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94 reviews for:
First, Break All the Rules: What the World's Greatest Managers Do Differently
Curt Coffman, Marcus Buckingham
3.87 AVERAGE
94 reviews for:
First, Break All the Rules: What the World's Greatest Managers Do Differently
Curt Coffman, Marcus Buckingham
3.87 AVERAGE
A lot of really good ideas on how to make myself a better supervisor. I am trying to incorporate some of the ideas, without completely making my people crazy.
informative
inspiring
reflective
Taking the book at face value - its okay... insightful and toolbox like... applying the book and reflecting on how those around you could apply these or you could apply these regardless of your role... AMAZING
informative
medium-paced
This was a really interesting book in helping to understand some aspects of being a great manager. It provided some really clear and helpful examples, and is backed up by lots of surveying of the best out there!
I appreciated how the book tried to start a new conversation. Not an easy goal when the market is flooded with books on the subject. Maybe I was too bias at the time of reading this as I had just left a job where management was culling anyone and everyone without question. My perspective on management at that point was mystified. And they are the same ones that handed out this book. Irony is just too easy in this case. That said, reading this book is easy. The layout of the information makes sense. In the end, the material was just not resonating with me. I did not get enough ‘meat’ to put into action for my next role. Note that’s future books from this author so found to be more helpful.
Would definitely recommend. I think I need to buy a copy for work because I will want to refer back to it in the future. It's a bit dated (1999 release), but the core elements are perennial.
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The revolutionary wisdom of great managers isn’t [easy]. Their path is much more exacting. It demands discipline, focus, trust, and perhaps most important, a willingness to individualize. (12)
…the best a manager can do is to make each person comfortable with who they are. Look, we all have insecurities. Wouldn’t it be great if, at work, we didn’t have to confront our insecurities all the time? (14)
Given the pace of change in today’s business world, one of the most valuable commodities a company can possess is the employees’ “benefit of the doubt.” If employees are willing to offer their company the benefit of the doubt, they will give every new initiative a fighting chance, no matter how sensitive or controversial it might be. (38)
…managers play a vital and distinct role, a role that charismatic leaders and self-directed teams are incapable of playing. The manager role is to reach inside each employee and release his unique talents into performance. … In times of great change it is this role that makes the company robust – robust enough to stay focused when needed, yet robust enough to flex without breaking. In this sense, the manager role is the “catalyst” role. As with all catalysts, the manager’s function is to speed up the reaction between two substances, thus creating the end product. (59) [And catalysts do not get consumed within the reaction]
…a manager must be able to do four activities extremely well: select a person, set expectations, motivate the person, develop the person. These four activities are the manager’s most important responsibilities. You might have all the vision, charisma, and intelligence in the world, but if you cannot perform these four activities well, you will never excel as a manager. (59)
The most important difference between a great manager and a great leader is one of focus. Great managers look inward. They look inside the company, into each individual, into the differences in style, goals, needs, and motivation of each person. … Great leaders, by contrast, look outward. They look at the competition, out at the future, out at alternative routes forward. … Great managers are not miniexecutives waiting for leadership to be thrust upon them. Great leaders are not simply managers who have developed sophistication. The core activities of a manager and a leader are simply different. (63)
Definition of talent: a recurring pattern of thought, feeling, or behavior that can be productively applied (71)
Definition of a skill: the how-to of a role, capability that can be transferred from one person to another (83)
Definition of knowledge: what you are aware of; factual knowledge (things you know) and experiential knowledge (understandings picked up along the way) (83)
Spend time with your best. Learn from them. Become as articulate about describing excellence as you are about describing failure. Studying external best practices has its merits. But studying internal best practices is the regimen that makes the difference. (159)
…excellent teams are built around individual excellence. Therefore the manager’s first responsibility is to make sure each person is positioned in the right role. Her second responsibility is to balance the strengths and weaknesses of each individual so that they complement one another. Then, and only then, should she turn her attention to broader issues like “camaraderie” or “team spirit.” (173)
…anywhere individual excellence is revered, you will find these graded levels of achievement. Conversely, if you cannot find them, it means that, either overtly or accidentally, the company does not value excellence in that role. And by this standard, companies don’t value excellence in most roles. (186)
The most effective managers do genuinely care about each of their people. But they imbue “care” with a distinct meaning. In their minds, to “care” means to set the person up for success. They truly want each person to find roles where he has a chance to excel, and they know that this is possible only in roles that play to his talents. (209-210)
Knowing what to listen for; selecting the best questions that will point to the talents crucial to a role (219-220)
Performance management routine: simple; frequent interaction, focused on the future; employee tracks own performance and learning (222-223)
Appendix C: A Selection of Talents (striving, thinking, relating)
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The revolutionary wisdom of great managers isn’t [easy]. Their path is much more exacting. It demands discipline, focus, trust, and perhaps most important, a willingness to individualize. (12)
…the best a manager can do is to make each person comfortable with who they are. Look, we all have insecurities. Wouldn’t it be great if, at work, we didn’t have to confront our insecurities all the time? (14)
Given the pace of change in today’s business world, one of the most valuable commodities a company can possess is the employees’ “benefit of the doubt.” If employees are willing to offer their company the benefit of the doubt, they will give every new initiative a fighting chance, no matter how sensitive or controversial it might be. (38)
