differentiation is that we, as operating executives, have successfully implemented the client and talent development solutions and we have developed the techniques required to customize them with actionable insights specific to your business. Butler Street was recently recognized as a Top 10 Leadership Development Training\/Coaching Company by HR Tech Outlook.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":237,"featured_media":37993,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[80,1650,82,1638],"tags":[3771],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37992"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/237"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37992"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37992\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37994,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37992\/revisions\/37994"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37993"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37992"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37992"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37992"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}