The Best Way to Handle a Power Struggle
by Peter on August 9, 2010
in Harvard Business
My flight from New York to Paris was delayed — maybe it would be canceled — and the passengers at the gate were frustrated. Most were sitting quietly in their frustration, periodically looking up at the screen and mumbling the things that people mumble when they feel annoyed but powerless like, "we're never gonna get out of here!" and "can you believe this?"
Read more..Friends at Work Could be Good for the Bottomline (Charlie Herman Interview on WNYC, NPR)
by Peter on July 28, 2010
in Interview, National Public Radio (NPR), Radio
WNYC’s Charlie Herman talks to management consultant Peter Bregman who wrote in the Harvard Business Review online about people who develop friendships in the workplace and tend to do better in all kinds of ways.
The Farm-to-Table Secret to Motivating People
by Peter on July 15, 2010
in Harvard Business
The kitchen was a complete mess. I tried to clean the utensils and machines right after I used them but I couldn't keep up with my own cooking frenzy.
Read more..The No-Drama Rule of Management
by Peter on June 10, 2010
in Business Week, Harvard Business
I lay back in the chair, closed my eyes, and almost immediately felt my body relax. An instant later a stream of warm water rinsed through my hair while strong, competent hands massaged my scalp. For that moment my stress disappeared, washed away with the water.
Read more..Why Not Having a Plan Can Be the Best Plan of All
by Peter on April 28, 2010
in Harvard Business
This weekend I went back to Princeton University, where I was a student over twenty years ago, to give a speech. As I traveled to the campus I remembered a single question that haunted my last few months of schooling: now what?
Read more..Don’t Get Distracted by Your Plan
by Peter on April 21, 2010
in Harvard Business
Wait a minute, I thought, as I looked up from the trail we had been hiking for several hours. Where are we?
Read more..Don’t Let Your Expectations Fool You
by Peter on April 14, 2010
in Harvard Business
Two weeks ago, with the sun shining and little buds emerging from tree branches, I got frostbite while skiing. Not just a little frostbite; several of my toes were snow white. Thankfully I didn't lose the toes but it took ten minutes in a hot shower for them to slowly and painfully return to their normal color.
Read more..An Effective (and Underused) Way to Reassure and Motivate
by Peter on April 8, 2010
in Harvard Business
Yoga is astonishingly predictable. Invariably after an hour class I feel light, supple, strong, and refreshed. But Liz's class felt even better than others. Afterwards I felt stronger and more refreshed.
Read more..Manager Employee Communication
Peter Bregman writes for the Harvard Business Review, and he’s also CEO of Bregman Partners, a global management consulting firm. Bregman authored an article in January titled "When your voicemails and email go unanswered, what should you do?" The article’s primary focus was on the issue of applicants and clients waiting impatiently as managers and companies fail to respond. The issue is similar to managers who don’t respond to their own employees, so Life in the Cubicle emailed Bregman to see if he could shed some light on the subject. True to his word, Bregman triaged the email and politely responded. The fact that he responded at all puts Bregman into the Life in the Cubicle Hall of Fame (which currently consists of two members – Tom Selleck and Peter Bregman).
Q: Should managers ask employees to CC them on all communications?
Peter Bregman: That could be appropriate. But only for a week or two. If the manager doesn’t trust the employee after that, she should fire the employee since she’s doing the employee’s job anyway. If it turns out that the manager is firing all her employees because she doesn’t trust any of them, then she should fire herself and move into an individual contributor job. She’ll be a lot happier and so will everyone else."
Q: If an employee emails a manager on a rather important and urgent topic, and the manager never responds, whose fault is it…manager or employee?
Peter Bregman: It doesn’t matter whose fault it is. What matters is that the urgent topic gets handled. The employee shouldn’t wait around to see where the finger gets pointed. If you don’t get an email response, call. If that doesn’t work, knock. If that doesn’t work, text. And if that still doesn’t get the manager’s attention, go ahead and yell."
As Bregman points out, a "get it done" attitude should be adopted by all employees and managers. However, in the opinion of Life in the Cubicle, employees shouldn’t have to spend their day getting their manager’s attention. An office would be far more efficient by just firing the manager and finding someone capable of responding to critical emails.
The Cardinal Rule of Rules
by Peter on March 10, 2010
in Harvard Business
I was in my home office, on the phone with a new client, when I heard a knock on the door. I looked at my watch: it was 4pm, the time my daughters Isabelle and Sophia come home from school. Generally I love taking a break at this time and hearing about their day.
Read more..