Interview With Jane Treber Macken, Author of "The Art of Managing"

Interview with Jane Treber Mackenauthor of The				major reasons why employees are not
Art of Managing: How to Build a Better Workplace				motivated?
and Relationships				Jane: The major reasons why employees are not
Infinity Publishing (2007)				motivated are the lack of leadership skills of the
ISBN 9780741439338				leader. Motivation is the leader's ability to urge
Tyler R. Tichelaar of Reader Views is joined				action in others by influencing their inner drive.
today by Jane Treber Macken, author of "The				Leaders must adopt different leadership styles
Art of Managing: How to Build a Better Workplace				depending on the situation and understanding his
and Relationships."				her employees. If an employee is not motivated,
Jane Treber Macken is a highly acclaimed business				it can be either professional maturity or
consultant, who has served as manager with				psychological maturity. It is up to the leader to
companies in the energy and mortgage brokerage				determine.
fields and served on the faculty at John F.				*Professional maturity is the ability or capacity to
Kennedy University. Her new book "The Art of				do the job. Does the employee have the
Managing" discusses the attributes of successful				knowledge, training and experience to do the job?
people and teaches how to use these attributes				*Psychological maturity is the motivation or
to be successful in business and relationships.				willingness to do it. How does the employee want
Tyler: Welcome, Jane. I'm happy to have you				to be recognized or rewarded; does the
here today. I understand in "The Art of Managing"				employee show confidence and good self
you explain that there are three key attributes to				esteem?
success. Would you begin by telling us what those				Tyler: What advice would you give to a manager
attributes are?				to increase the motivation among his or her
Jane: The three key attributes to success are				employees?
caring and compassion for others, serving the				Jane: Once the leader understands the
community, and working on Self which means				professional and psychological maturity of his/her
mind, body and spirit. These key attributes are				employees, he/she can influence the desired or
responsible for building successful businesses,				wanted outcomes. For example, if the person is
lasting relationships and a more balanced life.				new in the job and doesn't appear to be working
*Caring and compassion mean showing a deep				at speed, it may be a lack of training. Once
sympathy and empathy which is an intellectual and				additional training is given, performance should
emotional identification with another person; there				improve. Conversely, if it is determined that an
is mutual understanding; and, especially an ability to				employee has the skill and appears to be wasting
share another's ideas and emotions. Successful				time during the day, the employee may lack the
leaders show patience and connectedness to				will to do the work. It is then up to the leader to
others, including expecting no more or less from				redefine the gap in the job expectations, such as,
others than they were willing to do. In talking with				this is where I want you to be versus this is
their employees, they had high qualities of trust, a				where you are. By understanding and working
sense of fairness and were extremely patient. It's				with the employee to close the gap, the leader will
like, "They are able to put themselves in the				be setting up the environment for motivating the
other person's shoes."				employee.
*Serving others and the community means				Tyler: Can any employee be motivated, or are
engaging in some role in the community - service				there just bad apples it is better not to hire or to
or charity. Leaders growing up in small towns or				fire before they spoil the group?
large families usually have a great sense of				Jane: Through years of experience and application
community. Everyone knows everyone else's				of the motivation module, I believe that if the
business and there are few secrets. But, when				leader defines the professional maturity and
you need help and support, the community or				psychological maturity of an employee, the leader
family is there for you. These trusting				can motivate the employee to the desired
relationships carry over into these folks' adult lives				outcome.
and often result in genuine caring for others. Even				The one exception is when an employee is under
if not raised this way, you can develop these skills				the influence of either alcohol or drugs. This is
through community involvement or mentorship.				another issue that needs to be resolved through
*Working on Self means paying attention to your				EAP intervention and/or termination.
mind, body and spirit; that includes expanding your				Tyler: In other words, everyone has something to
knowledge through travel or education, eating the				contribute. To give a practical example, what
right foods, exercising, getting enough rest and				should a manager do, say with an employee who
meditating (sitting quietly, pondering, letting				is constantly late to work and returns late from
thoughts percolate up). Working on Self is really				lunch. The employee's work is fine, but his
about honesty; honesty with ourselves...truly				behavior is creating low morale among
understanding ourselves. Honesty builds				co-workers? How would "The Art of Managing"
relationships. Our shadow fears dishonesty in Self.				help a manager with such a situation?
