Journalist adam bryant's book, the corner office, IS a compilation of leadership wisdom, gleaned from interviews with Ceos. Excerpts from the book that claims to offer an insight into how to make it in the corporate world
Journalist Adam Bryant's book, The corner office,u00a0is a compilation of leadership wisdom, gleaned from interviews with CEOs. Excerpts from the book that claims to offer an insight into how to make it in the corporate worldSucceedingPassionate curiosity: Relentless questioning leads entrepreneurs to spot new opportunities and helps managers understand the people who work for them and how to get them to work together effectively.
Battle hardened confidence: Anyone with a blemish on his resum ufffd or academic record may be tempted to paper over it or wish it away. Understand what you can control. Don't be a victim. Figure out a way to get things done. Challenges become learning experiences rather than disappointments.
Team smarts: Teamwork can be built by being explicit about the roles people play and insisting on rules and routines.
A simple mindset: Few people can deliver the simplicity that many bosses want. Instead they mistakenly assume that the bosses will be impressed by a long PowerPoint presentation that shows how diligently they researched a topic, or that they will win over their superiors by talking more, not less.
Fearlessness: Many executives said that fearlessness ufffd a willingness to shake up their lives and their jobs ufffd
is one of the top qualities they're looking for when they are interviewing job candidates.
Preparation, patience and obstacle courses: Whether it's sales or other skills, the point is to view jobs as learning experiences that will broaden knowledge and open up new opportunities and relationships. In today's turbulent global economy, a broad base of experience can be the best job security. Do the work well and the promotions will follow.
Smart interviewingThe open-ended question: Most people walk into an interview expecting to talk about their experience and professional aspirations. Asking them surprising, open-ended questions will quickly get them off their scripts.
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Family matters: Several CEOs said they feel they can learn the most about people by asking questions about their families, friends and social networks.
The shared meal: Many CEOs said an absolute must of the hiring process is to share a meal with someone, because it's a good wayu00a0 ufffd outside the controlled environment of an office to find out what somebody's really like. It can be small things. Are they indecisive about what to order? Do they talk down to the busboy? Can they read social cues and keep a conversation going?
Lock yourself out of your officeThe corner office is just one of the rewards for the hard work and sacrifice required to earn the top spot in a department, a division or a company. But the physical office itself? It can be a trap. The corner office is also isolating, CEOs say. Information is massaged for the boss. People generally want to bring only good news.
Re-design the office: One way to avoid the isolating trap of the corner office is to eliminate the corner office ufffd either by creating an open plan layout or making other adjustments to encourage more open communication.
Just ask for feedback: Want to know what people think of the job you're doing? Sometimes all you have to do is to ask for feedback ufffd a particularly efficient way of getting a sense of what people are thinking away from the corner office.
