The New One Minute Manager

“We used to be a top-down managed company, which worked in its time. But today that structure is too slow. It doesn’t inspire people and it stifles innovation. Customers demand quicker service and better products, so we need everyone to contribute their talent. The brainpower isn’t only in the executive office—it can be found throughout the organization.”

Riffing on the theme of adapting to modern times, this is the first instance in which the Manager directly states his old methods are no longer effective for success. He has abandoned his former approach to leadership—as being a “top-down” manager, which is a reference to the 1980s edition of the story—and has embraced the collaborative approach demanded in contemporary workplaces. Whereas in the past managers were viewed as authoritative, feared, punitive, and invulnerable, the age of internet and social media has democratized access to information, knowledge, and power, and our world has had to shift the way we view the capabilities of individuals—not as simply receivers but as contributors.

“The young man started to feel uncomfortable, and wished he hadn’t asked the Manager to make a decision for him that he could’ve made himself.”

Foreshadowing the later introduction of One Minute Re-Directs, this moment shows how the Manager “Re-Directs” novice learners into being more confident in themselves. He mentions how he doesn’t make decisions for others; instead, he guides them in making decisions that are best for themselves. The young man feels embarrassed that he couldn’t make a simple decision, but then feels affirmed of making a competent choice just as much as the Manager.

“[I]nstead of setting our goals for us, he listens to our input and works side-by-side with us to develop them. After we agree on our most important goals, each is described on one page. He feels that a goal and its performance standard—what needs to be done and by what due date—should take no more than a paragraph or two to express, so it can be read and reviewed in about a minute. Once we’ve written the goals out concisely, it’s easy to look at them often and stay focused on what’s important.”

Touching on the theme of collaborative sharing and selflessness, Teresa reveals how the Manager has guided her in becoming a capable goal-setter. The emphasis on how the Manager “listens to our input and works side-by-side with us” is an undisguised declaration of how much the Manager cares about his employee’s ability to succeed. Once the goals have been established, the employee can then operate confidently without his lingering presence.

“‘If you can’t tell me what you’d like to be happening,’ he said, ‘you don’t have a problem yet. You’re just complaining. A problem only exists if there is a difference between what is actually happening and what you desire to be happening.’”

The Manager’s teachings are mostly packaged into the Three Secrets, but he also provides indirect lessons throughout the parable. In this instance, he helps Teresa discern the ability to problem-solve versus the bad habit of complaining. He subtly leads Teresa to the conclusion that she needs to identify problems before she can identify solutions—perhaps one of the most essential lessons for success.

“Help People

Reach Their

Full Potential.

Catch Them

Doing Something

Right.”

Taken from a series of mantras used by the Manager to reinforce his teachings, this comes during a lesson about One Minute Praisings. It highlights the need for One Minute Managers to accentuate the positives in the early stages of developing good employees. Unlike traditional managers who look to point out anything wrong, the Manager believes in catching someone “Doing Something Right”—an approach that baffles the young man. By doing this early in the process of developing a learning employee, it allows them to feel the confidence needed to eventually “Reach Their Full Potential.”

“5. Encourage them to do more of the same.”

Step 5 in the process of Praising is to point out anything the employee does well along with a specific strength, then asking the employee to do it again. This builds the habit of success. It’s important for the Manager to remind us that simply pointing out good things without guidance, further encouragement, specificity, or instruction can be useless—or perhaps even detrimental—to the employee’s success. Each Secret has a set of rules and a sequence of steps to maximize the effectiveness.

“[Liz] looked at her cluttered office and sighed. ‘I could use whatever help I can get.’”

The imagery and symbolism of Liz’s cluttered office is a sharp contrast to the clean and orderly offices of the Manager’s team. One of the few visual reference points offered in this text as a setting, the office is a space where the employee’s habits and discipline can be seen. Prior to meeting Liz, the young man had been impressed by everyone’s organized efficiency in the Manager’s department. However, Liz—a worker in the company who doesn’t belong to the Manager’s department—is an outsider, and her flustered work space reflects how she lacks the Secrets of One Minute Management.

“Today we need to get more done sooner with fewer resources. And people want to find more satisfaction and value in their work. Now, everybody needs to be a learner because things are changing so much. Even if I’m an expert, the next day my area might be eliminated. A One Minute Re-Direct helps me learn, because it can let me see what I need to do differently.”

The principle of this text rests on the notion that over time, things change, and as they change, we must adapt. Technology and trends can disrupt and shift our operations at any moment. The Manager’s focus on the need to stay ahead of the curve and open to adjustment is a lesson he has passed onto his employees, like Jon, who imparts this wisdom onto the young man. The emphasis on words like “Today” and “Now” create an urgency with which the employees are motivated to succeed in the present to set up future success.