Our shadow causes us to REACT emotionally				Jane: Even where the work is fine, when
rather than RESPOND to others. When we react				someone takes advantage of the norms in a
emotionally, it is part of our hidden shadow. It				work situation, such as being late to work and
takes a lifetime to work on these emotional				returning late from lunch, this behavior creates
reactions to rid yourself of your shadow.				low morale among co-workers and is a
These are the blind spots we all face. However,				performance issue.
once you rid the shadow, you respond more				Chapter 2, Organizational Effectiveness,
frequently. Think of your shadow as a toy box.				emphasizes shared values as one of the seven
From the time you are born, all the negative				S's for organizational effectiveness. Shared values
messages you put in the toy box. All these				refer to the guiding concepts and dominant
emotions (fear, anger, sadness, guilt, rage, shame)				values, beliefs, and assumptions. Some of the
are in this toy box. Something a person says or				attributes include trust, integrity/truthfulness,
the way he/she looks at you may evoke an				accountability. There must be congruence
emotional reaction. Reflect and go back in time to				between individual values and organizational values
when you first remember a similar word, situation,				for the company to continue to grow and
person, or incident. Work through the original				prosper.
incident by replacing those memories with what				Chapter 4, Caring and Compassion, says that
should have been to make you feel okay. By				successful leaders demonstrate caring and
replacing negative messages with positive ones,				compassion for people by showing deep
we overcome negative programming and become				sympathy and empathy/concern for others. A
more in harmony with our relationships and				leader would ask the employee what was causing
environment.				the lateness and handle the response with
Tyler: Thanks, Jane. In other words, we all bring				understanding. Once the leader determines the
our shadows, or maybe we could say "emotional				cause of the lateness, he then makes the
baggage" with us into the workplace. A manager				employee aware of how his/her behavior is
needs to understand we all bring our personalities				negatively impacting co-workers, resulting in low
to our jobs. In "The Art of Managing", you talk				morale as indicated by higher sick leave and
about how we can apply psychology to business.				turnover in the organization.
Would you expand a little on how that idea				The leader can then motivate the employee by
works?				defining the "gap" between what is the desired
Jane: "The Art of Managing...How to Build a Better				behavior versus what the employee is doing.
Workplace and Relationships" is a book that				Once the leader and employee agree to the
bridges the worlds of business and psychology.				behavior change and the change occurs, the
The business world is about tasks and activities,				leader should recognize the behavior change and
and the psychology world is about getting to				continue to monitor. If the old behavior continues,
know ourselves, what motivates us, and how we				there should be consequences (positive discipline,
interact with others. Leaders learn how effectively				disciplinary leave).
and successfully to manage their relationships,				Tyler: Of course, "The Art of Managing" would be
have lasting relationships and a more balanced life.				useful for the workplace, but how can its
*Learning and understanding how to form teams,				techniques and ideas be carried over into our
how groups develop, how to motivate				personal lives and relationships?
employees, and how to analyze an organization				Jane: Through my learnings and experiences, I
for effectiveness and efficiency will help their				saw many ways that people can be more
business prosper.				effective in their daily lives, and consequently,
*Gaining insights into themselves and becoming				much happier both at work and personally. The
better leaders and team players will benefit them				book shows how you can develop the three key
personally and professionally.				attributes to successfully manage your work and
Managing the workplace is really about managing				personal life and offers tools for forming effective
relationships. People are still the most important				teams and motivating people. The theory and
asset.				examples in the book have helped me and I know
Tyler: What do you feel is the biggest				they will help others.
management mistake that managers tend to				Tyler: Would you provide us with an example
make?				from the book of how a person can manage their
Jane: In my opinion, the biggest mistake that				personal life by applying the principles you teach?
managers tend to make is not being honest with				Jane: Chapter 6, Developing of Self, provides an
themselves and others. They may not honor their				example from the book of how a person can
true feelings/beliefs and do what they believe				manage their personal life by applying the
others want them to do. This builds resentments				principles. To develop Self, work on the mind
within and folks truly know when someone is not				through continuous learning, the body through
acting authentically. Managers must embrace				exercise and proper nutrition, and the spirit
honesty with themselves...truly understanding				through quiet time such as meditation,
themselves. Honesty builds relationships.				contemplation, reflection or relaxation. Quiet time
Tyler: Jane, could you share with us a success				helps you define where you are, where you want
story that happened as the result of using the				to go and what you must do to get there.
ideas in "The Art of Managing", either by your				When people are striving to improve Self, they
own application of them in the business world or				are more open to learning and more energized by
the application of one of your readers?				opportunities to learn. The payoffs can be
Jane: I am certified to administer the Myers Briggs				increased commitment, higher levels of energy
Type Indicator (MBTI) which is a personality				and enthusiasm, sincere dedication to success and
preference instrument that has been used by				a general positive effect on many people's lives.
businesses world wide for more than 60 years.				By setting challenging goals for ourselves, we can
When becoming part of a leadership team, it is				expect to develop the drive and ambition to
important that you understand your preferences				move forward in our lives. As we develop Self,
as well as the preferences of others.				we will have a better understanding of creating
In Chapter 8, Effective Teams, pages 61-66 talks				the lives that we most desire for ourselves. As
about the ability of the leader to observe and				you begin to understand yourself more and more,
influence a group/team at many levels and				you will respond positively to more and more
understand the team dynamics. This application				situations and relationships with understanding and
was truly a success story in that the team began				compassion.
functioning at a higher level. The group dealt with				There is nothing more powerful you can do than
the basics of communication and was able to				to encourage others toward the lifelong process
work effectively as a group in problem-solving				of working on Self.
and decision-making roles.				Tyler:Jane, what do you feel sets "The Art of
Using the MBTI tool for team formation has				Managing" apart from all the other books in the
resulted in successful business results.				market today about business management?
