Employee View of a Manager's Low Self-Esteem

A manager had a low self-esteem. In working towards increasing his self-esteem, he analyzed the impact of low self-esteem on himself as well as on his employees. He found that low self-esteem created a sense of self-doubt that limited his ability to make firm decisions on a timely basis. In turn, he believed that diminished his employee's confidence in him as well as their confidence in the work they were doing for him.

I agreed with his perspective on this, but asked him to consider this additional thought as well: "When you are down on yourself, when you lack self-confidence, you cause people to wonder if your successes are due to your professional and personal competence or, instead, if you accomplish things simply by having strokes of luck."

Or put a different way, when you lack self-confidence you limit people's ability to give you credit for your hard work because they lack confidence that you were truly capable of doing it.

About me: Dan Pelley is an educator specializing in management training and development programs for supervisors and other first-line managers in Connecticut (CT), Massachusetts (MA) and Rhode Island (RI). The issue recited above came from a participant in one of his supervisory management development programs.

Copyright © 2011 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.

Selling Your Opponents

Have you ever been in a situation where you truly believed your idea or position was the best way to go but faced people who had strong opposing views? Here's a thought that might help:

Getting others to buy-in to your ideas or to come around to your point-of-view doesn't mean that you have to diminish or downplay your strong beliefs to reach a watered down compromise (although there are times when a compromise may be the best choice). But if you need to stick to your position and convince those holding opposing views that your way is truly best, you must therefore work on broadening the appeal of your position so as to make it more attractive to others. You must start by making a special effort to convince others, an effort that starts with not alienating and proceeds to persuading.


About me: Dan Pelley teaches ways to effectively implement changes as part of his "Proactive Leadership" program, one of five programs leading to a Certificate in Supervisory Management. 146 companies in Connecticut (CT), Rhode Island (RI), Massachusetts (MA) and New York have one or more person(s) who earned this certificate.

Copyright © 2011 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.

For Your Ears Only

I’m sure you are familiar with the concept of “talking out of school;” the idea of discussing something in the presence of others who really shouldn't be allowed to hear the comments. “Talking out of school” is generally not a good thing to do in any situation. When you are on the management team of a company “talking out of school” can get you into serious trouble.

I encourage managers to be friendly with the employees. To take the time to get to know each employee, build rapport, a solid relationship and open lines of communication. With certain ground rules and guidelines in place, I think it’s great for a manager to be friends with their employees and, for those who care to, to socialize outside of work as well.

The more friendly we are with employees, the more we must bear in mind the ground rule of being very careful about what we talk about with employees, especially when we are in a social setting. Don’t talk about other employees, except perhaps for a short word of praise. Don’t bad-mouth people or other departments or functional areas. And never ever talk about things you were told in confidence because you are part of your company's management team; things for “your ears only.”

These confidential items are never to be discussed with anyone outside of the circle of confidence. Never. Not to anyone. Not to your friends. And certainly not to your employees.

Interestingly, many managers will not even discuss these confidential items with their spouse. Their belief is that these things have nothing to do with their relationship to their spouse and, accordingly, the spouse does not have a need to know.

About me: Dan Pelley teaches communication skills as part of his "Leadership Skills" program, one of five programs leading to a Certificate in Supervisory Management. 139 companies in Connecticut (CT), Rhode Island (RI), Massachusetts (MA) and New York NY have one or more people who earned this certificate.

Copyright © 2009 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.

Oh My My My

Aren't these talking devices just wonderful. My car talks to me. One of my pc printers talks to me. And the other day, after avoiding it for some time, I finally got on my electronic scale. It said just four words: "Get off of me."

Hmmmm. Just what we need - electronic nags.

Seriously, my visit to the scale prompted me to visit another long lost friend, the treadmill. Amazing how dusty its become since I last visited. Fortunately it doesn't talk. If it did, I'd probably hear a lot of sarcasm: "Well, the prodigal son returns." "Forgot where I live did you?" "You better get started - this is going to take awhile."