“Goals make clear what is most important to focus on, Praisings build confidence that helps you succeed, and Re-Directs address mistakes. And all three of these help people feel better about themselves and produce good results.”

A review of the Three Secrets, this passage simply references the sequence and value of the Manager’s One Minute Management system. It reminds readers that to yield positive results within this practice, all of the elements must be utilized. The underlying concept of “feeling good” is what drives a manager to implement these tactics in the modern work world.

“I found out why you’re called the New One Minute Manager. It’s because you keep adapting your Three Secrets.”

Once again referring to The Benefits and Necessity of Adapting to Modern Demands theme, this comment by the young man underlines how the “New” in the Manager’s “One Minute Manager” title is a key aspect of this parable. Originally written in the 1980s, The One Minute Manager was a figure who preached a different philosophy of leadership that was shaped by that era. However, this book capitalizes on the notion that those practices are no longer useful to modern readers, therefore a “New” One Minute Manager must be introduced to perpetuate the Three Secrets. The key phrase is “you keep adapting,” which suggests that the Manager’s evolution is constant and without limits. Grammatically, it’s in the present progressive tense, meaning it is happening and will continue to happen.

“‘I hope I’m not being rude with this question, but do you really think it takes only a minute to do all the things you need to do as a manager?’ The Manager laughed. ‘Of course not. But it’s a way to make a complicated job more manageable. It often takes only a minute to refocus on goals and give people important feedback on how they’re doing.’”

The Manager’s humility and sense of selflessness is on display here when he candidly and humorously responds to the young man’s question. Instead of taking offense to his doubtful probing, the Manager answers with unfiltered honesty. The One Minute approach isn’t a silver bullet—it can fail. As he says, “it’s a way to make a complicated job more manageable.” It’s merely a methodical way of eliminating the potential for more mistakes and miscommunication in the workplace, therefore streamlining a path towards success.

 “The Best

Minute

I Spend

Is The One

I Invest

In People.”

Another of the Manager’s mantras, this pulls back the curtain on an effective leader’s role and purpose in any setting: to carefully and intentionally invest time in the people, not simply the outcome. By taking the time to “invest” himself in his employees as people, the Manager knows that he doesn’t necessarily have to waste time micromanaging every outcome. The word “invest” is derived from a business concept of placing an amount of financial resources in an area that might not immediately yield profits, but if done correctly, will result in positive gains. Instead of simply investing his money, he invests his time—a valuable resource any leader must learn how to properly manage.

“It’s ironic that most companies spend so much of their money on people’s salaries, and yet they spend only a small fraction of their budget to develop people. In fact, most companies spend more time and money on maintaining their buildings, technology, and equipment than they do on developing people.”

Similar to the quote above, here we can see how the Manager’s dedication and collaborative leadership approach to “developing people” is integrated into his One Minute Management style. He’s aware that products don’t build and sell themselves, goals don’t magically appear and complete themselves—good employees do. Many leaders don’t always have the foresight or compassion to work intentionally and purposefully with employees—especially new hires—and this mistake can lead to lesser overall productivity.

“It’s all because the number one motivator of people is feedback on results. They want to know how they’re doing.”

For employees to feel motivated, they first need to feel success. For success to be known, it needs to be recognized through the constant sharing of feedback. If a system of transparent, honest, and consistent feedback is established, then this source of motivation can be endlessly rewarding, which helps convert a nonbelieving employee into a believer.

“Everyone

Is A Potential Winner.

Some People

Are Disguised

As Losers.

Don’t Let

Their Appearances

Fool You.”

Finding the potential in every employee—no matter how much promise their appearance may suggest—is a key skill for the Manager and any other great leader. Instead of basing outcomes on the history of a person, we must find the “potential winner” hiding beneath the exterior. The phrasing of “winning” versus “losing” is intentionally rooted in the language of sports—something which appears sporadically in this parable. Much like in sports, business requires teamwork and coaching, and for a team to be successful and “win,” coaches must find a way to bring the best out of their players.

 “‘You see,’ the Manager said, ‘you really have three choices as a manager. First, you can hire winners. They are hard to find and they cost money. Or, second, if you can’t find a winner, you can hire someone with the potential to be a winner. Then you systematically help that person become a winner.’” (Chapter 11, Page 54)

Because it’s difficult to for any manager to find premade “winners” to join a company, the Manager embraces the task of collaboratively developing the skills, habits, and success of anyone who chooses to work within his “system.” Much like a winning franchise, the Manager’s confidence in his structure allows novice employees to come in and master small goals over time to build towards personal and community outcomes.

“The most important—and natural—thing to do to help people become winners is to catch them doing something approximately right in the beginning. Then you move on toward the desired result.”

