If I had a pound for every time I’ve heard a manager or supervisor over the years utter the words, “I might as well just do it myself”, I’d be quite a lot wealthier.
I suspect that everyone who’s ever had to manage anyone else has, at some point used the line, and I’m sure every parent has. Sometimes, other people just don’t seem to do things Right. By Right I mean, of course, the way you, or I, would.
Like the times others use a comma where I would use a semi-colon or full stop. Or ask a different question to the one that was on my lips during a sales call. Or, heaven forbid, make a mistake, which, of course, I would never do. (Oh, apart from that occasion when I forgot to … and that time when no-one seemed to notice that I hadn’t....)
Anyway, I digress. The point is, that if everyone completed every task in exactly the same way every time, our offices would be about as interesting as rooms filled with toasters. And all the manager would need to do is flip a switch in the morning.
And nothing would ever change.
Luckily, people are different; bringing their own mix of skills, attitudes and experiences to any task or role they’re presented with. They might not complete every task the way you would, they probably won’t complete some as well as you would, but probe the differences more deeply and you’ll probably find other things they do better than you, or ideas they’ve already implemented that you’ve never considered.
Great managers tend to be great coaches. And a great coach doesn’t help individuals become as good as the coach; they help people become as good as they can be.
Which is just as well: How many boxing titles did Angelo Dundee, who famously coached Mohammed Ali, win himself? (I think the answer is none though I'm relying on the internet here. I don't profess to know anything about sport!)
So, next time you feel like saying, “I might as well just do it myself”, just remember that stepping in might be debilitating for you (have you really got time to do it yourself) and the member of staff. They might never be able to do what you do as well as you do, but they’ll probably be able to do what they do much better.
I’ll leave you to make sense of that.
Rod Webb
www.glasstap.com
