29 Eylül 2013 Pazar
To Change Effectively, Change Just One Thing
Typically, people overwhelm themselves with tasks in their eagerness to make a change successfully. But that’s a mistake. Instead, they should take the time up front to figure out the one and only thing that will have the highest impact and then focus 100% of their effort on that one thing.
A few years ago a Fortune 100 client asked me to design a new leadership training program. They already had one and had spent several years training people in it, but now they wanted a new one. Why? Because the current one wasn’t having the impact they wanted.
I asked to see the old one. Honestly? While I’d love to say my leadership ideas are far superior, I thought the ones they were using were equally good. Leadership models are no different than diets — most of them are just fine. The brilliance is rarely in the model, it’s in the implementation.
Don’t start from scratch, I pleaded with them. You’ve already spent years spreading the word, inculcating the language, and socializing the concepts of the old leadership methodology. People are familiar with it. Don’t get rid of it.
Just simplify it. Reduce it to its essence. What’s the one thing that will have the greatest impact on their leadership?
If you’re going to work on a weakness, never choose more than one.
http://blogs.hbr.org/2009/10/i-lost-18-pounds-in/
A few years ago a Fortune 100 client asked me to design a new leadership training program. They already had one and had spent several years training people in it, but now they wanted a new one. Why? Because the current one wasn’t having the impact they wanted.
I asked to see the old one. Honestly? While I’d love to say my leadership ideas are far superior, I thought the ones they were using were equally good. Leadership models are no different than diets — most of them are just fine. The brilliance is rarely in the model, it’s in the implementation.
Don’t start from scratch, I pleaded with them. You’ve already spent years spreading the word, inculcating the language, and socializing the concepts of the old leadership methodology. People are familiar with it. Don’t get rid of it.
Just simplify it. Reduce it to its essence. What’s the one thing that will have the greatest impact on their leadership?
If you’re going to work on a weakness, never choose more than one.
http://blogs.hbr.org/2009/10/i-lost-18-pounds-in/
An Effective (and Underused) Way to Reassure and Motivate
Yoga is astonishingly predictable. Invariably after an hour class I feel light, supple, strong, and refreshed. But Liz’s class felt even better than others. Afterwards I felt stronger and more refreshed.
I mentioned this to Sam*, a friend who was in the class with me. He smiled. “You know why, right?”
“Enlighten me,” I said.
He looked over at the yoga teacher. “As Liz walks around the room, she adjusts us in our yoga poses.”
“So our poses are deeper?”
Sam shook his head. “It’s not just the poses. It’s the touch. It feels good to have someone touch you.”
Here’s a good rule of thumb: don’t linger. The research shows that a fleeting touch is all it takes to support and reassure. Any longer than a few seconds could feel creepy.
So I’m not suggesting you lovingly caress a co-workers face. But a comforting pat on the back? A soft and brief touch on the shoulder? Those small, heartfelt acts could make our workplaces more humane — and more productive
http://blogs.hbr.org/2010/04/yoga-is-astonishingly-predicta/
I mentioned this to Sam*, a friend who was in the class with me. He smiled. “You know why, right?”
“Enlighten me,” I said.
He looked over at the yoga teacher. “As Liz walks around the room, she adjusts us in our yoga poses.”
“So our poses are deeper?”
Sam shook his head. “It’s not just the poses. It’s the touch. It feels good to have someone touch you.”
Here’s a good rule of thumb: don’t linger. The research shows that a fleeting touch is all it takes to support and reassure. Any longer than a few seconds could feel creepy.
So I’m not suggesting you lovingly caress a co-workers face. But a comforting pat on the back? A soft and brief touch on the shoulder? Those small, heartfelt acts could make our workplaces more humane — and more productive
http://blogs.hbr.org/2010/04/yoga-is-astonishingly-predicta/
28 Eylül 2013 Cumartesi
The Emotional Adventure of Leadership
I was lost.
I looked at the map and my heart raced as I admitted to myself — only to myself — that I had no idea where I was. It felt too humiliating to let the others know.
This was the summer of 1990 and I was leading a group of students on a 30-day mountaineering expedition. It was the first day of our trip and the students had no experience in the outdoors. They were relying on me. My anxiety level had been creeping up and was now at full tilt.
