How to Become a More Likeable Boss
Module One: Getting Started While many who enter into management and leadership roles want to be genuinely liked by the workers they supervise, seeking popularity for its own sake can be a dead-end path. Many have tried to lead while seeking popularity only to find that, indeed, they are loved but not respected.
A good leader takes a little more than his share of blame, a little less than his share of the credit. Arnold H. Glasgow
Workshop Objectives
Understand how to develop leadership qualities
Use wisdom and understanding to lead others
Learn how to trust others and earn their trust
Module Two: Is it Better to be Loved or Feared? This famous question comes down to us from Niccolo Machiavelli, a political theorist who lived in Italy during the Renaissance. He contended that a leader who is feared is preferable to a leader who is loved. However, he also lived during a time of great political instability where city governments changed in a flash, usually violently, and usually involving executions of the previous leadership.
The speed of the leader is the speed of the gang. Mary Kay Ash
The Case for Fear
Authoritarian
Control
Boundaries
“Tough Love”
The Case for Love Respecting others Real respect must be earned Genuinely care about your employees
The Case Against Either Both have their upsides, but each also has its downside Beloved leaders might be popular, but they might also be easily manipulated Work environment that is marked by fear
The Middle Ground Clear boundaries Understanding Value your employees
Case Study Steve was recently promoted to the manager position at his bookstore Similarly, Angela also had been recently promoted
Soon, Steve found all of his employees either quitting on him or they no longer were friendly with him When Angela was in charge, the effect was like a ray of sunshine lighting up a dark room
Module Two: Review Questions 1.) Who first posed the question of whether it’s better to be feared or loved? a)Shakespeare b)Da Vinci c)Columbus d)Machiavelli 2.) What is an advantage of authoritarian leadership? e)Employee loyalty f)Well-defined boundaries g)A lack of conflict h)Respect for upper management
Module Two: Review Questions 3.) Genuine respect _____. a)Must be earned b)Is achieved through fear c)Can only be given to people who are higher up than you are d)All of the above 4.) Which is NOT an effect of a more lenient and understanding leadership style? e)Less conflict between management and employees f)Employees tend to be more loyal g)Clearly defined boundaries h)Easier to motivate employees to cooperate
Module Two: Review Questions 5.) What is a detriment of authoritarian style leadership? a)Clear boundaries b)High employee turnover rate c)Lack of discipline d)None of the above 6.) What is a detriment to a relaxed leadership style? e)Poisonous work environment f)High employee turnover rate g)Clear consequences for violating boundaries h)A chaotic work environment
Module Two: Review Questions 7.) When determining whether to approach with an authoritarian style or a lenient style, what should you consider? a)The bigger picture b)The long-term consequences c)What will be effective d)All of the above 8.) What should a middle ground approach to leadership include? e)A poisonous work environment f)A chaotic work environment g)An indifferent work environment h)An environment where all employees are respected regardless of status
Module Two: Review Questions 9.) What management style did Steve employ? a)Management by fear b)Management by love c)A balanced management style d)None of the above 10.) How did Angela get her employees to work hard for her? e)She began a reign of terror f)She found ways to blackmail her employees g)She tried to align her employees’ needs with her own h)None of the above
Module Two: Review Questions 1.) Who first posed the question of whether it’s better to be feared or loved? a)Shakespeare b)Da Vinci c)Columbus d)Machiavelli In his book The Prince, Machiavelli asked the question of whether it was better to be feared or loved. He decided that fear was better, but he also lived during a far more unstable and violent time than now. 2.) What is an advantage of authoritarian leadership? e)Employee loyalty f)Well-defined boundaries g)A lack of conflict h)Respect for upper management One advantage of authoritarian leadership is that it provides well-defined boundaries in the work place with clear consequences for crossing those boundaries.
