Achieving results

All of us are facing the pressure to achieve results in our professional activities. Achieving results, getting things done, making things happen. That is what management is all about in my opinion.

In this post I would like to take the manager´s view to share some thoughts based on my experience and the learnings I took from this experience.

You can find different kind of managers. For example, those who make things happen, those who watch things happening and, let´s say, those who don’t know what is happening. Ideally the focus should be in making things happen as the best way to succeed.

But let´s consider some questions to be answered:

·         Is getting things done simply a matter of personality which some people have and others haven´t? For example, drive, leadership, ambition…

·         And if you don’t have the drive, leadership and so forth which it takes, is there anything you can do about it?

·         Finally, to what extent is the ability to make things happen a matter of using techniques which can be learnt and develop during your career?

In my view, personality is important. Unless you have determination and drive nothing will get done. But we need to remember that your personality is a function of both nature and nurture. Your experience is the critical element together with education and training.

We cannot change our personality easily but we can develop and adapt it by learning from our own experience and by observing and analyzing other people´s behavior. That’s why is so important to absorb all the best from your superiors and colleagues to create your own management style and become a real achiever.

In terms of the techniques for achieving results, I would mention planning, organizing, delegating, communicating, motivation and controlling. For sure, you can learn all of them. But in my view these techniques are only as effective as the person who uses them. They should be applied in the right way and in the right circumstances. And don’t forget you still have to use your experience to select the right technique and your personality to make it work.

To become a person who makes things happen you have to develop skills and capacities by understanding, analyzing and learning so my recommendation would be as follows:

·         Understand what motivates and inspires achievers.  For example, the personality they display in getting things done.

·         Observe what achievers do. For example, how they operate, what techniques they use

·         Analyze your own behavior, just to stress behavior, not personality. Compare it with that of high achievers and think how to improve your effectiveness.

·         And very important, learn as much as you can about the management techniques available in every moment. In other words, be updated in all of them.

Probably one of the most difficult things is how to analyze your own behavior. I faced this problem in a lot of occasions. It is no good to analyze your own behavior unless you have criteria against which you can measure your performance. So you have to set standards for yourself and if you don’t meet them, ask yourself why. I have also used this approach many times. The answer should tell you what to do next time. As an example, the basic questions you could ask yourself could be as follows:

·         What did I set out to do?

·         Did I get it done?

·         If I did, why and how did I succeed?

·         If not, why not?

 The aim is to make effective use of your experience.

Based on all the above the question is what do achievers do? What I have seen in a lot of high achievers and I have tried to replicate in my personal career, are things like these:

·         They define to themselves precisely what they want to do

·         They are prepared to discuss how things should be done and will listen and take advice. But once the course of action has been agreed they stick to it unless events dictate a change of direction.

·         They work hard and work well under pressure.

·         They are never completely satisfied with their own performance.

·         They normally take calculated risks.

·         They are enthusiastic about the task and transmit their enthusiasm to others.

·         They are able quickly to sum up situations, define alternative course of actions, and suggest to their collaborators/colleagues what needs to be done.

·         And finally, they continually monitor their own and their collaborators performance so that any deviation can be corrected in good time.

As a conclusion, I would say, the process of observation, analysis, and learning will help you to become an achiever. But remember, achieving results is ultimately about making promises, indeed, to others and to yourself, and above all keeping them.