I gathered the students in a circle and told them we would have to set up camp by ourselves on the snow, and that we would find the other groups in the morning.
“So, we’re lost?” a student asked me.
But here is what I have discovered in my subsequent 25 years of leadership experience: leadership is, as much as anything, an emotional adventure.
If you want to be a powerful leader, you have to become familiar with the sweat-inducing, anxiety-producing, adrenaline-generating emotions of being lost while people are following you. Because that is, as often as not, the emotion of leadership.
One of the defining characteristics of strong leaders is their ability to endure uncertainty and ambiguity. They are willing to move through shame and embarrassment and anxiety and fear. Those are the feelings of leadership as much as courage and persistence and faith. In fact, it’s because those feelings are ever-present that we need courage and persistence and faith.
“Yes, we’re lost, ” I admitted, “And, to be honest, I’m really embarrassed. But we’ll be fine. We’ll find the other two groups in the morning. Let’s use this as an opportunity to learn how to camp on snow.”
But coming out of hiding did ease my suffering. And that night turned out to be an exciting bonding experience for everyone on the trip. It gave us — all of us — the confidence that, even though we could get lost, we would find our way.
http://blogs.hbr.org/2012/06/the-emotional-adventure-of-lea/
I looked at the map and my heart raced as I admitted to myself — only to myself — that I had no idea where I was. It felt too humiliating to let the others know.
This was the summer of 1990 and I was leading a group of students on a 30-day mountaineering expedition. It was the first day of our trip and the students had no experience in the outdoors. They were relying on me. My anxiety level had been creeping up and was now at full tilt.
I gathered the students in a circle and told them we would have to set up camp by ourselves on the snow, and that we would find the other groups in the morning.
“So, we’re lost?” a student asked me.
But here is what I have discovered in my subsequent 25 years of leadership experience: leadership is, as much as anything, an emotional adventure.
If you want to be a powerful leader, you have to become familiar with the sweat-inducing, anxiety-producing, adrenaline-generating emotions of being lost while people are following you. Because that is, as often as not, the emotion of leadership.
One of the defining characteristics of strong leaders is their ability to endure uncertainty and ambiguity. They are willing to move through shame and embarrassment and anxiety and fear. Those are the feelings of leadership as much as courage and persistence and faith. In fact, it’s because those feelings are ever-present that we need courage and persistence and faith.
“Yes, we’re lost, ” I admitted, “And, to be honest, I’m really embarrassed. But we’ll be fine. We’ll find the other two groups in the morning. Let’s use this as an opportunity to learn how to camp on snow.”
But coming out of hiding did ease my suffering. And that night turned out to be an exciting bonding experience for everyone on the trip. It gave us — all of us — the confidence that, even though we could get lost, we would find our way.
http://blogs.hbr.org/2012/06/the-emotional-adventure-of-lea/
The Most Overlooked Leadership Skill
Never underestimate the value of a talented receiver.
That’s because the better you are at receiving, the more likely people will talk to you. And that’s precisely what every one of us needs: to be surrounded by people who are willing to speak the unspoken.
If you can be courageous, avoid judging, and stay open — even if the toss is awkward and the message unsettling — then, you’ll be able to catch pretty much anything.
http://blogs.hbr.org/2013/05/the-most-overlooked-leadership-skill/
That’s because the better you are at receiving, the more likely people will talk to you. And that’s precisely what every one of us needs: to be surrounded by people who are willing to speak the unspoken.
If you can be courageous, avoid judging, and stay open — even if the toss is awkward and the message unsettling — then, you’ll be able to catch pretty much anything.
http://blogs.hbr.org/2013/05/the-most-overlooked-leadership-skill/
Cahit Irgat'dan
selam alın teriyle ekmek yiyen herkese
selam bu günü hazırlayan ölüye
selam saçlarından asılan
tabanından çivilenen diriye.
selam seksen ayak merdivenli
kara yüzlü binanın
üst katından atılan
berrak gözlü
paramparça cesede
giden gitti ,kalana sabır
bu kara kışlara ,açlığa sabır
sabır sürgündeki, zindandaki dostlara
yeni bir gün doğuyor.
selam bu günü hazırlayan ölüye
selam saçlarından asılan
tabanından çivilenen diriye.
selam seksen ayak merdivenli
kara yüzlü binanın
üst katından atılan
berrak gözlü
paramparça cesede
giden gitti ,kalana sabır
bu kara kışlara ,açlığa sabır
sabır sürgündeki, zindandaki dostlara
yeni bir gün doğuyor.