So here I am, working off those indulgences that tasted so good. Exercising those muscles that rest while I work with my mind. (Posting to a blog burns very minimal calories.) And taking a moment to write this post to remind all of you that we need to constantly attend to body and soul as well as to our mind.

Now if you'll excuse me. The scale just called to tell me the treadmill needs to see me.

About Pelleyblog. This blog covers topics of interest to managers, particularly those at the first-line supervisor level. Occasionally we include topics of general interest, topics about Dan Pelley's background and experiences, and a rare occasional rant. We welcome your comments on this or any other post.

Copyright © 2009 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.

Overdoing a Strength

Today's post was written by Matthew McLaughlin, Regional Incentive Clerk at United Natural Foods in Dayville, CT. Matt talks about something that most people would view as a positive trait. In doing a homework assignment in our "Managing People" program Matt illustrates how overdoing a positive trait can actually result in the trait being negative.

Here's Matt's work reprinted with permission.

"When examining the results from the personal inventory it would be possible for me to choose several factors that would apply to causing negative impacts on my job. But for the sake of this assignment I will have to choose Number 5 Helpfulness.

"Now for most people this wouldn't be a negative factor but for me I feel that it is. At work I'm very helpful; unfortunately this has also resulted in some bad habits in my case. Simple things such as when listening to a problem I might just jump ahead of what the person is about to say and provide an answer. To me it really doesn't feel like I'm interrupting the other person but on several occasions it has caused very tense situation where, because I jumped ahead, I actually missed some details the person thought was very important. I won't say if those thoughts always were important or not, but it really gets on someone's nerves when you don't let them finish what they are saying.

"Other examples of this is me offering advice on topics I overhear without even thinking that others might get upset I am listening to what they are saying while still doing my own work. My boss even gave me an oral warning for trying to be too helpful. In his mind he felt it was creating a negative feeling to the conversation too often. Because he is my boss he doesn't feel that I should interrupt him no matter the situation.

"To counteract my natural tendencies to provide help that isn't really needed from me at the wrong times I have came up with the following action plan:

a. Review past instances where this has occurred and look for commonalities, there should be certain events that trigger me to say something out of turn. I just need to identify them.

b. Determine a way to predict when I might do this to someone. Got to study myself more to be on the lookout for the signs that I am about to interrupt when I shouldn’t.

c. Teach myself to hesitate when I interrupt someone so that I can decide if I should or not blurt out what I was about to say. By hesitating I give my mind a greater chance to frame a correct response if any response if even needed at that time.

d. Listen to any feedback related to the changes in the way I deal with people to see if it is working or not. Feedback from others is very important in trying to stop myself from doing this.

e. Make additional changes as needed as things progress.

"I've actually been doing this for awhile now at work and I've really improved especially when dealing with my boss. More often than not I will be about to say something but stop myself and wait for him to finish before I state my opinion about a topic. Also it has improved the atmosphere in the office with the other employees since I no longer butt in on their conversations when I shouldn't. Even those that before would just deal with my tendency to interrupt them appreciate the changes I've made."

Very good advice, Matt! thanks for sharing it with us at pelleyblog.

About me: Dan Pelley teaches the concepts of understanding yourself and understanding others as part of his "Managing People" program, one of five programs leading to a "Certificate in Supervisory Management." The issue recited above came from a participant in his "Managing People" program.

Copyright © 2009 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.

Accepting Responsibility

Today’s post was written by an author who wishes to remain anonymous. It was originally given to me as part of a homework assignment where she was focusing on one of her personal strengths, “the ability to accept and live up to responsibilities.” Her work is reprinted with permission.

Anonymous prefaced her work by stating “A company can take on the most qualified experienced candidates, but if these people do not feel a certain responsibility to their job and the company, they typically make decisions based on how easy or difficult it is for them or for their department.”

