The Fundamentals of The One-Minute Manager®
The fundamentals of The One-Minute Manager® are extremely simple--deliberately so. Follow the three tenets: Set goals, praise, and reprimand.
One Minute Goals
Keep them simple
Make sure you both agree on them
Have your staff summarize the agreed-upon goal in no more than one page
Focus on the 20% of activities that will lead to 80% of the gains
Don’t make the process of managing too many goals overwhelming—no more than 3-6 at a time
One Minute Praisings
Pay close attention to staff up front
Monitor activity—look for things done right that you can praise
Praise in person, specifically pointing out what was done well
Be consistent—even if you’re having a tough day/week, praise the positive
One Minute Reprimands
Don’t let mistakes pile up!
Immediately correct mistakes—don't make the mistake most manager make and wait until review time to bombard someone with their mistakes
Be consistent
Be specific—agree on the facts
Be clear about how you feel about the poor behavior
Do not attack the person—address the behavior, not the individual
After communicating dissatisfaction with behavior, praise the individual
Establish the fact that you are only sharing your disappointment because you respect them and expect so much from them
Why One Minute Praisings Work
Whale Training
Do you think that Sea World went into the ocean, held a rope out of the boat and magically found whales that would jump over it?
Of course not!
They capture a whale, bring it to the pool, then put a rope on the bottom of the pool. The whale swims by it, it gets fed. Then they raise the rope. Whale swims under it, it’s not fed; over it and it gets fed. Then they continue raising the rope until it’s soon out of the water, and guess what? The whale is jumping out of the water and splashing the first 10 rows of gleefully wet families.
Same thing holds true for humans. We need continuous positive reinforcement (aka praisings) in order to change our behavior.
Babies Learning to Talk and Walk
The first time we ever asked for water, did we say “Could you please pour me a glass of water, I’m rather thirsty?"
No. First we said, “Wahha.” And we were praised and praised for that. Mom and dad jumped up and down--called grandma and grandpa and all that good stuff.
Then, because our parents didn’t want us ordering “wahha” when we were adults, what was “praised” was altered until it became closer to the desired result.
Do we get up smoothly the first time we tried to walk, then cruise around, maybe even throwing in a little moon walk? Not most of us! Same rules apply: Cheering and cheering on that first crawl then the first tentative step…until, soon enough, we could do the amazing: walk!
Imagine if we scolded a baby as they fell the first couple of times. What would happen? NO ONE WOULD EVER LEARN TO WALK!!
So, why in the world would we not praise the “baby steps” our team members take (and ourselves!) as we learn something new?
Same rules apply to whales, babies and adults. Start applying them to your management relationships!
On Problem Solving
Identify the current results in objective terms—no emotions or feelings
Identify the ideal or desired results in equally objective terms
Identify solutions/new behaviors that can be adopted to achieve the desired results
Implement the required behavior
Other thinkarete Thoughts
Attributes of a One-Minute Manager®: he or she asks brief, important questions; she speaks the simple truth; she laughs; she works; and she enjoys.
Above everything else, the One-Minute Manager® keeps it simple. You ever notice how simple Blanchard’s books are? So is his philosophy. And, yours should be so simple.
Remember: It’s not what you think, or how you talk, it’s what you do that matters. So, don’t talk a big game—study, practice and learn on your path to mastering the fundamentals of effective management.
thinkarete Tip(s): Read the book. Give it to those you manage. Ask them to read it. After reading it, ask them if they would like to be managed by a The One-Minute Manager®.
When/if they say “yes,” tell them you’re not perfect but you’ll give it your best shot and, together you and your team will be become more efficient, more effective and more energized and happy than ever before!
thinkarete Quotes
“The essence of knowledge is, having it, to use it.”
~ Confucius
“Simplicity is the ultimate form of sophistication.”