Tuncel Kurtiz'den satırbaşları
- Ben çok kötü bir talebeydim ama çok iyi bir okuyucuydum. Mezun olmadan üniversitelerin kantininde, kütüphanelerinde geçirdim zamanımı. Büyük hocaların derslerine girdim. Mina Urgan’la yakınlığım oldu. Tatyana Moran’la. O zamanki sevgilimle felsefe kütüphanesinde takılırken Asaf Halet Çelebi’yle tanıştım. Arkasından Özdemir Asaf’la, Can Yücel’le abi-kardeş ilişkisi. Münir Özkul’la, Cahit Irgat’la, Tarık Gürcan’la, Erol Günaydın’la, Müşfik Kenter’le... Böyle büyüdüm. Şimdi ben bir karakteri nasıl çalışmadan oynarım? Bana senin kolay dediğin o şey zor geliyor. Bana küçücük bir alan verdiler, daha büyüğünü yapacak gücüm yok artık, istemiyorum. Üstelik gittikçe zorlaşıyor işim.
- Aslında hedefim de olmadı hiç. Rüzgârda savrulan yaprak misaliydim ama fikri, vicdani hür bir adamdım.
- Yılmaz Güney, Cahit Irgat, Can Yücel, Özdemir Asaf... Artık beni kimse yalnız bırakamaz çünkü onlarla beraberim. Ne kadar onu anlatırsak o kadar kalır. Oktay Rifat’ın dediği gibi “Hatıralar da dal istiyor, kuşlar gibi konacak”. Ama evet, diğer yandan “Hayata beraber başladığımız, / Dostlarla da yollar ayrıldı bir bir; / Gittikçe artıyor yalnızlığımız”.
-Bakın en çabuk Türkiye’de gömerler ölüyü. Ben ölüme inanmıyorum. Belki bahar ülkesine açılan kapıdır, ölüm. Hepimiz bu kapıdan geçeceğiz. Nedir ki bu dünya? Daha bunu yanıtlayamıyoruz ki, ölümün yok oluş olduğunu nereden bileceğiz? Şamanların yaptığı gibi ölünce mezarıma iki şişe şarap, sevdiğim filmlerimi ve bitiremediğim kitaplarımı koysunlar. O yolculukta onları bitireyim.
- Zor günler geçirdim, barikatlar aştım, düz duvara tırmandığım da oldu ama hâlâ yaşıyorum ve inançlıyım. O yüzden aynı hayatı yeniden aynen yaşamaya razıyım ama eğer gerekirse. Pişman olmak diye bir şey yok. Her şeyi zevkle yaptım, onları yapmasaydım bugünkü Tuncel olamazdım. Yaptık, yanlış mıydı? Aynı yanlışı bir daha yapmayalım hiç olmazsa, der geçerim. Ne bileyim. Belki o kadar çok içtiğim rakı ve sigarayla beğenilen bu sesi elde ettim... Ama... Daha sistemli olmayı isterdim. Her şey yarım. İngilizcem iyi değil. Almancam da. Yine de herkes iyi sanıyor. Almanca nerelisiniz, diyorum. Karşıdaki Berlin, deyince başlıyorum bir film için ezberlediğim Almanca repliğe. Adamlar, çok iyi Almanca bildiğime inanıyor. Oysa replikten sonrası tarzanca (gülüyor).
