About Managing: Getting Their Attention
by Miki Saxon
Dwight D. Eisenhower said, “You do not lead by hitting people over the head – that’s assault, not leadership” or managership.
But there’s a kernel of truth in the old story of the mule and the farmer.
Farmer 1 bought farmer 2’s mule because it was a very hard worker. When the mule refused to work, farmer 1 called farmer 2 and asked what to do. Farmer 2 came over, grabbed a 2×4 and whacked the mule over the head with it. The mule immediately started to work. ‘When you want the mule to work,’ farmer 2 said, ‘the first thing you need to do is get its attention.’
Actually, they’re both right.
You do need to get your people’s attention, but hitting them with a 2×4 is more likely to get them on the phone to a recruiter than to make them pay attention.
However, hitting them with honest, open communications that gives them the whole story along with all the information needed to do their job efficiently and then getting out of the way, while staying available to clear whatever obstacles appear, will get not only their attention, but also their engagement.
