Rules Of Management

RULE 47 - Be ready to unlearn – what works, changes

“I simply wish to encourage you that, irrespective of what you have learnt in school, always be ready to unlearn and relearn. Don’t give up dreaming. If we all dream about a better world, I can guarantee we’ll get there.”

Professor Muhammad Yunus, University of the South, Tennessee

You know how it is, you’re sailing a long doing what you’ve always done and suddenly you’re not making your figures, sales are dropping, staff turnover is going up, things are falling apart. But you’re not doing anything you haven’t done in the past. You had a winning formula and suddenly it doesn’t work any more. What can you do? Well, for a start realize that what works, changes. And it can change so rapidly you didn’t realize it until it’s too late. Be aware of this, be ready and prepared to adapt quickly. You have to stay abreast of:

- Latest innovations in your industry
- New Terminology
- New technology
- Changes in sales, market trends, staff turnover figures, targets and budgets

Don’t get stuck in any ruts. Be ready to spin on a coin if you have to. Good management is about adapting to change rapidly and skillfully. If you don’t, you go the way of the dinosaurs.

“Good management is about adapting to change rapidly and skillfully.”

The same goes for all sorts of things – style of management with staff, for instances. You might have a way with them that has worked for years and all of sudden it doesn’t. You could persevere, but you might lose staff rapidly. Better to be ready to unlearn your old ways and adopt new ones. It could be you have changed, unknowingly, unconsciously. If we get stuck in ways of doing things, sometimes we change them without recognizing that change. We have to be alert to those changes that creep in.

posted by Right Ranger @ 8:21 PM