-Uslanmaz bir muhalif Kurtiz, kendine bile. Öyle ki Fenerli olmasına rağmen Beşiktaş Çarşı Grubu’nu destekliyor çünkü “Çarşı herkese karşı”! Adil bir düzenin ancak sosyalizmle olacağına inanıyor ama tabii birey de var olabilirse, aksi halde “sadece bir adamın yumruğu” olunacağını biliyor. Evet, o bir komünist, hem de yıllardır ve de “hâlâ”! Nasıl olmasın ki? “500 senedir kapitalizmle dünyanın nereye geldiği ortada. Bir milyar insan açlıktan ölüyor. Yalnız Irak'ta bir milyondan fazla insan öldürüldü. Devlet anamızın sütü hep bir tarafa akıyor”.
-Kaz Dağı’ndaki hayatımızı çok seviyorum. Güzel bir kütüphanem var. Haftada en az dört film izliyor, yeni filmleri takip ediyorum. Her sabah en az iki saat yürüyorum. Yüzüyorum. Yazmaya çalışıyorum. Bahçede karıma yardım ediyorum. Lavantalar var her tarafta. Köpeğimiz, tavuklarımız var. Dağa tırmanıyorum. Onu da altın aramalarıyla yok edecekler. Beş bin yıldır biliniyor bu dağda altın olduğu, kimse aramaya kalkmadı çünkü üstü altın; bütün Avrupa Kazdağı’ndaki bitki örtüsü zenginliğine sahip değil.
http://www.cumhuriyet.com.tr/?hn=443920&kn=7&ka=4&kb=7
-Cahit Irgat’ın, Özdemir Asaf’ın, Can Yücel’in öğrencisiyim ben, tabii ki söyleyeceğim. Özdemir ne diyor; “Selam alnı teriyle ekmek yiyen herkese/selam bugünü hazırlayan ölüye/selam saçlarından asılan/ tabanından çivilenen diriye/ selam seksen ayak merdivenli/ kara yüzlü binanın/ üst katından atılan/ berrak gözlü/ paramparça cesede/ giden gitti, kalana sabır/ bu kara kışlara açlığa sabır/ sabır zindandaki, sürgündeki dostlara/ yeni bir gün doğuyor” Hep umudumuz… “Anne girmem bu oyuncak dükkanına/ orda toplar, tayyareler, tanklar var/ seviyorum söğüt dalı atımı/ tekme atmaz, ısırmaz/ ben yaşamak istiyorum/ ağaç gibi sessiz sessiz ve rahat/ karınca kararınca değil/ serile serpile boylı boyunca…”
Savaş istemiyorum tabii ki, barışı kurabiliriz. Yahudi esnaflar, Türk köylüler, Türkmenler, Gürcüler, Ermeniler… Hepimiz bu toprağın çocuklarıyız. Benim atalarım taa Selaniklere Bosnalara gitmiş, oradan gelmişiz biz de… Babam üç yaşında Selanik’ten, annem Bosna’dan gelmiş 1890’larda… O inançla büyüdüm. Cahit Irgat’ın acısını yaşadım. “Ben bir harp esiriyim/ Korku, tehdit, sefalet var/ Bu şehrin havasında,/ Bu şehrin mahzenleri/ İrin kokar, kan kokar/ Şehrin mahzenlerinde/ Cinayet var, ölüm var” diyor. Can Yücel çıkıyor bir anda; “Anamın ipiyle indim gökdelen damınızdan/Kelebek gibi girdim kelebek camınızdan/Taksinize mülkünüze dairenize.../Heceleyerek üzerinde ayak ve el/ uçlarımın/Belledim seyyarenizi ve kelimelerinizi.../Gözlerinize baktım, mukaddes ciltlerinize, büfelerinize/Vesairenize.../Şiir fenerimle de baktım, son çığlık!/Aşk yokmuş sizde beş paralık!/Gidiyorum ben boşçakallar/Sıçmışım ortalık yerinize/Kıçımın fosforuyla aydınlanın siz artık” diyor.
