When You're Feeling Micro-Managed, What's One Way to Change Up the Situation?

The best managers define the right outcomes rather than the right steps then get out of the way, as the Gallup Organization confirmed in its massive 25 year study in the late 1990s. This finding still stands, particularly among the upcoming younger generations who seek autonomy, purpose and mastery, according to Daniel Pink’s research and documented in his book Drive.


In reality, best managers are in short supply. Micro-managing is a frequent workplace complaint whether you are a front line worker or a middle manager. So, if you are feeling micro-managed, a not uncommon predicament, how can you shift the relationship with your manager in a positive direction using the Gallup and Pink knowledge?

In First Break All the Rules, which describes the Gallup results, authors Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman like to quote Oscar Wilde to illustrate the interpersonal challenges we face generally in life, let alone in organizations:

A truth ceases to be a truth as soon as two people perceive it.

If the only truth is your own, it’s easy to understand why reality is a moving target. In the case of a micro-managing manager, the truth can indeed be elusive as it appears in many guises in any given day. How do you catch the truth and make it work for both of you?

Do the obvious: Get yourself out of the perpetual cycle of uncertainty and frustration by digging deeper for the “truth” --- that which is in your manager’s head. Use the “right outcomes <> right steps” framework as your guide. Shape your own working life instead of letting your manager shape it for you. In essence, go on a search and discovery mission to draw out more clearly what your manager has in mind.

These steps help change up the situation. Talk with your manager in real time to:

1. Clarify the outcomes, in detail, including the assumptions behind them (Use open-ended questions that start with “what”, “how” and “in what ways”).

2. Negotiate improvements to the outcomes, based on your own wisdom and experience.

3. Take the opportunity to bargain for the right resources, if appropriate.

4. Explore and sign off on the next check in time and the nature of the deliverable.

In some circles, this is called “managing up”. Others might name it “project chartering” with your manager. At its most fundamental, sharing “truths” is the bridge.

Candle Problems for Dummies: Not Apply Much Today

In his Ted.com presentation in July 2009 on motivation, Daniel Pink makes a significant point: there’s a gap between science (the evidence) and what business does. Nowhere is it more obvious than with the subject of rewards. His point: people don’t always perform better with bigger rewards. Because it depends on the problem. The more complex, the less effect an external reward. Yet, organizations, as a general rule, don’t differentiate their approaches.

The first decade of the 21st century has been bountiful in its non-routine problems, constantly surprising us and keeping us off balance. These “out of nowhere” occurrences don’t have easy solutions.

When we apply our known routines to them, the puzzles often remain. For example, the early warning system for tsunamis did little to help the people on the American Samoa Island because it was too close to the epicenter of the earthquake. Many economists saw the financial crisis coming but could not apply their collective pressure (their early warning signals) enough to influence key decision-makers. Life has definitely become more complicated. There is much more work to do to prevent and manage risk, to anticipate and to imagine.

Opening up our minds literally is the way forward. That means motivating people from within than without. Pink stresses three factors: “autonomy” (letting people direct their own work), “mastery” (having the opportunity to get better and better at what matters) and “purpose” (being involved in something beyond ourselves).

David Rock, author of Your Brain at Work, wraps up the challenge of motivation or engagement similarly in the acronym “SCARF”:

Status: praise and mastering a skill and being paid for it all boost an employee’s sense of status and by association—motivation. Threats to status like performance reviews do the opposite;

Certainty: uncertainty registers tension in the brain shutting down problem-solving ability. If leaders can create a perception of certainty, for example, by breaking down problems into small steps or by exuding the confidence that “We can do it!” the chains of uncertainty become less of a burden;

Autonomy: Many studies indicate that if people feel they are not being micro-managed, that they are able to direct their work decisions relatively freely, the more stress remains under control, the more inspired they are to do good work;

Relatedness: If individuals feel they belong (at work), they trust more and they are able to build the necessary relationships to innovate and to produce.

Fairness: Perceptions of unfairness activate hostility and undermine trust. Leaders that “do the right thing” help collaboration flourish.

As different from 20th century leadership and management, brain science in the 21st century is helping us better understand really what works. We know that threats to our well-being generate the fight or flight hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. Chronic doses of these hormones do not open up our minds to novel solutions. On the other hand, serotonin and oxytocin flood our brains when we are happy and engaged. In turn, they help us focus and undertake higher problem-solving skills.

Like evidenced-based medicine, the science of the brain is illuminating the way for “people-management”, providing the hard evidence as to why soft power works. The candle-light of soft power multiplies not only in our minds but it also generates the energy for innovation.

http://www.ted.com/talks/dan_pink_on_motivation.html

http://www.brainleadersandlearners.com/