She then went on to describe a number of things that she believes are a natural part of her responsibilities as a supervisor. Here’s what she said: “I frequently find myself asking the question ‘if this was my company, my customer, my bottom line, what would I do; how would I behave?’ Typically, the response to this question is the more difficult of the available choices. Nevertheless, this is the path I will take. I believe this to be the more responsible choice, even if this means working extra hours to achieve the end goal.

“I accept new responsibilities only after fully understanding the scope of the assignment. I believe this is the only responsible thing to do. Quite often, people will agree for the sake of agreeing without understanding the magnitude of what they are being asked to do and then simply do nothing afterwards. If I believe the scope of the project I am been tasked with is outside my expertise or just not feasible, I will ask that we look at alternatives before agreeing to accept the project. The benefit to the company is that once I accept responsibility for a project, the management group trust that the assignment will be completed on time and in full.

“I tend to ask questions, if I see what I perceive to be as inefficiencies in the workplace, whether it is in my department or another. Rather than take the approach “it's not my job, my department, my problem", I will flag issues as I find them to department managers. Sometimes this may appear as meddlesome to the receiving party but once I explain why I think we need to look at something and why it's good for the company as a whole, I tend to get a favorable reaction. If nothing is being done and I feel strongly that the company would benefit from some action, I feel a responsibility to take it to the next level.

“If I find I am falling behind and not on top of my job, I will take the time to prioritize what needs to be done and by when. I will write a 'To Do' list to understand how far behind I am. If necessary, I will work longer hours (typically from home or at the weekend) to get back on target. I will flag items that I think will go overdue and ask that the due date of any assignment be moved out if necessary.”

Thanks, Anonymous, for sharing your thoughts on what responsibility means in real life terms.

About me: Before becoming a full time educator, my career experiences included being vice president of a consulting firm, vice president - finance of a publishing company, vice president - sales support services for a manufacturing company and vice president - operations for a distribution company. As a full time educator working principally in Rhode Island (RI), Connecticut (CT) and Massachusetts (MA). I am pleased to share my experiences and business philosophies with managers at all levels, and I encourage Pelleyblog readers to share their experiences, philosophies and general thoughts as well.

Copyright © 2009 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.

Are You Taking Vacation?

These first two weeks of July are among the most popular vacation weeks. Indeed, some industries and many individual companies are now shut down for well deserved vacations. Other companies are encouraging people to take their vacations now since business is so very slow. Much to the chagrin of some employees, some companies that previously allowed employees to keep working and swap their vacation time for cash are telling employees to take the vacation; it's that or a temporary layoff.

While I sympathize with those who need the cash and depend on cashing in vacation time to get that cash, the fact is that companies should be encouraging people to take their vacations and holidays too. Simply stated, we all need a break from work from time to time. To take a breather. Clear our heads. Refresh ourselves so we can go back to work with renewed energy and enthusiasm. At the extreme, a person who constantly works is very prone to "burn out," a condition that, while detrimental to our companies, is even more devastating to our own mental health.

So do what you can to make sure you take a vacation. Do what you can to avoid working every holiday. Indeed, take your lunch and other breaks as well. Oh I know some of you will tell me how busy you are and how much you have to do. But working through breaks and lunch, taking work home at night and on the weekend, working holidays, racking up lots of overtime and not taking vacations is a recipe for personal disaster. And, it often signals to others that you are a manager who is harried, out of control and unable to plan, delegate, utilize resources and effective time management.

And a final note for those of who have an employee reporting to you who demonstrates some of the workaholic behaviors described above. Your job as their supervisor is to make sure they take their breaks, have their lunches, limit their "take home" work, and be sure they take a reasonable number of holidays and a reasonable amount of vacation as well.

About Pelleyblog. This blog covers topics of interest to managers, particularly those at the first-line supervisor level. Topics include handling difficult employees, leadership, counseling, coaching, problem solving, lean thinking, motivation and time management. We welcome your comments on this post.

Copyright © 2009 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.

