We may take on beliefs we encounter without verification or we may actually adopt an opposed belief in response if we have a negative feeling towards a particular belief.
Because of the difficulty of changing attitudes, it is important to be aware as a manager of the attitudes of those you have to deal with or hire. Communications need to be stated in the correct terms to appeal to prejudices; otherwise they will be quite likely to be ignored. Company-wide memos can be very ineffective means of communication because they may appeal to some but be ignored by others.
Also you need to be aware of what someone's response is likely to be and which buttons to press to get an appropriate action. This might seem very manipulative, but often effective communication has an aspect of manipulation in it, Ask any good advertising executive.
When considering someone for a job, their attitude is probably the most important determinant for success, given that the person has the necessary technical competence. Your aim should therefore be to try to determine true attitudes, as opposed to politically-correct platitudes mouthed by so many people. I once had the works of Machiavelli recommended to me because he had such an awareness of these basically political issues. The more the world has changed the more human nature has stayed the same.
On a more personal level, you should be aware that your behavior may reflect underlying beliefs which you have accepted as a child and may contradict your current Adult belief system. All of us usually have some of this going on and it requires work and persistence to prevent this happening. Anyone who is willing to point out such inconsistencies is a true friend, for it is easy to remain blind to them ourselves.
You need to be prepared to evaluate criticism on its merits and accept that there may be more going on with your beliefs than you are aware of, and that unreasonable prejudices which you have taken on at some stage may detract from your performance at work.
(continued from part I)
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