Constant praise and feedback is a tactic that allows workers to build towards their “desired results.” What’s most interesting about this quote is that the Manager calls it not only important but “natural” to help others by giving them encouragement and love. In the past, toughness, rigidness, and discipline have defined leadership. However, the Manager excels by embracing positive feedback as an “important” incentive for a beginner’s path to success.

“You are a very enthusiastic and receptive learner. That makes me feel good about sharing the Secrets of One Minute Management with you.”

The Manager acknowledges how he is more motivated to share the Secrets of One Minute Management with someone who is “enthusiastic” and “receptive” to learning. The suggested implication here is that as readers who are taking the time to learn about the Manager’s Secrets, we are also being complimented for our attention. If we receive his lessons with enthusiasm and optimism, we too can grow into effective One Minute Managers—which brings the Manager joy.

“When our self-concept is under attack, we feel a need to defend ourselves and our actions, even to the extent of distorting the facts. When people become defensive, they don’t learn. So you want to separate their behavior from their worth. Reaffirming them after you’ve addressed the mistake focuses on their behavior without attacking them personally. When you walk away, you want the person aware of and concerned about what they did, instead of turning to a coworker and talking about how they were mistreated or what they think of your leadership style. Otherwise, the person takes no responsibility for the mistake and the manager becomes the villain.”

Anyone who has held a leadership position will relate to this statement. The Manager's job is not to put down or discourage his workers, it’s to point out how their failure isn’t a reflection of them as people, but rather of a fixable mistake. The Manager’s awareness of his employee’s “self-concept” allows him to navigate giving feedback in a respectful yet stern manner. One of the worst scenarios for a leader is seeing their team’s morale erode into distrust, disrespect, or even strong disapproval. When this happens, a manager can no longer lead with success and confidence because they are vilified by the person or people who feel like their worth has been attacked. To avoid this pitfall, we are reminded about the importance of affirming a person’s value after you’ve pointed out a mistake.

“You see, it is very important when you are leading people to remember that behavior and worth are not the same things. What is really worthwhile is the person who’s managing their own behavior. It applies equally to us when we’re managing our own behavior.”

Remembering to separate a worker’s worth from their performance is essential to building a winning culture. This relates to One Minute Praisings and One Minute Re-Directs, when the worker must be seen for their good deeds—no matter how small—and Re-Directed from their mistakes. The key is to focus on the outcomes rather than the person’s character or personality. When an employee feels attacked, they shut own. If they feel supported, they rise to any expectation.

“We Are Not Just

Our Behavior.

We Are The Person

Managing

Our Behavior.”

A mantra that guides how to Re-Direct an off-track employee. The Three Secrets only work when they are consistently upheld and enforced, but doing so requires the Manager to also remain on track. In a way, the mantras begin to manifest as the Manager’s personal One Minute Goals—short, measurable reminders of what he needs to do to achieve his purpose in the company. As such, he is practicing what he preaches and holding himself just as accountable as his employees, a further sign of his selfless attitude.

“The young man stared in amazement. ‘You mean work for you?’ he asked enthusiastically. ‘No. I mean work for yourself, like the other people on our team. I don’t believe anybody ever really works for anybody else. Deep down, people like to work for themselves.’”

The level of awe and enthusiasm inspired in his followers is a result of the Manager’s application of the Three Secrets. Once he has effectively scaffolded an outsider into understanding the inner workings of his leadership, they become full believers. Moreover, his ability to empower his employees is evident as a component of his techniques. The young man won’t work for him, rather than with him, because “deep down, people like to work for themselves.” Understanding this as the reader—who, in theory, might apply these practices in the real world—is an important realization to make. As leaders, we are tyrannical dictators as much as we are collaborative and giving facilitators, participating when necessary. The primary philosophy of One Minute Management relies on our ability to make leaders out of our followers.

“He became [a New One Minute Manager], not because he thought like one, or talked like one, but because he led and managed like one. He kept things simple. He set One Minute Goals. He gave One Minute Praisings. He provided One Minute Re-Directs. He asked brief, important questions; spoke the simple truth; laughed, worked, and enjoyed. And perhaps most important of all, he not only managed, he also led people to be creative and do new things. He encouraged those around him to do the same for the people they worked with.”

In the closing pages of the parable, the young man finally makes his conversion, embracing the various aspects and elements of the teachings and embracing a true belief for the One Minute Management system. His growth into a New One Minute Manager is the apex of symbolism in this tale, where he has taken all of the information shared with him and applied it diligently to reach his own goals. Thus, he has gone full circle—from an unknowing pupil into an all-knowing expert (though, he remains humble and open to learning because he knows he will need to adapt to the present moment).