There's No Leaders in the Back Row

I've been teaching supervisors and other first line managers for many years and, while I've never taken a formal survey on the question, I'll bet most of them view themselves a leaders. So why do so many of them sit in the back row in classes and seminars? Why do so many of them remain silent throughout the discussions? Why is it when we seek someone to be a meeting leader or volunteer, most of them look down and hope I won't call on them?

Is that just human nature? Perhaps so. I used to be that way too. But I don't believe you find leaders in the back row. Head down. Not willing to speak up. Or share their thoughts, or argue their points or give and take in a dialog with others.

I learned many years ago, before I was in high school, that if you want something in life you have to seek it out. Ask for it. Let people know you are interested in it. And I learned somewhat later in life that if you want to be a leader you need to stand up, state your beliefs, point the way, make the decision, take advantage of opportunities, position yourself to benefit from luck, stick to your beliefs when you are right, always listen to what others say, learn from experiences, know when to give and take, admit when you are wrong, give credit to others when they are right, but always keep moving forward even if that means picking yourself up, dusting yourself off and eating humble pie. That's what leaders do. And they don't do it from the back row with their head down.

About me: Dan Pelley teaches what it takes to be a leader as part of his "Leadership Skills" program, one of five programs leading to a Certificate in Supervisory Management. 137 companies in Connecticut (CT), Rhode Island (RI), Massachusetts (MA) and New York have one or more people who earned this certificate.

Copyright © 2009 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.

Thanks Ray

During the energy crisis of the 80's, our manufacturing company had our maintenance person put together a program of how to save energy and thus help save money. Ray had many suggestions, but one in particular stuck with me. Ray suggested we simply learn to turn off the water while shaving and brushing our teeth. I've long forgotten the average savings figures Ray told us, and I'm sure the savings were modest at best. But I'm also sure the waste of water (and heat for the shaving water) were pure wastes, money down the drain, and a waste that could be cured without any inconvenience if we would only remember to do it.

We've been away for several days visiting the New Jersey shore. I came home and wrote this post because I thought about Ray one morning at the hotel. Yes I was shaving. And brushing my teeth. And yes, I did turn off the water. And I remembered Ray and his energy saving meeting. How it was probably a chore for him to put together the presentation. How he may have been nervous giving it. How perhaps he may have wondered if it was really worth it.

Well thanks Ray. For me it was. I've used your tip for many, many years. And I've told others about it too. And perhaps today through this blog a few more faucets will be turned off when the water is simply being wasted down the drain.

Sometimes the little things we do have far reaching and long term impacts. Because of them we may occasionally receive great reward and profound recognition. More likely however the resulting impact will go unseen and unnoticed by the originator. But even though the originators like Ray may never know the result of their efforts, the change of behavior that others make and the fond memories of the originator are real.

About me: Before becoming a full time educator, my career experiences included being vice president of a consulting firm, vice president - finance of a publishing company, vice president - sales support services for a manufacturing company and vice president - operations for a distribution company. As a full time educator working principally in Rhode Island (RI), Connecticut (CT) and Massachusetts (MA). I am pleased to share my experiences and business philosophies with managers at all levels.

Copyright © 2009 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.

Be Proactive With Yourself

My supervision series has several homework assignments, two of which involve self-assessments. Personal traits and characteristics are looked at in "Managing People" and leadership traits and characteristics are looked at in "Leadership Skills." After assessing all characteristics, the homework assignments ask participants to select a trait that represents their best strength and describe the benefits resulting from that strength. Next participants select a trait that represents their worst deficiency and describe the negative results caused by that trait. Finally participants present action steps to reduce, downplay, minimize or eliminate the problem.

All too often, the answers to the final question are far too passive in approach. Participants talk about what they would do, could do or should do. At the extreme some participants say they "will think about it", "try to fix it" or "make an effort to do better." These approaches are passive; they do not reflect clear action steps or a sense of timing. I get the impression that writing the answers to the homework question represents the sum total of the participant's efforts to solve their problem.

