self-leadership-and-the-one-minute-manager

This is the third book in a management training trilogy:

1. <strong><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1781631701" target="_blank">Leadership and the One Minute Manager</a></strong>
2. <strong><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3264548628" target="_blank">The One Minute Manager Builds High Performance Teams</a></strong>
3. <strong>Self Leadership and the One Minute Manager</strong>

Ken Blanchard has built a career around <strong>[book:The One Minute Manager|763362].</strong> And yet, workers continue to be promoted into the managerial ranks with little or no training. Consider these books to be your training wheels, if you aspire to progress beyond entry-level work. 

This third installment does tread familiar ground. And that is the point. Managerial success depends on understanding and executing the basics. Not understanding the basics, combined with an unwillingness to practice them, contributes to dysfunctional workplaces. 

The core technology at play here is <strong>Situational Leadership</strong>—recognizing that there is no best leadership style; it all depends on the situation. Skillful managers can recognize the situation and apply the appropriate style.

Leading others begins with leading yourself. You are ready for self leadership when you take responsibility for your own success. It is up to us to take responsibility for creating a work environment that is motivating to us.

In parable format, Blanchard and his co-authors proceed to define <strong>Self Leaders</strong> as those who ...
<i><blockquote>Challenge Assumed Constraints,
Celebrate Their Points of Power, and
Collaborate for Success.</blockquote></i>At the center of any assessment of a situation that requires performance—either your own performance or the performance of co-workers or direct reports—are two questions:

~ What is your level of competence?
~ What is your level of commitment?

Situational Leadership strategies can only be applied once you've had candid conversations (with yourself or others) that assess these two levels. Otherwise, one-size-fits-all strategies, such as delegation or micromanagement, get applied at inappropriate times and lead to group dysfunction.

I'm a fan of simple, and this managerial approach is simple, yet not easy. If your work environment is currently sub-optimal, review the teachings of <strong>The One Minute Manager</strong> and become a Self Leader in your own workplace.

Access Gene Babon's reviews of books on <strong>Business Leadership</strong> and <strong>Business Strategy</strong> at <strong><a href="https://www.pinterest.com/webapprentices/" target="_blank">Pinterest</a>.</strong>