If you think you can benefit from straightforward advice you should read this book.....!
This book is packed with ideas that leaders can use to improve themselves as individuals and as leaders.[1]
Tobaccowala divides his ideas into three sections:
The Challenge: Carbon-Based Analog, Feeling Human in a Silicon-Infused, Digital, Data-Driven World
Counterbalancing Machines, Screens, and Data: Seven Keys To Staying Human
Fusing The Story and The Spreadsheet: Soul For The Machine Age
Just to give you a flavor of his ideas, here are three excerpts from the book:
One from Chapter Eight: Diversify and Deepen Time Usage. (I selected this chapter because I have lots of issues with managing my time.) A second from “Establish Empathy”. And the final excerpt from Chapter 12, How To Lead With Soul.
(Be prepared: he likes capital letters).
Excerpt One:
WE ARE CONTROLLED BY OUR INBOXES AND OUR OVERSTUFFED CALENDARS
WE CONFUSE ACTVITY WITH ACHIEVEMENT; ‘BUSYNESS’ WITH PRODUCTIVITY
WE FOCUS ON WHAT HAS TO BE DONE VERSUS WHAT WE SHOULD DO
He then offers “Meaningful Time Management Methods”.
ELIMINATE. For people to start using their time in a more varied and meaningful manner, they need to stop doing a lot of similar, meaningless things.
ACTIVITY IS NOT PRODUCTIVITY. Give people permission to get rid of unessential tasks…Encourage people to prioritize based on what’s meaningful to them and what’s meaningful to the organization.
FOCUS. The more things people do, the less opportunity they have to become expert in any of them. They should focus only on things that they can do particularly well (comparative advantage) or that have great impact or meaning for them and their organization (positive outcome).
SCALE. Leverage. Today’s technology and scheduling allow people to leverage.
COACHED DELEGATION. Delegate tasks to others with direction and coaching.
MOMENTUM. To avoid wasting time, understand the underlying trend…and, in most cases, align with it.
DO NEW THINGS. New experiences deepen time and create more diverse work tasks— people who take on stretch assignments or volunteer for new training make their work time memorable.
GIVE TIME TO OTHERS. Developing people, providing. assistance to a client, helping a trade organization do pro-bono work – all this is a generous use of time that benefits the individual as well as the larger entity.
Excerpt Two:
Establish Empathy
Do people leave meetings feeling like you and other participants. . . “get it” and “get them”? By failing to communicate that you grasp what their concerns and hopes are they will leave meetings feeling dissatisfied at best, disgusted at worst.
Creating empathy in a meeting means not just getting what other people are feeling but communicating that you get it.
Here are ways leaders can establish empathy:
UNDERSTANDING. Listen carefully and ask follow-up questions to ensure that you truly understand the issue.
REFRAMING. Share examples or analogies that help participants know that you grasp what they’re facing. . .
PERSONALIZING. Make what you say personal. . .
Empathy is about feelings more than anything else, and feelings are often signaled in nonverbal ways.
Therefore, be open and patient in meetings, conscious of your tone of voice and body language. . .
As Maya Angelou wrote, “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”[2]
Excerpt Three:
THE NOTION OF EMOTION
In a world of machines, people long for the human touch. The last thing they need is a robotic boss who provides them with all the information they need to do their jobs but none of the honesty, empathy, humility, inspiration, and vulnerability that help them do their jobs better. These five emotional qualities will help bosses communicate with and motivate their people more effectively.[3]
So?
If you think you can benefit from straightforward advice like these ideas and on many other topics, you should read this book.
[1] Restoring the Soul of Business; Staying Human In The Age of Data, Harper Collins Leadership, 2020
[2] IBID., pp 135-136.
[3] p. 174