Simon says, “Work with people instead of merely relying on your power and control.”
That Simon, there he goes again reiterating the obvious. Working with people is certainly the right thing to do, the PPS way. Surely everyone knows this by now. They also know relying on power and control stifles innovation, creativity, and cooperation. Further, it increases tension and apprehension while causing people to become anxious and fearful. Even if they are not the focus of the power and control, the affect is about the same. Just being in a power-oriented environment is unsettling and stressful. Simon recognizes these unacceptable outcomes; but his favoring working with people rests more specifically on the less obvious down-side of routinely using power and control.
Regularly using power and control is ineffective and counterproductive. It does not work. More specifically;
• The more skilled the employee, the less effective it is.
• The older the child, the worse the outcomes with power oriented approaches.
• The more competent the spouse, the less tolerance there is for controlling relationships.
• The more important the person’s participation is to the team, the more using power and control jeopardizes the team’s success.
• The more choices the person has, the less acceptance there is of such nonsense.
Is Simon’s point coming clear? Unnecessary use of power and control leads to your best people leaving. What’s more, if they cannot leave, they gradually shut down on you. You do not consistently get the best they have to offer.
Give this a minute’s thought. The team’s brightest and best either leave or perform below their best. Over time, what is the result? You have only those people who are less skilled and competent along with others who are not at their best. Now, who is left on your team and how does it bode for team success?
Simon works with people because it is the right thing to do. He only uses power and control when he has no other viable options, since he wants to maximize innovation, creativity, and cooperation. Most critical to his success, though, he passes along as much power and control as people on the team can productively and constructively manage because Simon wants Simon to succeed. Working with people who are so empowered keeps good people on the team and extends to them the opportunity to be great. Given that potential for excellence, Simon holds this secret close to his heart and never loses focus on it:
• Power and people don’t mix.