Abilerim onlar, beraber büyüdük. Bedri Rahmi geliyor; “Yar, önde zeytin ağaçları, arkada yar/ yar, yar, yar seni kara saplı bir bıçak gibi sineme sapladılar” diyor. “Karadutum, çatalkaram, çingenem” diyor. Ben Özdemir Asaf’la 1960 yılında 24 yaşındayken Bedri Rahmi’nin evine gittim. Dünyanın en mutlu çocuğuydum. O mavi kaplumbağayı, Anadolu motiflerini, “reis” diye konuşan adamı gördüm. Yaşar Kemal’le orada tanıştık. Orhan Kemal’i tanıdım, Sait Faik’i okudum, görmedim. Orhan Veli’yi, Turgut Uyar’ı, Cemal Süreya’yı, Fuzuli’yi, Baki’yi severim. Ben bu zenginlikten geliyorum. Onlar gibi olmaya çalışırım, ama tabii kendim gibi olurum. “Ben devrimi görmek istiyorum” demişti bir adam. Devrim bitmez ki hep sürer, bir yerde kalmaz ki… Hangi devrimi göreceksin, nasıl göreceksin? İnsanı, doğayı güzelleştirmek adına bir evrimdir devrim
Ben memur çocuğuyum. Benim babam nahiye müdürlüğü, kaymakamlık, vali muavinliği ve valilik yaptı. Kırıkkale, Reşadiye, Kandıra, Posof, Ayvalık, En Harvar, Detroit, New York, İzmit, Silifke, Tarsus, Edremit’i geride bıraktığımda 14 yaşındaydım. Her gittiğim kasabada yeni insanlarla karşılaştım. Kendimi orada kabul ettirmek zorundaydım. O büyük bir tecrübe oldu benim için. Adana’da Bürücek Yaylasında bir adam gördüm, Manavgat’ta bir adam... Babamla Murtaza Ağanın konuştuğunu gördüm. Saz şairlerini tanıdım… Onlar hep kafamda kaldı. Çok zengin bir hayat yaşadım. Bir yerde kalmak da güzeldir ama durmadan gezdiğinde her yerde kendini var etmek, oralı olmayı başarmak zorundasın. Edremit’te, Tarsus’ta, Posof’ta arkadaşlarım oldu. Kan Kalesi Cengi, güvercin taklası oynardık. Amerika’dan geldiğim zaman 11 yaşındaydım. Kürt arkadaşlarım Kürtçe konuşurken ben de onlara “My name is Tuncel Kurtiz, ı am ten years old” der güldürürdüm. Boks bilirdim birazcık, onu öğretirdim arkadaşlarıma. Çok kitap okudum çocukluğumdan bu yana. Ev de kitap okunan bir evdi ama bende özel bir merak vardı. Halk evi kütüphanesi kilitliydi, anahtarı babamdaydı. Girerdim içeri; Dostoyevski, Emile Zola... Kimleri okumadım ki…
Herkes kendisi kadardır… Başka bir şey olmaya çabalamadım hiçbir zaman. Kabul ettim. Babamın bana ilk öğrettiği sözlerden birisi şuydu; Know your self, accept your self, be yourself... Sokrates.. İngilizce söylerdi. Yani “Kendin ol, kendini kabul et, kendini bil.” Ben Yılmaz Güney’in yanında ikinci adamdım ve kabul ettim ikinci adam olduğumu. Yılmaz’ın dehasını kabul ettim.
Yılmaz Güney ve rekabet. Neden edeyim! O apayrı bir yıldız ben apayrı… Benim atmosferim ayrı, onunki ayrı… O bir köylü çocuğu ben bir paşa torunuyum ama ikimiz de komünistiz. İnsanlar için adalet istiyoruz, güzel şeyler istiyoruz. Marx’ı bilmemize bile gerek yok. Kim ne okumuş ki o zamanlar! Bir tane Marksizm nedir? diye bir kitap var Remzi Kitapevi’nden, bir de Mülkiyetin Tarihi. İlk okuduğum iki kitap o kadar. İngilizcem olduğu için küçük bir Kapital özeti vardı elimizde.
