"yong ren ru yong mu", this was told to me by a senior in Cambodia. yes, everyone is useful in their on way, if a person is teak, you must not use it as firewood, that will be a waste of its talents. Even the most insignficiant wood has it use.
IMO, corporate management is about leadership and not managing. when our staff are not performing, as leaders of the company, we need to ask if we have used the "wood" correctly. have we task the right wood to the wrong job?
Most managers mistakes in today's business is that they think they can manage a person. but the fact is, do you need to? we humans are born to be respond in achieving our needs. If we are hungry, we do not need any one to tell us to eat. if we are tired, we do not need any one to tell us that we need to sleep don't we? so, the same habit will apply, if we want to excel in our work, your natural ability will creates the processes and milestones to achieve it.
managing people is an impossible task, but instead, manage on results. everyone will achieve results through their own ways because the simple fact is that we are all different. There is no best way unless it is your way. and it is the process (ways) which you have adopted vs the outcome of your results create in itseld what we call, Performance.
too many managers are micro-managers who believe that they can control everything by controlling every detail process. Wrong. Do you realise that how often we want to hold on to something but will still lose it? How often you get want you want when you let it go? it is a fact of life. Which is why delication of job to the right person is so important to a manager; by doing that, you are managing the results NOT the people which is simpler and more effective as now all parties are looking at the same goal instead of having any party having to compromise which another party.
Today's life gave us an illusion that things can be controlled... but fact of life is that if we look carefully into everything we got, they are results of what we do not control.. your promotion.. can you control a promotion? No, we can only work hard to achieve what the company wants and the rest is up to your boss right? Your life partner? No, it can't work just because you want it, it has to be mutual right? Driving the car? No, you can drive it, turn it left and right, but that is because the car is allowing it to move isn't it, what can you do when it does not feel like working today?
so.. bottomline is .. save yourself some headache but manageing results and not people.. people are creative creatures which will find that many ways to skin any cat when given the opportunity.
(no animals have been harmed)
