themselves.

This style of management is not the same as "benign neglect." There are specific skills that go with this style. Coaching and training can help you quickly acquire these skills or sharpen them if you are not already using them.

First and foremost among these skills is the abililty to accurately assess and communicate responsibility. Exactly how much of this project, job, piece or work or problem is yours? How much belongs to each person? Hoe much belongs to me? I can only take care

A play on words? Nonsense to advise managers not to manage people?

No indeed! We all use the phrase "manage pople" too lightly but also so frequently that managers believe they do manage people.

What do managers actually manage?

Time

Data

Schedules

Process: such as transport, inventory, quality control, research, reporting, performance reviews

Finance

Pensions, retirement plans

Planning

Research and development

The manager who believes that managers manage people will experience a very large amount of stress. He or she will also trigger stress in the persons being "managed.". Why is this?

The reason is that managing people contradicts reality. Realistically speaking the only person I can manage is myself. Managers need to manage themselves. When they try to manage others the reaction is always the same: each person still decides what to think, how to feel and how to behave. When the orders are agreeable the person will do as told. When the orders are not agreeable the person will become resentful. The reaction will be roughly the same as the reaction we all have when told up is down or first is second or good is bad: a non-compute.

What managers actually do is provide coordination and leadership for the energy, behaviors and work of the people over whom they have authority. Like the manager of a professional sports team, the manager does not play the game. The players play the game. But the manager develops the game plan and coaches the players on how best to achieve the game plan.

To repeat, it is not at all a play on words to declare that managers do not manage people. If you as a manager find yourself stressed and worrying ask yourself whose problems are you taking on as your problems?

All the people under you are responsible to manage themselves. Your job is to let them do that and encourage them to do that. You, in one way of looking at it should be the least worried person because all of your people are managing themselves.

This style of management is not the same as "benign neglect." There are specific skills that go with this style. Coaching and training can help you quickly acquire these skills or sharpen them if you are not already using them.

First and foremost among these skills is the abililty to accurately assess and communicate responsibility. Exactly how much of this project, job, piece or work or problem is yours? How much belongs to each person? Hoe much belongs to me? I can only take care

managers manage people will experience a very large amount of stress. He or she will also trigger stress in the persons being "managed.". Why is this?

The reason is that managing people contradicts reality. Realistically speaking the only person I can manage is myself. Managers need to manage themselves. When they try to manage others the reaction is always the same: each person still decides what to think, how to feel and how to behave. When the orders are agreeable the person will do as told. When the orders are not agreeable the person will become resentful. The reaction will be roughly the same as the reaction we all have when told up is down or first is second or good is bad: a non-compute.

What managers actually do is provide coordination and leadership for the energy, behaviors and work of the people over whom they have authority. Like the manager of a professional sports team, the manager does not play the game. The players play the game. But the manager develops the game plan and coaches the players on how best to achieve the game plan.

To repeat, it is not at all a play on words to declare that managers do not manage people. If you as a manager find yourself stressed and worrying ask yourself whose problems are you taking on as your problems?

All the people under you are responsible to manage themselves. Your job is to let them do that and encourage them to do that. You, in one way of looking at it should be the least worried person because all of your people are managing themselves.

This style of management is not the same as "benign neglect." There are specific skills that go with this style. Coaching and training can help you quickly acquire these skills or sharpen them if you are not already using them.

First and foremost among these skills is the abililty to accurately assess and communicate responsibility. Exactly how much of this project, job, piece or work or problem is yours? How much belongs to each person? Hoe much belongs to me? I can only take care

the orders are not agreeable the person will become resentful. The reaction will be roughly the same as the reaction we all have when told up is down or first is second or good is bad: a non-compute.

What managers actually do is provide coordination and leadership for the energy, behaviors and work of the people over whom they have authority. Like the manager of a professional sports team, the manager does not play the game. The players play the game. But the manager develops the game plan and coaches the players on how best to achieve the game plan.

To repeat, it is not at all a play on words to declare that managers do not manage people. If you as a manager find yourself stressed and worrying ask yourself whose problems are you taking on as your problems?

All the people under you are responsible to manage themselves. Your job is to let them do that and encourage them to do that. You, in one way of looking at it should be the least worried person because all of your people are managing themselves.

This style of management is not the same as "benign neglect." There are specific skills that go with this style. Coaching and training can help you quickly acquire these skills or sharpen them if you are not already using them.

First and foremost among these skills is the abililty to accurately assess and communicate responsibility. Exactly how much of this project, job, piece or work or problem is yours? How much belongs to each person? Hoe much belongs to me? I can only take care

es the players on how best to achieve the game plan.

To repeat, it is not at all a play on words to declare that managers do not manage people. If you as a manager find yourself stressed and worrying ask yourself whose problems are you taking on as your problems?

All the people under you are responsible to manage themselves. Your job is to let them do that and encourage them to do that. You, in one way of looking at it should be the least worried person because all of your people are managing themselves.

This style of management is not the same as "benign neglect." There are specific skills that go with this style. Coaching and training can help you quickly acquire these skills or sharpen them if you are not already using them.

First and foremost among these skills is the abililty to accurately assess and communicate responsibility. Exactly how much of this project, job, piece or work or problem is yours? How much belongs to each person? Hoe much belongs to me? I can only take care

themselves.

This style of management is not the same as "benign neglect." There are specific skills that go with this style. Coaching and training can help you quickly acquire these skills or sharpen them if you are not already using them.

First and foremost among these skills is the abililty to accurately assess and communicate responsibility. Exactly how much of this project, job, piece or work or problem is yours? How much belongs to each person? Hoe much belongs to me? I can only take care of the part that belongs to me.

The ability to manage in this fashion is both art and science. It begins, howeverk, with a firm and clear point of view: as a manager I am providing leadership for people to manage themselves.