Stateways

Stateways March-April 2012

StateWays is the only magazine exclusively covering the control state system within the beverage alcohol industry, with annual updates from liquor control commissions and alcohol control boards and yearly fiscal reporting from control jurisdictions

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RET AIL SER VICE Five DUMB Mistakes Managers Make (and What to Do Instead) By Darryl Rosen Y ou're a manager and you glance down at an incoming text while an employee is talking to you. Dumb! Or you bark, "Just do it!" to your team and then walk away leaving them wondering if they should scale Mount Everest or go out and make the sale. Dumb! According to a recent CareerBuilder poll, 58% of managers received no training before starting the job, which often results in avoidable management missteps like these. Even smart, well-trained managers make dumb mistakes. But the difference between dumb managers and smart ones is that smart managers notice when their workers are uninspired. Smart managers will work at making small behavioral changes, one step at a time, to correct common management mistakes that are impeding their performance. Here are five dumb mistakes managers make, and what to do instead. Assuming they're paying attention, when they're really planning tonight's menu Just because they're quiet during meetings doesn't mean they're actually listening and learning. Making sure your people pay attention isn't their job. It's yours. Check for understanding. Go around the table to gauge every- one's grasp of the key expectation. If the flight attendant asks in the emergency row, it's probably a good idea for you to ask team members if they are on the same page – even if water landings are highly unlikely… Turning their job into an episode of "Survivor" All the weaklings got kicked off the island and now you've got an ace team. So you set steep goals and say things like, "Have at it" or "Get it done." Soon, though, your "tribe" is looking haggard and anxious. That's because you threw your great performers to the wolves. Instead, ask, "What information can I provide to help you achieve this goal? What are the best ways we can succeed?" Let them know you'll support them 8 along the way with the necessary resources to win the challenge. Hiding behind email to avoid a difficult discussion When potential conflict is involved, it's so much easier to send a terse reply than to make the effort to resolve the issue face-to-face. But is this the behavior you want to model to your employees? I hope not. Ask yourself how you helped create this problem. One thing I've learned is that managers are rarely innocent bystanders in the dramas they find themselves in. Take some accountability. When you meet, speak in facts, and don't make assumptions about the person's character based on his actions. Ask questions, show respect and discuss action steps attached to consequences. Turning into the Incredible Hulk Do you use fear as a motivational strategy? Here's the rule: if you wouldn't say it to your spouse like that, you shouldn't say it to your employees. Your current spouse - not the ex. Anything that can be said in a negative manner can also be said in a positive manner. Being yelled at makes people feel worse; it doesn't energize them. Get in the habit of rephrasing negative statements into encouraging ones. So, "I won't listen to another angry supplier because of you guys!" becomes "I know you guys are better than this. What can we do differently?" Being a helicopter manager You hover over your employees. Your people stop in several times a day with questions. Your sales professionals call and text you constantly from the road to help them solve problems. You wouldn't tolerate 10 calls a day from your child, so don't let your employees do it either. Your micromanagement style is making them stupid so put away your "I'm with stupid" T-shirt and expect the best from them. Set aside one specific hour a day when they can call or stop by to go over open items, questions, concerns, etc. Let them solve their own problems the rest of the time. SW StateWays www.stateways.com March/April 2012

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