The Cranky Middle Manager Show #037 (MP3 10.8MB 31:05 Min)

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The Paradox of Excellence with David Mosby and Michael Weissman

Ever feel like the better you are at your job, the less you’re appreciated? It happens to companies and it happens to people. That’s what the Paradox of Excellence is all about. We do our first ever “two-fer” interview with David Mosby and Michael Weissman, authors of The Paradox of Excellence- How Great Performance Can Kill Your Business.

Thanks for joining us. Enjoy the show and subscribe so we don’t have to hunt you down every time we put up a new show.

SHOW NOTES

0:00 Welcome to the Cranky Middle Manager. This show is dedicated to Ranjit Singh, who managed to not only keep his job for almost 70 years, but did it by making the law apply equally to everyone and bringing in the right consultants and using them properly. Nnot to outsource- but to train a butt-kicking army of his own.

3:15 Our quote of the week is from Aristotle. It took me 37 shows to go to this well, gang, and the show is about excellence, after all. Keep this one in mind, even though we both know, and you know that I know we know…….

4:14 We do our first gang interview with David Mosby and Michael Weissman-the guys who wrote the Paradox of Excellence. So what is the paradox and why should managers care about it?

7:30 How do you reinforce value in a socially acceptable way so your mother doesn’t nag you. We’ll start with corporate examples and work our way down to the likes of you and me.

10:00 My mother taught me not to brag and just do my work and it’ll pay off. Michael says that’s not true…at least he tries to say it. Never let it be said I edit this show for slickness, but his point is fair.

13:00 There are 5 key questions you have to be able to answer in order for people to see the value in what you do, as a company or as an employee:

1) How much did you do for me?
2) How fast did you do it?
3) How well did you do it?
4) What benefit did I get from you doing it?
5) Why am I doing business with you?

17:55 Dave offers a rea home-life example of this principle in action.

22:00 Measurement is NOT for punishment. It’s all in the positioning.

26:00 What are some of the mistakes managers make in implementing these metrics?

Check out their website , Fresh Perspectives and their blog…

Don’t forget to post to our blog, leave comments, EMAIL ME or drop me a line on Skype. My skype handle is wayneturmel. Thanks, I thought of that one myself.

There’s a copy of my book in it if you can get me an interview with Tom Peters! I will not rest til this happens, come hell, high water, or restraining orders.

That’s it gang, don’t let the weasels get ya down.

This entry was posted on Friday, March 3rd, 2006 at 4:52 am and is filed under Podcast. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.