Bildiğim bir milyar insanın açlıktan ölüyor olduğu bugün. Buna deliriyorum tabii, düşünmek bile istemiyorum ama gerçek bu. Bunu edebiyatla, sinemayla düzeltemeyiz ama biz yarayı gösteririz. Sanatçı neşteri vurur ve iltihap akar dışarıya… “Bu gerçek” işte der, “bu, bu, bu…” Ve bunu kendi estetiği içinde der. Öyle büyük bir yelpaze var ki romancısı için, ressamı için, sinemacısı, şairi için… Bir bakıyorsun Osmanlı, Bizans, bütün Balkanlar… 1400’lerde Üsküp’ü alıp o inanılmaz köprüyü yapıyor 3. Murat, orada başka bir medeniyet başlıyor. Bir bakıyorsun Selçuklu, Etiler, Hititler… Ermeniler, Urartular var, Kürtler… Hakkari’de nasıl steller çıkıyor, şaşkına dönüyorsun. Urfa’da göbekli tepe çıkıyor karşına… 4 bin yıl önce bir tapınak var orda, ne olduğunu kimse bilmiyor daha. Alacahöyük var. Arkanda İran var; Şah İsmail, Safeviler, Azeriler, Gürcüler… Tarihe, medeniyete bak… Hepsi bize ait bunların. Bir ressama, bir şaire, romancıya ait… Daha ne olsun! Sen sıkışıp kalıp da Batıyı taklit etmeye kalkarsan ki Batının sadece rezaletini alıyoruz, gerçeğini de alamıyoruz. Kant’ını, Hegel’ini, Einstein’ını alamıyoruz… Marx’ını alamıyoruz… Aldığımız televizyon kültürü oluyor…
Öyle ama okulların, tekniğin de etkisi var. Bir de arkada Yılmaz Güney var, Atıf Yılmaz’ın Ah Güzel İstanbul’u var. Zeki Ökten, Şerif Gören, Lütfi Akat var… Hep yenilmiş insanlar. Yaşar Kemal’in bir lafı var… “Kardaşım, yenileceen, yenileceen… Suyun içinde kalmış bir çakıl taşı gibi ezileceen, ezileceen… Sonunda yenmesini öğreneceeen.”
Yılmaz Güney zamanında fotoroman da yaptı. Ben de yaptım. Umut’a gelene kadar Yılmaz, Seyithan’ı, Çirkin Adam’ı yaptı. Daha önce Yılmaz’ın Adana’da 16 mm filmleri köylerde göstermesi vardır, tabela taşıması vardır… Yılmaz kökten buralara geldi bir hikayeci olarak…
http://www.evrensel.net/news.php?id=7769#.UkVN4B_BOtM.facebook
26 Eylül 2013 Perşembe
Stop Focusing on Your Performance
“Tomorrow hundreds of people will be watching you on the most important day of your life. Try to remember this: It’s not a performance; it’s an experience.”
In other words, we think life is a performance because, well, it kind of is. We feel judged by others because, often, we are. And let’s be honest, it’s not just they who judge us; most of us spend a considerable amount of energy judging others as well. Which, of course, only reinforces our own experience of being judged. And fuels our desire to perform.
But here’s the paradox: living life as a performance is not only a recipe for stress and unhappiness; it also leads to mediocre performance.
If you want to get better at anything, you need to experiment with an open mind, to try and fail, to willingly accept and learn from any outcome.
And once you get an outcome you like, you need to be willing to shake it up again and try something different. The best performers are life-long learners, and the definition of a life-long learner is someone who is constantly trying new things. That requires performing poorly much of the time and, often unpredictably, brilliantly some of the time.
When you’re performing, your success is disturbingly short-lived. As soon as you’ve achieved one milestone or received a particular standing ovation, it’s no longer relevant. Your unending question is: what’s next?
When you’re experiencing though, it’s not about the end result, it’s about the moment. You’re notpursuing a feeling after, you’re having a feeling during. You can’t be manipulated by a fickle, outside measure because you’re motivated by a stable internal one.
So how can we let go of performance in favor of experience? Here’s something that’s helped me: Several times a day I’ll complete this sentence: “This is what it feels like to…”
This is what it feels like to receive praise. This is what it feels like to be in love. This is what it feels like to be stuck writing a proposal. This is what it feels like to present to the CEO. This is what it feels like to be embarrassed. This is what it feels like to be appreciated.
On the day of our wedding, I took Sue Anne’s advice. And when I think back now — it’s been 13 years — the moments I remember most clearly and with most fondness are the things we did not rehearse, the things that went wrong but somehow gave the wedding its life. Even our rehearsal, which clearly did not go as planned with its missing rabbi, was perfect since it led us to integrate a minister — especially meaningful for Eleanor and her family — in a more substantial way than we had anticipated.