Tyler: Would you give an example of how the				Jane: My book is different because:
personality preference instrument works? Are				*It bridges the worlds of business and psychology.
managers supposed to use the tool to understand				Managing the workplace is really about managing
the personalities of their employees so they can				relationships. Basically, people are still the most
better manage them?				important asset.
Jane: The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)				*It provides insights on how to develop the three
instrument defines sixteen types of people. The				(3) key attributes that make leaders successful in
MBTI types are based on Jungian theory that we				managing the workplace and their personal lives.
all have natural, inborn preferences for doing				Tyler: Jane, "The Art of Managing" also talks
certain things. For example, if you are right				about the history of management theory. How do
handed and you write your full name with your				you think management theory and styles have
right hand, it feels natural. But, if you are right				adapted and changed from say a generation or
handed and you write your full name with your				two ago to our current and more technologically
left hand, it feels unnatural. We are all born with				advanced age?
natural preferences for the way we do things.				Jane: As the needs of society and the
The MBTI preferences fall into four categories:				environment change, history reflects the changing
extraversion/introversion (where we get our				leadership and organizational needs of society. In
energy), sensing/intuition (how we gather				the last generation or two, companies are taking
information), thinking/feeling (how we make				a more "holistic" or "organic" approach to
decisions and solve problems), and judging				management theory. The next generation has
perceiving (what our orientation is).				emerged with better education and skills, including
*Extraverts tend to focus on the outer world of				being raised to excel and achieve. This generation
people and external events and get their energy				will come into the information age significantly
from others. Introverts tend to focus on their				contributing to the knowledge-value/based
own inner world of ideas and experiences and get				economy.
their energy from within.				Progressive companies are embracing
*Sensing people prefer to take in information				transformation, examining their businesses in the
through their eyes, ears, and other senses.				areas of operations, policy and strategy, project
Intuitive people prefer to take information in by				management, accounting and finance, and sales
seeing the big picture, focusing on the relationship				and marketing. Transformation embodies change
and connections between facts.				management, performance improvement, and
*Thinking people tend to make decisions by				reengineering. There is a deep fundamental
looking at the logical sequences of a choice or				assessment of every process and every
action. They try to mentally remove themselves				organization. The culture is focused on teamwork
for a situation to examine it objectively and				and attempting to eliminate the silos that occurred
analyze the cause and effect. Feeling people tend				in the 1980s. Some of the pressing issues are
to consider what is important to them and to				customer satisfaction and employee
other people. They mentally place themselves in a				dissatisfaction.
situation and identify with the people involved so				Customers expect more for less. Employees are
that they can make decisions based on				disillusioned with management. Transformation has
person-centered values.				led to not only looking at processes, but also to
*Judging people process in the outer world and				valuing the employee.
tend to live in a planned, orderly way, wanting to				In the 2000s, employees' values and beliefs are
regulate and control life. They make decisions,				now a focus after years of neglect. Employees
come to closure, and move on. Perceiving people				provide a product and/or service. Managing the
process in the outer world and tend to live in a				workplace is really about managing these
flexible, spontaneous way, seeking to experience				relationships.
and understand life, rather than control it. Plans				Tyler: Thank you so much, Jane, for talking with
and decisions feel confining to them; they prefer				me today. Before you go, would you please tell
to stay open to experience any last-minute				our readers where they can find out more about
options.				"The Art of Managing" and where they may
The MBTI provides a straightforward and				purchase a copy?
affirmative path to self-understanding as well as				Jane: To find out more about "The Art of
understanding of others. It offers a logical model				Managing...How to Build a Better Workplace and
of consistent human behavior, including				Relationships" go to my web site: My web site
emphasizing the value of diversity and uniqueness,				talks about the book, author, excerpts,
especially when forming teams and groups.				testimonials, press release, blogs (includes a book
It is my opinion that effective leaders use the				review).
MBTI as a tool to understand their employees'				Tyler:Thank you, Jane. You've offered managers
preferences so they can better manage them.				and employees both, lots of great advice, and I
Tyler: You talk a lot in your book about				wish you well selling "The Art of Managing.
motivating people. What do you think are the

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Interview With Jane Treber Macken, Author of "The Art of Managing"