Work Happy: What Great Bosses Know

This is the column that launched my  What Great Bosses Know series of columns and podcasts.  (And led to writing the book-in-progress). The accompanying "Ten Things" podcast has been in the Top Ten of iTunesU for months.  It is the inspiration for my upcoming "WHAT GREAT BOSSES KNOW" book. We all know there are far more than ten things bosses need to know, and knowing is only part of the plan. DOING is what matters. Managers may espouse values, but if their walk doesn't match their talk, they lose respect and effectiveness. That's why the book will offer specific advice across multiple areas of responsibility. But what about that column? What ARE the ten things great bosses know?  Just click here to go to the Poynter Institute's website for the full report and podcast -- along with many other resources!

How good are you at coaching? Many managers spend more time fixing the product than coaching the people responsible for it. Coaching is an excellent way to raise performance. To be a great coach, you need to build trust with your team -- and then know precisely how great coaches perform.  Want to learn more? I share 7 important coaching questions and answers in this column and podcast.

It's especially rewarding to teach and coach new managers.  We help them get past the initial fears and focus on the steps necessary to success.  We look at the common pitfalls of inexperienced bosses -- and offer them specific advice. Take a look at 6 Tips for New Managers, part of our "What Great Bosses Know" series of columns and podcasts on Poynter.org.

 

"WORK HAPPY: WHAT GREAT BOSSES KNOW" is the ONE book leaders at any level can turn to for answers and advice they can put to work immediately.  It's a workshop-in-a-book, designed to improve work, workplaces and those who lead them.  Here's just a bit of the insights readers will take away from this authoritative and helpful book:

• What employees never forget
• What employees never forgive
• How managers can defeat their "Evil Twins"
• Top communication tips and traps
• How to take control of your time
• Why you shouldn't treat everyone the same
• The fast path to power and influence
• Motivation that really matters
• Secrets to powerful performance management
• The wisdom of wearing "feedback glasses"
• How to be a coach instead of a fixer
• Ten steps to making tough conversations easy
• The five "change accelerators" for leaders
• How to manage your boss, peers and stress
• The five symptoms of a healthy workplace

A message from author Jill Geisler:

For years, managers have asked me to suggest the ONE book they could use to help them become great bosses who build successful and happy workplaces. They want ONE book they can trust, a book grounded in research, not just opinion or anecdotes.  They want a book that's practical and immediately useful.  They want a book with tips, tests and proof that the advice really works. They want a book that is as useful as the highly regarded seminars we  leads for managers at the Poynter Institute. I decided to write the book managers have asked me to share -- that ONE BOOK they can turn to for immediate answers, ideas, solutions and inspiration.  I sincerely believe it can transform not just bosses -- but organizations, turning them into places where people are happy to come to work. Some readers may be familiar with my "What Great Bosses Know" columns on Poynter.org and companion podcasts on iTunes U, which have had millions of downloads.  Now, we're building on those practical tips, lessons and ideas in "WORK HAPPY WHAT GREAT BOSSES KNOW."

    "WORK HAPPY: WHAT GREAT BOSSES KNOW" is published by Center Street, a division of Hachette.   Jill Geisler is represented by Dystel & Goderich Literary Management.