Module Two: Review Questions 3.) Genuine respect _____. a)Must be earned b)Is achieved through fear c)Can only be given to people who are higher up than you are d)All of the above Genuine respect must be earned. It is not achieved through fear and goes both directions from management down and from employees up if it is earned. 4.) Which is NOT an effect of a more lenient and understanding leadership style? e)Less conflict between management and employees f)Employees tend to be more loyal g)Clearly defined boundaries h)Easier to motivate employees to cooperate While a lenient leadership style helps in many ways, it does not help in clearly defining boundaries.
Module Two: Review Questions 5.) What is a detriment of authoritarian style leadership? a)Clear boundaries b)High employee turnover rate c)Lack of discipline d)None of the above One detriment to an authoritarian style of leadership is a high rate of employee turnover. 6.) What is a detriment to a relaxed leadership style? e)Poisonous work environment f)High employee turnover rate g)Clear consequences for violating boundaries h)A chaotic work environment One detriment to a relaxed leadership style is a chaotic work environment, where it feels as if the inmates are running the asylum.
Module Two: Review Questions 7.) When determining whether to approach with an authoritarian style or a lenient style, what should you consider? a)The bigger picture b)The long-term consequences c)What will be effective d)All of the above All three of these aspects should be considered when determining which approach to take with an employee. 8.) What should a middle ground approach to leadership include? e)A poisonous work environment f)A chaotic work environment g)An indifferent work environment h)An environment where all employees are respected regardless of status A middle ground approach to leadership means respecting your employees regardless of their position within the company.
Module Two: Review Questions 9.) What management style did Steve employ? a)Management by fear b)Management by love c)A balanced management style d)None of the above Steve employed an authoritarian management style which used fear as a motivator. 10.) How did Angela get her employees to work hard for her? e)She began a reign of terror f)She found ways to blackmail her employees g)She tried to align her employees’ needs with her own h)None of the above Angela determined what motivated her employees and tried to align these motivations with her own needs.
Module Three: Leadership as Service Whether you prefer an authoritative leadership style, a lenient one, or something in between, one factor that can truly enhance your effectiveness in leadership is to see yourself as serving the needs of your employees even as you serve the needs of your company or organization.
In order to lead, one must first learn how to serve. The I Ching
Top-down Hierarchies Clear rankings
Everyone understands their place Structure has both advantages and disadvantages
A Lateral Perspective Different departments are administered by project managers Communication does not have to go through as many filters. Upper management serves as a conduit between the team and the administrators
Know Your Employees
On a personal and professional level it is like Understand what to work on theperson front lines Address each as an individual
Genuine Empathy and the Power to Lead
Listen
Consider your own attitude
Suspend your own viewpoint
Case Study Alice was running late to work because of a horrible traffic jam Instead of trying to sneak into work, she went straight to Juan first and let him know that she was late
This was fortunate because Juan had given the rest of his employees specific instructions for how to handle a particular customer service call that was coming in more frequently that day
If Alice had tried to sneak past Juan out of fear of his not being understanding, she would have taken the first customer service call and handled it incorrectly
Module Three: Review Questions 1.) What is another word for a top-down organizational structure? a)Vertical b)Lateral c)Horizontal d)Inverted 2.)Which of the following is NOT a disadvantage of a top-down organizational structure? e)Office politics f)Information distortion g)Slow decision making h)Low rung employees can feel less involved in company goals
Module Three: Review Questions 3.) Another term for a horizontal organizational structure is ________. a)Vertical b)Lateral c)Inverted d)Anarchy 4.) Which of the following is NOT a disadvantage of a horizontal organizational structure? e)Finger pointing when something goes wrong f)Chaotic work environment g)Slow decision making h)Office politics
