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Excellence In People
By Robal Johnson

Each of us adapts to our environment as effectively as possible. The success with which we do so varies widely, of course, not only from person to person, but also within the same individual. Many competent managers, for example, are much less adept in personal relationships; some people are more effective with subordinates than superiors, or in superficial relationships rather than more intimate ones. Why?

Certainly one relevant characteristic shown by people when they are effective is -- confidence. By confidence we do not mean an arrogant air of superiority; indeed, those who act superior do so because, underneath it all, they feel inferior and frightened. Nor is confidence the opposite of fear; an analysis of fear would give us little insight into confidence, especially in view of the broad range of ways by which fear is manifested. What then do we mean by confidence?

Before answering this question, it might be helpful to look at some of the personal characteristics that people emit which leads us to judge them as being confident. Indeed, we might well want to judge ourselves on these characteristics as a means of determining our own confidence level. We will arbitrarily divide our characteristics into five basic areas:

Intellectual:

  • Logical and Objective -- reality and fact oriented.
  • Constructive -- offers alternatives.
  • Flexible -- thinking changes with new inputs.
  • Efficient and Concise -- focus on relevant factors only.
  • Venturesome and Risktaker -- will jeopardize important things for meaningful potential goals.
Intrapersonal:
  • Independent and Responsible -- accepts obligations as his/her own.
  • Decisive and Aggressive -- commits to actions in ambiguous situations with minimum of guidance.
  • Cooperative -- gives his/her share in helping self and others to achieve relevant goals.
  • Openly Expressive and Enthusiastic -- negative, but especially positive feelings freely expressed.
  • Initiative -- self-motivated starting actions.
Interpersonal:
  • Respectful -- aware everyone adept at something.
  • Sense of Humor and Humility -- uses the universe as a criterion of judging importance of self and issues.
  • Good Listener -- finds many aspects of others interesting.
  • Warm and Tactful -- expresses personal positive feelings easily.
  • Persuasive -- influences the thinking of others without using coercion.
Self:
  • Accepts Strengths and Limitations -- sets expectations and seeks advice when realistic.
  • Capitalizes on Strengths -- seeks responsibilities that rely on strengths.
  • Self-improvement Motivated -- expresses appreciation for constructive feedback.
Managerial Behavior:
  • Realistic Evaluating Subordinates -- objective when looking at strengths and short- comings of people below.
  • Selects and Promotes Competent People -- likes people who achieve practical results.
  • Fires Incompetent Subordinates -- recognizes pervasive negative impact of incompetence and takes appropriate action.
  • Develops Subordinates -- accepts responsibility for people's behavior and gives frequent feedback and growth experiences.
These then are some of the behaviors by which we judge people to be confident. They are neither meant to be inclusive nor exclusive. They are, however, some of the effects of confidence in a person. (Indeed, some would say they are the causes. "We do not run away because we are afraid; rather, we are afraid because we run away." While this may appear contradictory to some, it would seem possible that engaging in the above behaviors and having them reinforced by success would strengthen both the behaviors and the feeling of confidence.)

At a more strategic level, confidence would seem to be an acceptance of reality more than anything else. While it is true that fear is not the opposite of confidence, it is also apparent that fear interferes with it. It is also true that most of our fears are unrealistic and lead us to base our behavior on things other than reality. One pervasive fear, for example, is the fear most of us have over what others might think of us. The fact that others think of us so little is a reality that seems to matter hardly at all.

If reality were truly influential in our lives, our response repertoire would probably be much broader -- and this indeed may be the mark of confidence. While specific behaviors might be most frequent and dominant, we would recognize that all behavior is appropriate on occasion. Thus, the decisive person is indecisive occasionally and the cheerful person is appropriately sad when it is warranted by reality. Confidence is not, therefore, a constant striving to always appear strong and courageous; it is an acceptance and approval of periodic fears and frustrations. In short, confidence is a flexible, wide ranging repertoire from which are emitted appropriate feelings and behaviors at appropriate times. But they are, more than anything else, feelings and behaviors which take us to something we want, rather than away from something we fear.

What, then, can we as managers do to increase the confidence of our colleagues and employees? Increase their liking of people! People are effective with people they like because they experience minimal fear with those people. If we can associate people with positive things to our employees, we can increase their confidence. If we reinforce our employees for their positive reactions to people, for their enthusiasm for people, we will increase their confidence. Liking people is certainly one of the greatest indicators of confidence we have found when evaluating people.

What people should we try to get our employees to like and thus feel comfortable with? Everyone! Business today is "market driven". What does that mean? It means we try to get our employees to like customers so they are cooperative, helpful and constructive with them. Why can we not adopt this orientation toward everyone, including and especially fellow employees? Are we afraid of people liking each other? Do we feel if someone likes someone else our importance will be diminished, our influence lessened?

Apologies to Dr. David Thompson RAJ Associates € Chicago
 


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