"Always Lathering, Never Shaving"

TOPICS: COMMUNICATION SKILLS | EMPLOYEE RELATIONS

I am married to a wonderful woman who is the opposite of me in a variety of ways. On paper there is no way our marriage should have lasted 42 years, but it has. I am aggressive; she is passive. I am proactive; she is reactive. I can be harsh and judgmental; she is gracious and forgiving. I am very “outcome oriented”; she lives in the moment. Fortunately for both of us, I am the breadwinner and she is the relationship builder.

So, what does this have to do with managing an enterprise? Perhaps our biggest marital conflict has to do with timely completion of tasks. While René likes the idea of being involved in a project and frequently adds really creative suggestions, she has less interest in schedules, deadlines and budgets. As a friend of mine likes to say, people like René are “Always lathering but never shaving.” Organizations benefit from having people like René on staff, but they were never meant to lead projects or teams.

To illustrate, let’s listen in on a conversation between Bob and his manager who just happened to drop by Bob’s office:

Manager: “So Bob, how are you coming on the project?”

Employee: “I’ve been putting some thoughts together.”

Manager: “Anything you’d like to discuss?”

Employee: “No, let me get further into it.”

Manager: “You know the deadline is Tuesday, don’t you?”

Employee: “Tuesday? I thought it was Friday.”

(The manager walks away quietly shaking his head)

While Bob felt like he dodged a bullet, his manager knew exactly where Bob was on the project – nowhere. He hadn’t even focused enough time on the project to know the deadline. Now let’s listen in on another conversation between the manager and another employee, Mike. In this case, Mike dropped by his manager’s office:

Mike: “I’m really looking forward to Tuesday’s meeting.”

Manager: “Are you finished with your part of the project already?”

Mike: “No, and that’s why I stopped by. Do you have a minute?”

Manager: “Of course.”

Mike: “I’ve come to a point where I am debating between two different approaches in my presentation and I could use your input.”

The details don’t matter after that. Mike is obviously in a much better position than Bob. While Bob is scrambling Monday night to throw his presentation together, Mike will be relaxing at home, looking forward to Tuesday’s meeting. On Tuesday, Mike will be a hero and once again, Bob will look unprepared. (The sad part is the only person who won’t recognize Bob’s failure will be Bob.)

If this installment of our blog series hits close to home, it’s time for you to make some changes. Organizations thrive when managers take their responsibilities seriously. Bob may be a fun guy to hang around with and he may bring other assets to the organization, but he has no place in leadership.



You have a choice – be like Mike!