Module Three: Review Questions 5.) According to this module, which of the following is a good reason to get to know your employees? a)Blackmail purposes b)Helps employee morale c)So you know what gifts to buy them on their birthdays d)None of the above 6.) Which of the following is NOT a good reason to get to know your employees? e)Allows you to make effective policies f)Allows you to understand what motivates your employees g)Allows you to avoid creating more or bigger problems when making policies h)Allows you to plan the perfect date
Module Three: Review Questions 7.) According to the I Ching, what qualities are helpful in developing in others an “unconscious willingness to be led�? a)Gentleness and Understanding b)Awe and Fearsomeness c)Dignity and Strength d)None of the above 8.) Which of the following is NOT a good approach towards developing empathy? e)Listening actively f)Seeing the others point of view as valid g)Suspending your own viewpoint h)Giving advice
Module Three: Review Questions 9.) What would Alice have missed had she tried to sneak past her boss? a)Getting humiliated in front of her co-workers b)Important instructions about handling a specific customer issue c)An opportunity to hear Juan’s exceptional standup comedy routine d)None of the above 10.) Why was Alice not afraid to inform Juan about her being late? e)Juan was a pushover f)Juan didn’t care about people being late g)Juan considered Alice his best employee h)Juan was usually understanding when specific issues cropped up such as bad traffic
Module Three: Review Questions 1.) What is another word for a top-down organizational structure? a)Vertical b)Lateral c)Horizontal d)Inverted Another term for a top-down organizational structure is a vertical structure. 2.) Which of the following is NOT a disadvantage of a top-down organizational structure? e)Office politics f)Information distortion g)Slow decision making h)Low rung employees can feel less involved in company goals All of the above are disadvantages of a vertical organizational structure EXCEPT slow decision making which is more characteristic of a horizontal organizational structure.
Module Three: Review Questions 3.) Another term for a horizontal organizational structure is ________. a)Vertical b)Lateral c)Inverted d)Anarchy A horizontal organizational structure can also be referred to as lateral. 4.) Which of the following is NOT a disadvantage of a horizontal organizational structure? e)Finger pointing when something goes wrong f)Chaotic work environment g)Slow decision making h)Office politics All of the above are disadvantages of a horizontal structure EXCEPT office politics, which tend to show up in a more vertical environment because of the need for advancement.
Module Three: Review Questions 5.) According to this module, which of the following is a good reason to get to know your employees? a)Blackmail purposes b)Helps employee morale c)So you know what gifts to buy them on their birthdays d)None of the above Getting to know your employees helps to build employee morale. 6.) Which of the following is NOT a good reason to get to know your employees? e)Allows you to make effective policies f)Allows you to understand what motivates your employees g)Allows you to avoid creating more or bigger problems when making policies h)Allows you to plan the perfect date Planning the perfect date is not a good reason to get to know your employees, but all of the other reasons are good reasons for getting to know your employees.
Module Three: Review Questions 7.) According to the I Ching, what qualities are helpful in developing in others an “unconscious willingness to be led”? a)Gentleness and Understanding b)Awe and Fearsomeness c)Dignity and Strength d)None of the above According to a commentary on the I Ching, “Gentleness and understanding create in others an unconscious willingness to be led.” 8.) Which of the following is NOT a good approach towards developing empathy? e)Listening actively f)Seeing the others point of view as valid g)Suspending your own viewpoint h)Giving advice Giving advice is not helpful in developing empathy even when it is good advice because empathy is about understanding where the other person is coming from and how that person feels rather than trying to solve this person’s problems.
Module Three: Review Questions 9.) What would Alice have missed had she tried to sneak past her boss? a)Getting humiliated in front of her co-workers b)Important instructions about handling a specific customer issue c)An opportunity to hear Juan’s exceptional standup comedy routine d)None of the above Alice would have missed important instructions from Juan about handling a specific kind of customer issue. 10.) Why was Alice not afraid to inform Juan about her being late? e)Juan was a pushover f)Juan didn’t care about people being late g)Juan considered Alice his best employee h)Juan was usually understanding when specific issues cropped up such as bad traffic Alice knew that Juan was typically understanding when extenuating circumstances cropped up.