|
Tom Reilly Training Home of Value-Added Selling and Coaching for Sales Success |
|
|
Managing in Tough Times By Tom Reilly ©Copyright 2001 I'm struck by the amazing similarities of running a business in tough times and going through a business start-up. Having experienced several of both, I've seen first-hand the impact of effective management and strong leadership. Tough times, as well as start-ups, require vision, passion, courage, economy, discipline, and commitment. As a manager, you focus on the efficiency of your systems and processes. As a leader you focus on people. You inspire them with your vision, infuse them with your passion, impress them with your courage, and ask for their commitment to a disciplined approach to growth and economy. During tough times, you need both dynamics—economy and growth—working for you. Manage the process, but lead your people. In tough times, your employees and customers look to you for stability and hope. They will take their lead from you. If you panic, they panic. If you demonstrate "grace under pressure," they will draw security from your wellspring of strength. Your performance under fire will determine the future of your organization. Leaders inspire others to act. They make other people believe that the impossible is possible. They set the tone for others to follow. As a strong leader under fire, you must communicate your vision for the future. People want to feel optimistic that "this, too, shall pass." They want you to share your vision of the future, where the problems they currently face are solved. They want to draw from your confidence in your ability to turn this thing around and prevail. As a leader, you don't have the luxury of wilting under fire. You have to be stronger than everyone else so they can tap into your strength. If you doubt the importance of this dynamic, talk to those who have led people out of tough times. They will tell you that, as a leader, you set the tone for thriving that everyone else follows. Employees and customers expect you to be empathic to their concerns but not incapacitated by them. Empathy helps you feel what they're going through, and this insight provides a moral compass for the direction your decisions take. Trust plays a major role in leading your people in tough times. They must feel your motives are noble. If they trust you, they will implement your policies and procedures without hesitation. They know in their hearts you're acting out of a genuine concern for the organization and its future, which is also their future. Empathy also means you share the pain. Pain must start at the top. If you're not feeling the same pain your employees feel, it's one-sided pain. Trust, integrity, confidence in your competence, strength under pressure, and empathy for those whom you lead. Employees and customers want to see these attributes in their leaders. Share your dreams. Share your confidence. Share their burdens. Inspire them with your leadership. Author byline: Tom Reilly is a professional speaker and the author of twelve books. This article is an excerpt from his book, How to Sell and Manage in Tough Times and Tough Markets, Motivation Press, ISBN: 0-944448-22-4, $14.95. You may contact Tom at 636-537-3360 or visit his website: www.TomReillyTraining.com
|
TOM REILLY TRAINING 171 Chesterfield Industrial Boulevard, Chesterfield Missouri 63005 636-537-3360 www.TomReillyTraining.com ©2008 Tom Reilly Training |