25 Eylül 2013 Çarşamba
Ferguson’s Formula
Sir Alex Ferguson: From the moment I got to Manchester United, I thought of only one thing: building a football club. I wanted to build right from the bottom. That was in order to create fluency and a continuity of supply to the first team. With this approach, the players all grow up together, producing a bond that, in turn, creates a spirit.
I always take great pride in seeing younger players develop. The job of a manager, like that of a teacher, is to inspire people to be better. Give them better technical skills, make them winners, make them better people, and they can go anywhere in life. When you give young people a chance, you not only create a longer life span for the team, you also create loyalty. They will always remember that you were the manager who gave them their first opportunity. Once they know you are batting for them, they will accept your way. You’re really fostering a sense of family. If you give young people your attention and an opportunity to succeed, it is amazing how much they will surprise you.
I had to lift players’ expectations. They should never give in. I said that to them all the time: “If you give in once, you’ll give in twice.” And the work ethic and energy I had seemed to spread throughout the club. I used to be the first to arrive in the morning. In my later years, a lot of my staff members would already be there when I got in at 7 AM. I think they understood why I came in early—they knew there was a job to be done. There was a feeling that “if he can do it, then I can do it.”
I constantly told my squad that working hard all your life is a talent. But I expected even more from the star players. I expected them to work even harder. I said, “You’ve got to show that you are the top players.” And they did. That’s why they are star players—they are prepared to work harder. Superstars with egos are not the problem some people may think. They need to be winners, because that massages their egos, so they will do what it takes to win. I used to see [Cristiano] Ronaldo [one of the world’s top forwards, who now plays for Real Madrid], Beckham, Giggs, Scholes, and others out there practicing for hours. I’d have to chase them in. I’d be banging on the window saying, “We’ve got a game on Saturday.” But they wanted the time to practice. They realized that being a Manchester United player is not an easy job.
Some English clubs have changed managers so many times that it creates power for the players in the dressing room. That is very dangerous. If the coach has no control, he will not last. You have to achieve a position of comprehensive control. Players must recognize that as the manager, you have the status to control events. You can complicate your life in many ways by asking, “Oh, I wonder if the players like me?” If I did my job well, the players would respect me, and that’s all you need.
I tended to act quickly when I saw a player become a negative influence. Some might say I acted impulsively, but I think it was critical that I made up my mind quickly. Why should I have gone to bed with doubts? I would wake up the next day and take the necessary steps to maintain discipline. It’s important to have confidence in yourself to make a decision and to move on once you have. It’s not about looking for adversity or for opportunities to prove power; it’s about having control and being authoritative when issues do arise.
No one likes to be criticized. Few people get better with criticism; most respond to encouragement instead. So I tried to give encouragement when I could. For a player—for any human being—there is nothing better than hearing “Well done.” Those are the two best words ever invented. You don’t need to use superlatives.
At the same time, in the dressing room, you need to point out mistakes when players don’t meet expectations. That is when reprimands are important. I would do it right after the game. I wouldn’t wait until Monday. I’d do it, and it was finished. I was on to the next match. There is no point in criticizing a player forever.
Generally, my pregame talks were about our expectations, the players’ belief in themselves, and their trust in one another. I liked to refer to a working-class principle. Not all players come from a working-class background, but maybe their fathers do, or their grandfathers, and I found it useful to remind players how far they have come. I would tell them that having a work ethic is very important. It seemed to enhance their pride. I would remind them that it is trust in one another, not letting their mates down, that helps build the character of a team.
In our training sessions, we tried to build a football team with superb athletes who were smart tactically. If you are too soft in your approach, you won’t be able to achieve that. Fear has to come into it. But you can be too hard; if players are fearful all the time, they won’t perform well either. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to see that showing your anger all the time doesn’t work. You have to pick your moments. As a manager, you play different roles at different times. Sometimes you have to be a doctor, or a teacher, or a father.