For example, recently a person wanted to be more creative. His action plan consisted solely and exclusively of talking to his peers who most likely would have creative ideas as well as encouraging his direct reports to come up with new ideas. That's a passive approach.

If a person truly wants to be more creative, innovative, a leader of change and an implementer of new ideas, one has to actively develop and pursue a number of resources beyond our own circle of acquaintances. Attending professional development seminars. Going to trade shows. Taking continuing education classes especially in areas we are not familiar with. Subscribing to relevant trade journals and magazines. Joining on-line groups and forums. Volunteering to investigate and report on an emerging trend. With that expanded approach a person would have several things to do. The potential to be more proactive would be at hand. But until the person writes out an action plan with target dates, it's still too passive.

"I will attend the Northeast Region Convention of (association) on (dates). I will attend the National (industry) Trade Show in (location) on (date). I will catch up on the (on-line) forum at least once a week, no later than Thursday. I will go to the library tonight and take out the best book they can recommend on innovation; and I will read it completely before the return date. I will submit six new continuous improvement ideas to my boss in writing, one every other month for the next twelve months." And so forth. Now that's a specific proactive action plan. When you put that kind of thought into it, you are more likely to commit to it. If you commit to it, you are likely to do it. If you do it, you should improve in the area of creativity, or whatever other area of self improvement you choose.

About Pelleyblog: Pelleyblog is designed to be a resource for supervisors and other first line managers. Currently most of our readers are from Rhode Island (RI), Central Massachusetts (MA) and Eastern Connecticut (CT). But everyone interested in management topics is welcome. We also welcome your participation. Feel free to comment on this or any other post.

Copyright © 2009 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.

On Being Criticized

Do you get discouraged when someone criticizes you? Here's another way of looking at criticism:

"What do you care when some folks start knocking you? It's a sign you are starting to get someplace." Ralph Ellison, "The Invisible Man"

About Pelleyblog: Pelleyblog is designed to be a resource for supervisors and other first line managers. Currently most of our readers are from Rhode Island (RI), Central Massachusetts (MA) and Eastern Connecticut (CT). But everyone interested in management topics is welcome.

Copyright © 2009 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.

Do You Like Bureaucracy?

I do a lot driving and divide my radio listening time between music and talk shows. The other day I heard a comment that really made me stop and think.

The topic was health care reform, and I think most people agree that everyone must have access to health care at a reasonable cost. The problem, of course, is to find the best approach. The options range from doing nothing to having a system totally run by the government.

I'm not taking a position here as this is not a political blog. But I am going to share what the talk show host said, as food for though regarding alternative approaches to health care.

I don't remember the exact words, so here's the essence: "People hate to deal with government agencies. How many of you like going to the Registry of Motor Vehicles? The Tax Collectors Office? How many of you suffered poor treatment at the Unemployment Office? The Veteran's Administration? The Social Security Office? Especially when you have a problem, an issue, or an exception?

"It's amazing," continuing to paraphrase the host, "How many Americans try to avoid dealing with the government, yet how many Americans seem to want another large government bureaucracy to deal with when it comes to their health care."

It was a very interesting comment. It certainly sticks in my mind. But I will leave it to you to decide what to do with it.

Please don't misunderstand me here or assume I am knocking government agencies and employees. I am not. I've met very helpful people at some agencies. Some very unhelpful people at others. I've gotten some great treatment at some government and quasi-government agencies. And rotten treatment from others. Just as probably all of you have. So interpret the host's comments in light of your own experiences, and beliefs, and what you would like to see for the future of our health care.

I welcome your comment on this blog.


About Pelleyblog: A blog intended to be a resource for supervisors and other first line managers. Currently most of our readers are from Rhode Island, Central Massachusetts and Eastern Connecticut. But everyone interested in management topics is welcome. We also welcome your participation. Feel free to comment on this or any other post.

Copyright © 2009 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.

