Top Business Tips #3

Hire People Who Disagree with You

It’s only human nature to be firmly attached to your own opinions, but that’s not

always the best way to manage. In fact, it almost never is. The opinions and

perspectives of your coworkers and others may be an invaluable resource—yet it

is often one that is undervalued and overlooked.

Diversity of thought won’t always make it easier for you to make decisions.

In fact, by pointing out possible pitfalls and gray areas, others may complicate

certain decisions that initially seemed like no- brainers. But this practice will

absolutely have a real positive impact on morale because everyone appreciates it

when their opinions are sought, listened to, and valued.

WHAT IT MEANS: As a manager, you can gain the benefit of soliciting

multiple viewpoints only if you actively and regularly send the signals that you

welcome such feedback. Otherwise, people will be understandably reluctant to

disagree. Ask people directly what they think of a particular strategy or proposal—

and be sensitive to the fact that your feedback is more likely to be frank and

uninhibited if it’s sought in a one-on-one setting.

ACTION PLAN: Always make it a point to thank people who share their

insights. And make it clear to everyone that they should always feel free to “weigh

in” on a pending project or business decision if they have something to add to

the discussion.

EVEN BETTER: Seeking input from people outside your immediate

work group will help you to make smarter decisions, so be especially aggressive in

seeking it out. Contact people you don’t deal with on a regular basis and get their

thoughts—great advice often comes from the most surprising places.

Top Business Tips #2

Don’t Make Rushed Decisions

If the issue is serious, never make a decision on the spot unless you absolutely have

to. Think it over for a few minutes, an evening, or a weekend, and then go into

the office with your answer. Give yourself the time you need to avoid the mistakes

that often result from haste.

WHAT MEANS IT: Clearly, decisions can vary considerably in their

urgency, importance, and complexity—and so no one rule of thumb fits all—but

you should never be pressured into giving a quick yes or no before you’ve given

yourself adequate time to think it through. At the end of the day, it’s much more

about the quality of your decisions than the time it took to make them.

ACTION PLAN: Make it a point to never make an instant decision if there

isn’t a compelling reason to do so. Make sure you have the facts. And then go grab

a cup of coffee or take a walk around the block or resolve to sleep on it. More

often than not, you have the right to give yourself a little time to breathe—and

think it over.

EVEN BETTER: Write it down! List the pros and cons of making your

decision one way or another. Listing and evaluating the relevant considerations

and potential consequences can be a very useful tool for helping you to think

things through. And the very process itself can be a healthy brake on the tendency

to make snap decisions.

Top Business Tips #1

Underpromise and Overdeliver

This is the one thing you can always do to improve business relationships and
reinforce your reputation for reliability: Deliver what you promise. In fact, you
should even take it one step further. If at all possible, strive to deliver a little
more than promised—or a day or two ahead of schedule. When it comes to
being perceived as a reliable professional, there is no margin of error for keeping
your word.

WHAT IT MEANS: It’s all about managing expectations. Whenever you
make a promise, you have stated your commitment to perform something. As a
result, you have created a certain level of expectation—and by scaling down this
expectation, you can more easily create a positive outcome. Remember, when you
provide more than what was expected by your customer, you enhance any good
feelings they already have about you.
ACTION PLAN: Before you make any sort of promise, carefully think
through everything you’ll need to do to deliver properly within the time frame
you’ve created. Avoid the natural tendency to say yes to everything. If you make
ten promises and fail to deliver just once, people are not going to remember your
nine successes.

EVEN BETTER: When you think you’re done, and that you’ve kept your
promise as well as you possibly can, don’t stop. Try and think of what you can do
to do even better. Perhaps you’ll have some ideas that you hadn’t thought of earlier.
Developing a reputation as someone who exceeds expectations is invaluable.