~ Leonardo da Vinci
Abstract- The credo of the one-minute manager rests on the implementation of three ideas, namely: the need to establish clear-cut goals, the need to praise good performance, and the need to reprimand people when their performance fails to contribute to the attainment of commonly agreed goals. This three basic ideas are known as the three secrets of the one-minute manager, namely: one-minute goals, one-minute praisings and one-minute reprimands.
The First Secret: One-Minute Goals. All good performance starts with clear goals. If you don't know where you are going, any road will get you there. This is about as fundamental as God, mother and apple pie. If we were going to improve the performance of people all over this country, the simplest and easiest way would be to make sure people have clear goals.
I had breakfast recently with Lou Holtz, the head coach for Notre Dame. Holtz showed me a little book he had for himself and for each of his players where everyone sets individuals goals in addition to some team goals each season. I asked him why he used these books and he responded, "Of all my experiences in managing people, the power of goal setting is the most incredible."
It is amazing how often people are told about the power of goal setting, yet how few times there is agreement between what a person says their job involves and what their manager says it involves. Goals still tend to be set in organizations after someone does something wrong or doesn't do what is expected. Then the goal is made clear.
The secret of One-Minute Goals is simply to agree on your goals upfront so that you know what good behavior looks like. Make sure you write out each of your goal on a single sheet of paper or index card. Limit the number of goals to three to five. Identify what the present level of performance is on each goal and then what level is desired. The discrepancy between the actual and the desired goal becomes the area for improvement. Choose a deadline for reaching that new level. Make several copies of your goals for home and work so you can refer to them daily. Look at your goals, then look at your behavior and see if your behavior matches your goals.
The Second Secret: One-Minute Praisings. Of all the things I've taught over the years, I can't say enough about the importance of praising. The key to developing people will always be to concentrate on catching them doing something right instead of something wrong. Yet most people are still managed by being basically left alone until they make a mistake that's noticeable and then their boss criticizes them. I call that a "leavealone zap" management style or "Sea gull management." Sea gull managers fly in, make a lot of noise, dump on everyone, and then fly out.
Tell people upfront that you are going to let them know how they are doing. Then there are three main things you need to emphasize with praisings. First, be immediate. Don't save praisings for a holiday. Second, be specific. Just saying to someone, "good job," is nice but it is not very helpful because they do not know specifically what is good so that they could do it again. Third, share your feelings about their work. Tell people how good you feel about what they did that was right, and how it helps the organization and the other people who work there. Stop for a moment of silence to let them enjoy "feeling" how good you feel. End with a reaffirmation and encourage them to keep up the good work.
Remember to praise progress even if it is only approximately right. Perfect behavior is a journey that happens one step at a time. A manager's job is to manage the progress toward the goal. A good manager thus constantly looks for opportunities to praise progress or to redirect.
The Third Secret: One-Minute Reprimands. What do you do when people do not perform well or make limited or no progress toward their goals? You have to hold them accountable.
The first alternative for poor performance should be redirection, which means going back to goal setting trying to find out what went wrong and getting them back on track. Never reprimand or punish a learner -- you'll immobilize them. If you are dealing with somebody who knows better, who as performed a similar task well in the past, then a One-Minute Reprimand might be appropriate.
Tell people beforehand that you are going to let them know -- in no uncertain terms how they are doing. Reprimand people immediately. Tell people exactly how you feel about what they did wrong. Pause to help your transition from your feelings to set-up the last and probably the most important part of a reprimand: reaffirmation. Reaffirm that you think well of them but not of their performance in this situation. Your intent is to get them back on course, not to try to make them feel badly. Remind them how much you value them. Realize that when the reprimand is over, it's over.
One of my favorite statements of late is from Dan Ferguson, chairman of the board of the Newell Company, a billion dollar manufacturing company in the home supply field. He told me he is most effective as a manager when he thinks of himself as the sixth man on a basketball team. When they want to call him into the game he is happy to play, but if they don't need him he is also happy to stay on the sidelines and cheer.
Tom me, the Three Secrets can help you be the coach in the workplace, at home or on the playing field. Share the secrets with your people, use them as needed and get your people to use them as well. You'll all perform better as a result.