Take a Break

I always admire people who work hard and strive to get ahead. But sometimes we can overdo it. Recently, in a self assessment homework assignment, a manager listed coping well with a hectic pace and long hours a one of her strengths. She said "I usually run from one job to another. I never take breaks and usually work through lunch doing whatever is needed to keep my department running. I usually work late and am the last one to leave at night." She went one to say "My positive attitude in coping with a hectic pace and long hours without complaining or slacking send a positive message to my team that I am willing to do what it takes to get the job done."

I cautioned her. There's a fine line between coping well and appearing harried and out-of-control. While I do admire hard work, a positive attitude and a willingness to do whatever it takes to get the job done, there is a balancing act. Even the most determined motivated and aggressive managers need to back off from time to time. As frantic as things may be, a break is good for mental health. It allows time to become grounded and centered, and it restores your perspective and focus.

My advice: Take your breaks every day, even though they may not be at the same time. Have your lunch everyday as well. Work late when you have to, but limit it. If you need to work late everyday, there's something wrong with the way you're managing your personal workload. Use your management talents to fix that. And, if you are doing a lot of extra time, be sure to reward yourself with some extra time off.


About Pelleyblog: Pelleyblog is designed to be a resource for supervisors and other first line managers. Currently most of our readers are from Rhode Island, Central Massachusetts and Eastern Connecticut. But everyone interested in management topics is welcome. We also welcome your participation. Feel free to comment on this or any other post.

Copyright © 2009 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.

Do You Really Need Permission?

I frequently hear this comment from supervisors "My boss won't let me do my job." I frequently hear a much different comment from executives "Those supervisors don't take the bull by the horns." There's obviously a disconnect here.

In a pharmaceutical company in-house seminar a manager described a problem he was having with his boss. It seemed his boss would never respond to requests for permission to try something new or to do something differently. Very often the conversation ended with the boss saying something like "I'll think about it" or "I'll get back to you." On those rare occasions when the boss actually did respond the answer was ambiguous, not a clear yes or no.

Participants in the seminar offered many suggestions, but none seemed to be on target. Finally someone asked who the boss was since they all worked in the same company (although in different locations). When the boss was identified another participant said "That's funny, I used to work for him and I never had that problem."

Naturally the manager with the issue asked "How did you get him to give you permission?"

"I didn't," said the other. "I never asked him for permission because I learned early on that he didn't want to get involved in what I do as long as I delivered results. I kept keep him posted after the fact and he would acknowledge me with something like 'great' or 'that's good.' On major changes I would ask for his opinion instead of his permission. He was happy to give opinions rather than decisions. In light of the comments in his opinion I would then make a no go decision if I thought he wouldn't be happy with the idea going forward."

If you face a similar situation, think about what would happen if you went ahead and did something without permission. For a routine operating decision I'd guess most bosses would be just as glad if you went ahead and handled it yourself. But no need to take my guess on it. There's two ways to find out. The first is to ask your boss directly if it's okay to make some of the decisions that you usually seek permission for. A great time to do that is right after permission was sought and granted. At that time you could ask, "Would it have been okay with you if I had just gone ahead and done it without troubling you?"

The other way is to test the concept. Choose a small decision (not a major one) and try it without asking permission. What's the worst that could possibly happen? A small reprimand? If you get a small reprimand then you'll know you need permission for even the smallest things. If a small decision seems to work, try a slightly bigger decision next time. See what happens. Keep going until you reach a point where your boss starts to criticize or you start to get uncomfortable proceeding without permission. At that point you'll have some sense of the boundary line for proceeding on your own.

About this post: Dan Pelley works with managers at all levels to improve communications and working relationships in the process of solving problems and making improvements. He combines his experience as an operating manager and an educator to provide powerful, focused hands-on programs to solve real-world business problems.

Copyright © 2009 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.

Want to be a Contributor?