We look at the training sessions as opportunities to learn and improve.Sometimes the players might think, ‘Here we go again,’ but it helps us win.” There appears to be more to this approach than just the common belief that winning teams are rooted in habits—that they can execute certain plays almost automatically. There is also an underlying signal that you are never quite satisfied with where you are and are constantly looking for ways to improve. “The message is simple: We cannot sit still at this club.”
Observation is the final part of my management structure. When I started as a coach, I relied on several basics: that I could play the game well, that I understood the technical skills needed to succeed at the highest level, that I could coach players, and that I had the ability to make decisions. One afternoon at Aberdeen I had a conversation with my assistant manager while we were having a cup of tea. He said, “I don’t know why you brought me here.” I said, “What are you talking about?” and he replied, “I don’t do anything. I work with the youth team, but I’m here to assist you with the training and with picking the team. That’s the assistant manager’s job.” And another coach said, “I think he’s right, boss,” and pointed out that I could benefit from not always having to lead the training. At first I said, “No, no, no,” but I thought it over for a few days and then said, “I’ll give it a try. No promises.” Deep down I knew he was right. So I delegated the training to him, and it was the best thing I ever did.
It didn’t take away my control. My presence and ability to supervise were always there, and what you can pick up by watching is incredibly valuable. Once I stepped out of the bubble, I became more aware of a range of details, and my performance level jumped. Seeing a change in a player’s habits or a sudden dip in his enthusiasm allowed me to go further with him: Is it family problems? Is he struggling financially? Is he tired? What kind of mood is he in? Sometimes I could even tell that a player was injured when he thought he was fine.
I don’t think many people fully understand the value of observing. I came to see observation as a critical part of my management skills. The ability to see things is key—or, more specifically, the ability to see things you don’t expect to see.
One of the things I’ve done well over the years is manage change. I believe that you control change by accepting it. That also means having confidence in the people you hire. The minute staff members are employed, you have to trust that they are doing their jobs. If you micromanage and tell people what to do, there is no point in hiring them. The most important thing is to not stagnate. I said to David Gill a few years ago, “The only way we can keep players at Manchester United is if we have the best training ground in Europe.” That is when we kick-started the medical center. We can’t sit still.
Most people with my kind of track record don’t look to change. But I always felt I couldn’t afford notto change. We had to be successful—there was no other option for me—and I would explore any means of improving. I continued to work hard. I treated every success as my first. My job was to give us the best possible chance of winning. That is what drove me.
http://hbr.org/2013/10/fergusons-formula/ar/1
Pablo Neruda'dan...
Yavaş yavaş ölürler okumayalar, müzik dinlemeyenler,
Vicdanlarında hoş görmeyi barındıramayanlar.
Yavaş yavaş ölürler!.
Alışkanlıklarına esir olanlar, her gün aynı yolları yürüyenler,
Ufuklarını genişletmeyen ve değiştirmeyenler,
Elbiselerinin rengini değiştirme riskine bile girmeyenler,
Veya bir yabancı ile konuşmayanlar.
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İhtiraslardan ve verdikleri heyecanlardan kaçınanlar,
Tamir edilen kırık kalplerin gözlerindeki
pırıltıyı görmek istemekten kaçınanlar.
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Aşkta veya işte bedbaht olup istikamet değiştirmeyenler,
Rüyalarını gerçekleştirmek için risk almayanlar,
Hayatlarında bir kez dahi
mantıklı tavsiyelerin dışına çıkmamış olanlar.
Yavaş yavaş ölürler!.
Pablo Neruda
The Best Advice I Ever Got
'People are the only thing that matters, and the only thing you should think about, because when that part is right, everything else works.'
http://hbr.org/2005/01/the-best-advice-i-ever-got
How Successful Leaders Think
'Over the past six years, I have interviewed more than 50 such leaders, some for as long as eight hours, and found that most of them share a somewhat unusual trait: They have the predisposition and the capacity to hold in their heads two opposing ideas at once. And then, without panicking or simply settling for one alternative or the other, they’re able to creatively resolve the tension between those two ideas by generating a new one that contains elements of the others but is superior to both. This process of consideration and synthesis can be termed integrative thinking.'
http://hbr.org/2007/06/how-successful-leaders-think
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