The Invisible Mentor

Instant Turnaround! Getting People Excited About Coming to Work and Working Hard by Harry Paul and Ross Reck is an easy read at 158 pages of large print. I liked the message and concepts, which are easy to understand, but I did not like the delivery. The story is in the form of a fable and it may be that I am tired of fables, but for me the setting and the situation outlined appeared contrived, too convenient and a bit phony and I couldn’t visualize myself in that setting.

 The meeting reminded me of a mastermind group where members talk about projects that they have been working on. The junior member of the group, Freddie Kim brings his mom Nancy who is visiting him. And it so happens that Nancy had faced the same issue that one of the other members faced and she was able to successfully resolve it and the coincidences continue.

 Now that I have gotten my bias out of the way I can focus on the core ideas outlined. The book is based on a clever concept called Destination Work and the beauty of the concept is that it’s nothing new, we all know it, yet many managers ignore it.

•  Focus on people as well as performance numbers
• Motivate employees with trust instead of fear. The four Be’s for motivating employees with trust
  • Be real: be sincere and try to have the same persona, both at home and work
  • Be appreciative: say thank you to employees and let them know that you notice their contributions
  • Be interested: interact with employees and learn more about them
  • Be nice

• Turn work into fun

 Instant Turnaround fleshes out the Destination Work concept and has a section at the back of the book which demonstrates how to apply the concept. Though I did not like the way the message was delivered, I appreciated the message because it makes sense. Like anything in life one-size seldom fits all and I know from experience in my consulting practice, and from the experiences from colleagues that this model will not work in all instances simply because some senior managers firmly believe in managing using a culture of fear. There are times in life when we simply have to walk away, and the trick is to know when.

 At work, what are some simple ways that you can demonstrate that you appreciate the things people do? Could you make the time to have lunch with someone you work with who you do not know very well? What are ways you can assist colleagues or subordinates to make their work-life easier?

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