…managers play a vital and distinct role, a role that charismatic leaders and self-directed teams are incapable of playing. The manager role is to reach inside each employee and release his unique talents into performance. … In times of great change it is this role that makes the company robust – robust enough to stay focused when needed, yet robust enough to flex without breaking. In this sense, the manager role is the “catalyst” role. As with all catalysts, the manager’s function is to speed up the reaction between two substances, thus creating the end product. (59) [And catalysts do not get consumed within the reaction]
…a manager must be able to do four activities extremely well: select a person, set expectations, motivate the person, develop the person. These four activities are the manager’s most important responsibilities. You might have all the vision, charisma, and intelligence in the world, but if you cannot perform these four activities well, you will never excel as a manager. (59)
The most important difference between a great manager and a great leader is one of focus. Great managers look inward. They look inside the company, into each individual, into the differences in style, goals, needs, and motivation of each person. … Great leaders, by contrast, look outward. They look at the competition, out at the future, out at alternative routes forward. … Great managers are not miniexecutives waiting for leadership to be thrust upon them. Great leaders are not simply managers who have developed sophistication. The core activities of a manager and a leader are simply different. (63)
Definition of talent: a recurring pattern of thought, feeling, or behavior that can be productively applied (71)
Definition of a skill: the how-to of a role, capability that can be transferred from one person to another (83)
Definition of knowledge: what you are aware of; factual knowledge (things you know) and experiential knowledge (understandings picked up along the way) (83)
Spend time with your best. Learn from them. Become as articulate about describing excellence as you are about describing failure. Studying external best practices has its merits. But studying internal best practices is the regimen that makes the difference. (159)
…excellent teams are built around individual excellence. Therefore the manager’s first responsibility is to make sure each person is positioned in the right role. Her second responsibility is to balance the strengths and weaknesses of each individual so that they complement one another. Then, and only then, should she turn her attention to broader issues like “camaraderie” or “team spirit.” (173)
…anywhere individual excellence is revered, you will find these graded levels of achievement. Conversely, if you cannot find them, it means that, either overtly or accidentally, the company does not value excellence in that role. And by this standard, companies don’t value excellence in most roles. (186)
The most effective managers do genuinely care about each of their people. But they imbue “care” with a distinct meaning. In their minds, to “care” means to set the person up for success. They truly want each person to find roles where he has a chance to excel, and they know that this is possible only in roles that play to his talents. (209-210)
Knowing what to listen for; selecting the best questions that will point to the talents crucial to a role (219-220)
Performance management routine: simple; frequent interaction, focused on the future; employee tracks own performance and learning (222-223)
Appendix C: A Selection of Talents (striving, thinking, relating)
Prelude to the "Strengths Finder" process and higly insightful for me.
I wish I'd read this when I first started managing people. I might actually be good at it now.
This is the only management book that's both resonated with me on an intuitive level and made sense empirically.
This is the only management book that's both resonated with me on an intuitive level and made sense empirically.
Ridiculously helpful, if you can get past the waffle
There's some really great stuff in here. Ideas that challenge your perceptions, plans that you can work on tomorrow, and a number of opportunities for learning.
But I can't give it more than a 3 because it's all hidden behind a wall of "Gallup did this, with this many people, for this reason, because this reason, and Gallup were the first to do this, because this, this and this affected this, this and this, for this many people.
As with many business books, you could cut comfortably half the content and only stand to gain.
There's some really great stuff in here. Ideas that challenge your perceptions, plans that you can work on tomorrow, and a number of opportunities for learning.
But I can't give it more than a 3 because it's all hidden behind a wall of "Gallup did this, with this many people, for this reason, because this reason, and Gallup were the first to do this, because this, this and this affected this, this and this, for this many people.
As with many business books, you could cut comfortably half the content and only stand to gain.
I had to read this for work for a promotion into a management role and let me tell you, it was soooo dry. Yes, there were a lot of good comparisons and analogies and personal anecdotes in there to try and make the topic more interesting, but this could have easily been a 50-75 page guide on management styles.
Basically everyone has different management styles for different roles and different people and there's no one right way to do it. There. That's the book.
It was so repetitive that I'm pretty sure I read the same advice seven times over, just with slightly different wording. Yes, it has some good ideas and the intentions are good, but I would say about 90% of it is common sense. If you're going into a management role, chances are you have some common sense and some ability to comprehend how to deal with people (whether it is your associates or your guests/customers) so it was almost an insult to my intelligence to be told to read this whole thing cover-to-cover.
Basically everyone has different management styles for different roles and different people and there's no one right way to do it. There. That's the book.
It was so repetitive that I'm pretty sure I read the same advice seven times over, just with slightly different wording. Yes, it has some good ideas and the intentions are good, but I would say about 90% of it is common sense. If you're going into a management role, chances are you have some common sense and some ability to comprehend how to deal with people (whether it is your associates or your guests/customers) so it was almost an insult to my intelligence to be told to read this whole thing cover-to-cover.
You don't need to be a manager, or even an aspiring manager, to read this book - you just have to work with people. I don't agree with everything in this book, but it does give you plenty of food for thought about work and the people you work with.
I recommend this to anyone who works in an office environment whether you have a great boss, a so-so boss, or a horrible one.
I recommend this to anyone who works in an office environment whether you have a great boss, a so-so boss, or a horrible one.