Did you read yesterday's post? Its the first post on Pelleyblog not written by me. If you haven't read it yet, be sure to look at it today. It was written by a supervisor, Kevin King, and dealt with the idea of how being humble benefits a supervisor. And because it wasn't written by me, you get a different perspective and point-of-view. I hope we'll have more submissions from others to include on the blog. It's part of my vision for the future of Pelleyblog: A communication device for supervisors where many people can share their thoughts, ideas, opinions, perspectives and points-of-view.

I encourage you to participate in the blog. You can comment on any post at any time. You can submit an issue as Nancy and others have done. Now I'd also like to invite you to submit an article for posting on the blog. You can do that by clicking on the submission information link found at the top of the blue field (located under the green field) in the column found to the right. Its the same link some of you have already used to submit issues. Feel free to use it to submit articles you've written that other readers of the blog might be interested in. I'll make a special effort to post all relevant and appropriate submissions. And I promise, if I can't accept a submission, I'll email you and let you know why.

If things work out as I hope they will, Pelleyblog will very much become more your blog than mine.


About Pelleyblog: We are striving to be a communication device for managers where many people can share their thoughts, ideas, opinions, perspectives and points-of-view. We focus on topics of interest to supervisors, group leaders, foremen, department managers, project managers, team leaders, assistant managers, associate managers, office managers, nurse managers, crew leaders, unit managers, and other first-line managers. But managers at all levels, and people interested in management topics are welcome and are encouraged to join us both as readers and participants.

Copyright © 2009 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.

Will We Have a Forum?

Will yesterday's post regarding the abrasive employee become our first forum?

As defined in Wikipedia an Internet forum, or message board, is an online discussion site. It is the modern equivalent of a traditional bulletin board. From a technological standpoint, forums or boards are web applications managing user-generated content.

When I began to think about expanding my on-line presence, I considered having both a blog and a forum. I decided to focus on the blog first, but I soon realized that Pelleyblog's small (but growing) list of regular readers sharing similar interests might allow us to create a forum on any topic of interest to us. We could use the blog comment function for that purpose. Later, when we get enough readers generating enough comments to make that process unwieldy, then we can move to create an official forum site in addition to Pelleyblog.

The post on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week set the stage for the "abrasive employee" issue initiated by Nancy and posted yesterday. If you've read that post, you know I gave Nancy my input. But she asked for yours as well. If you'll respond to Nancy's request, we'll have our first forum; a group of people dealing with an issue of common interest in a bulletin board fashion. If we all worked together in the same place, it would be the same as putting a huge sheet of paper on the wall so you could read what others say, and add your thoughts as well. As often as you wish.

If you're a manager of people, as most of our readers are, I think you know most problems have more than one answer, and most issues we face can be approached in more than one way. If you'll share your experiences, your perspectives and your points-of-view, and if others will as well, all of us can collect more perspectives, insights, approaches, and answers that we can add to our managerial knowledge base for our own potential future use.

Please join us won't you? I know Nancy is reading today (and will be in the future) hoping to see your comment on her issue. Feel free to comment on yesterday's post, the abrasive employee, and/or on any article, post or comment in the blog.

If you are not sure how to comment or what commenting is all about, see our post on Tuesday, February 10.

About Pelleyblog: We focus on topics of interest to supervisors, group leaders, foremen, department managers, project managers, team leaders, assistant managers, associate managers, office managers, nurse managers, crew leaders, unit managers, and other first-line managers. But managers at all levels, and people interested in management topics are welcome and are encouraged to join us.

Copyright © 2009 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.

I Welcome Your Comments

When I first thought about expanding my on-line presence, I considered having both a blog and a forum. With some input from others, I decided to focus on the blog first, and here we are. But something is missing.

As a manager, I've always believed that most problems have more than one answer, and most issues can be approached in more than one way. Those of you who have taken an educational program with me know that. In the classroom I encourage you to share your experiences, your perspectives and your points-of-view. Now I'd like to encourage everyone who visits our blog to do that as well. Just hit the comment link at the end of any post to add your thoughts, insights, guidance, suggestions, criticism, praise, what-have-you. Let everyone benefit from your expertise, your perspective and your point-of-view. Not only on what I have to say, but on the issues submitted by others. Like the situation in yesterday's post. Or Nancy's issue to be posted tomorrow. I know she'll welcome your thoughts on her issue.

