© Daniel Kehoe 1998-2008. Please note that all text and cartoons are protected by international copyright laws. All rights reserved.
Leadership - 1 of 20 tools in this product - US$9.95 (coming soon)
Get The Monkeys Off Your Back
 How do you respond when a worker brings a problem to you which you think they are capable of resolving? Do you hear yourself saying, “OK. Leave it with me. I’ll sort it out later.”?
In this situation, picture the problem as a monkey on the worker’s back. Their intention is to get the monkey off their back and on to your’s. Your intention is to get the worker to get rid of the monkey, that is, resolve the problem.
If you are accountable and responsible for resolving the problem, then you deal with it. If the worker is responsible and accountable and has the capability, then send a clear message that you expect them to deal with it.
There is no doubt that some people will attempt to pass the buck up the line. They will keep doing this for as long as the manager lets them.
If your staff are leaving their problems on your desk and you know that they are capable of resolving them, try this approach:
A ‘buck passer’ will probably say to you, “We’ve got a problem.” At this point, focus on the thought - No. We don’t have a problem. You have a problem and that’s why we pay you - to solve work problems.
Then ask the worker questions similar to these :
- What is the problem? What are the symptoms of the problem? What are the causes of the problem?
- If they haven’t got to the root cause of the problem, keep asking them, “Why do you think that is?” until they get there.
- Who are all the stakeholders? Who are the people who are affected by this problem?
- ...other questions are identified when you purchase this product
People Management - ST003 Motivation, Relationships, Performance - US$5.95
1 of 10 tools in this product. Available now.
I’ll take ‘pleasant’ thanks
You can’t motivate your people - only they can do that. However, you can remove or add factors which detract or enhance motivation. And keep this simple concept in mind – people act to seek pleasant circumstances and act to avoid unpleasant circumstances.
Guidelines for motivating people
What can you do as a manager to motivate your staff more effectively?
- Identify and understand the needs and personal goals of your staff. Ask them. Beware of your assumptions which may be incorrect and misleading.
- Remember that money is not the only motivator. Many other rewards which you can influence may be more effective than money in getting your staff to work better.
- ...other actions are explained when you purchase this product
Alternative Approach
(If you don’t like acronyms, skip this article – POQ)
Focus on somebody whose motivation is low. The reasons for their poor levels of motivation could be:
- They don’t believe that they have the skills and knowledge to do the job.
- ... other reasons are identified when you purchase this product
Using the table below, list some of the key tasks in which they show least motivation. Using the scale below, rate your perception of how they would rate themselves for PLSK, PESO, etc. This will give you the focus for a counselling session designed to raise their level of motivation.
Better still, involve the person and ask them to rate themselves. Then compare your rating with theirs as the basis for a discussion to identify what needs to happen to lift their level of motivation.
| Least motivated tasks |
PLSK |
PESO
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PPSO
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PVSO
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Total |
Making sales calls
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5 |
4 |
4 |
5 |
18 |
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PLSK – Perceived Level of Skill and Knowledge
PESO –
PPSO –
PVSO –
Rating scale
| PLSK |
Very low skill and knowledge
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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 |
Very high skill and knowledge |
| PESO |
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| PVSO |
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Scores
34 plus Extremely high level of motivation
29 – 33 Good level of motivation
24 – 28 Adequate, but needs some coaching.
19 – 23 Just plodding along. Some perception changing / skill development required here.
14 – 18 Phew. Serious perception changing / major skill development here.
9 – 13 Oh no. Nearly a basket case.
4 - 8 If not a new recruit, check for rigor mortis.
Learning and Development - Sample
One part of the Problem Solving tool used to train people in a step-by-step problem solving process.
© Daniel Kehoe 2008
The full tool with instructions for use will be available for purchase soon in the Learning and Development category.
Rank the following actions in a logical, step-by-step sequence.
| Item |
Action |
Your
Rank
Y
|
Team
Rank
T
|
Expert
Rank
E
|
Your
Score
E - Y
|
Team
Score
E - T
|
| 1 |
Discuss with key people what is required from them to support the decisions made to solve the problem. |
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Generate alternative solutions to the problem. |
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Involve key stakeholders in the whole process of resolving the problem. |
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Select the alternative that best resolves the root causes of the problem |
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Identify and define the problem. |
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Samples 