While comments are always reviewed before they actually appear on the blog, that's simply to weed out inappropriate comments such as sales pitches and profanity. It's generally our policy to pass all comments through to the blog, whether you agree with me or or other readers or not.

Please join us won't you? Feel free to comment on any article, post or comment in the blog. If you are not sure how to comment or what commenting is all about, see our post on Tuesday, February 10.


About Pelleyblog: Pelleyblog is designed to be a resource for supervisors and other first line managers. Currently most of our readers are from Rhode Island, Central Massachusetts and Eastern Connecticut. But everyone interested in management topics is welcome.

Copyright © 2009 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.

How to Comment on Pelleyblog posts

Are you new to blogging? Want to get involved? Share your thoughts and opinions? This post is your "hands-on" chance to learn how to comment while avoiding rookie mistakes.

Comments allow you to become part of a blog. Using comments you can present different perspectives, share your own experiences, offer suggestions, criticize, disagree, ask questions or whatever. Try it today by commenting on this special post designed to guide you through, and to make sure a mistake doesn't somehow get through for everyone to see. Keep reading to learn how.

Posting a comment on Pelleyblog is simple.

At the end of each post, after all text including any "about" information (about me, about Pelleyblog, about my work, etc), you'll see a white box with "posted by," labels, and number of comments.

Click on # comments. That displays comments already published followed by a "leave your comment" box. If there are a lot of comments to this post, you can read through them to the comment box or you can click on Jump to comment form at the top.


Next, write whatever you want to say in the "leave your comment" box. When finished scroll down to "choose an identity." There are four choices including anonymous.

Click on the circle preceding your choice. If you're a registered blogger or are involved with open ID, choose those options.

If you are new at blogging, click either "Name/URL" if you want to create a name just for this post, or anonymous. If you choose "Name/URL," the url entry is optional. If you want us to be able to associate your name with a given url, then enter the url. Otherwise just enter the name you want to use and leave the url blank. (Note: the url is not your email address).

If you want to preview your post, click on the blue button under identity. Your comment will appear in a shaded box as the last comment. It's visible only to you to show you what your comment would look like if published. If you don't see your comment in preview, make sure you have chosen an identity first.

If you want to change your message or your identity, your original comment box and identity choices are under your preview so you can easily make changes and preview again until you're done.

When you're ready to send your comment, click the orange button under identity. The message "Your comment has been saved and will be visible after blog owner approval" appears. Hooray! You're done.

What's next? Your comment comes to us for review and then on to be posted on the blog.

Why a review? We use a review process to keep inappropriate comments, obscenities, scams and spam and other things our viewers don't need off the blog. Beyond those types of comments, its our practice to accept all other comments, including those that disagree with us.

Please try making a comment now. I'll be your safety net. Say hello, good day, great blog, get a job, or anything else just to say hello and see how your comment will actually appear on a blog. Publish your comment to send it for review. Then give me 24 hours.

If you just want to try the process to send the comment to me, but don't want it published through to the blog, be sure to tell me that in your comment. If you have a confidential question or issue and want me to respond directly to you without publishing your comment, include your email address in the body of your comment. I'll do my best to respond via email.

After 24 hours return to Pelleyblog and click on the comments to this post. Unless you told me not to publish your blog (or your post failed for some other reason), you will see your published comment along with the comments of others.

About Pelleyblog: Pelleyblog focuses on management topics for supervisors and other first-line managers. We are an extension of Dan Pelley Educational Services which conducts management development programs primarily in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island, although we also serve the other New England states. Pelleyblog welcomes and looks forward to new readers from any geographic location.

Copyright © 2009 Daniel W. Pelley
All rights reserved.