Table of Contents
The Truth About Hiring the Best
Introduction vii
Part I The Truth About Identifying the Best
Truth1 There is no such thing as the ideal candidate 1
Truth 2 You are a seller in a buyer’s market 5
Truth 3 Catch the boomerangs 9
Truth 4 Rehire the retired 13
Truth 5 Job-hoppers could be show-stoppers 17
Truth 6 Seek refuge(e) 21
Part II The Truth About Recruiting the Best
Truth7 It’s a war for talent 25
Truth 8 Maybe you don’t want “new blood” 29
Truth 9 Your actions speak louder than words 33
Truth 10 Targeting everybody attracts nobody 37
Truth 11 You are a talent scout 41
Truth 12 The Internet may not be the best place for recruiting 45
Truth 13 Use the enthused 49
Truth 14 It takes a village to hire one employee 53
Truth 15 Newspaper ads can be great when managed properly 57
Truth 16 Your invitation might be chasing applicants away 61
Part III The Truth About Interviewing
Truth17 The candidate isn’t the only one who has to interview right 65
Truth 18 Ask what they will do, not what they can do 69
Truth 19 Charlie might be more than just a great mechanic 73
Truth 20 Passion–in fashion? 77
Truth 21 Good candidates might not talk to you 81
Truth 22 You’re not Sigmund Freud 85
Truth 23 Candidates and the truth–the whole truth 89
Truth 24 Don’t let the candidate’s resume drive the interview 93
Truth 25 Avoid the “hot seat” 97
Truth 26 You can oversell the job 101
Truth 27 There is such a thing as a bad question 105
Truth 28 You’re guilty until you prove you’re innocent 109
Truth 29 It’s impolite (and discriminatory) to ask about age 113
Truth 30 You wouldn’t ask him if he’s married–don’t ask her either 117
Truth 31 Kind curiosity can kill a career 121
Truth 32 Avoid questions about religious affiliations 125
Truth 33 Your mother was wrong; sometimes do be rude 129
Part IV The Truth About the Selection Process
Truth34 Have a vacancy to fill? You’re already too late. 133
Truth 35 Warning: this resume may contain spin! 137
Truth 36 Your candidate may be a scam-didate 141
Truth 37 The resume says “yes,” but the body language says “no” 145
Truth 38 The receptionist test–better than salt? 149
Truth 39 Don’t send away candidates dressed for a day at the beach 153
Truth 40 You aren’t an elephant 157
Truth 41 Keep on selling to candidates 161
Part V The Truth About Panel and Multiple Interviews, Background Checks, Tests, and Other Tools of the Trade
Truth 42 Invest in telephone screening to save time later 165
Truth 43 Face-to-face doesn’t have to be in-person 169
Truth 44 Too many cooks might improve the broth 173
Truth 45 Make haste slowly 177
Truth 46 You may want to hire candidates even when they get a bad reference 181
Truth 47 Beware the “Whizzinator” 185
Truth 48 Be real, even if scary 189
Truth 49 No crystal ball? Try employment testing. 193
Truth 50 Graphology: palm reading or valid tool? 197
Part VI The Truth About Evaluating Candidates and Making the Offer
Truth 51 The last one you interview only seems like the winner 201
Truth 52 The one who offers salary information first is the loser 205
Truth 53 Don’t tell candidates why they weren’t selected 209
References 213
About the Author 215
Acknowledgments 215
The Truth About Getting the Best from People, Second Edition
Introduction xi
PART I The Truth About Employee Engagement
Truth 1 You don’t need the carrot or the stick 1
Truth 2 You have direct influence over your employees’ passion quotient 4
Truth 3 You get the best by giving the best 8
Truth 4 It’s not money that motivates 11
Truth 5 Employment engagement isn’t for sissies 15
Truth 6 Real engagement gains happen after survey scores come in 19
PART II The Truth About Yourself
Truth 7 Your behaviors are your brand 23
Truth 8 You can’t give what you don’t have 26
Truth 9 “Best” doesn’t mean the same thing to everyone 30
Truth 10 Think you’re a great leader? Think again 34
Truth 11 You could be your own worst employee 38
Truth 12 Visionary or beat cop? Your choice 41
Truth 13 Your health may be compromising your leadership effectiveness 44
Truth 14 You don’t have to be perfect 48
Truth 15 Your career can recover from an engagement hit 52
PART III The Truth About Engaged Cultures
Truth 16 Employee happiness is serious business 55
Truth 17 Great leaders make their people cry 58
Truth 18 Better questions lead to better answers 61
Truth 19 Individual passion builds a passion-fueled customer service culture 65
Truth 20 Authentic is better than clever 69
Truth 21 Retention begins with hello 72
Truth 22 The bad will do you good 75
Truth 23 Your biggest complainer may be your best supporter 78
Truth 24 You can sell an unpopular decision 82
Truth 25 Flex is best 85
Truth 26 Nobody cares if you don’t mean to be mean 89
Truth 27 Controlling your temper is a labor-saving device 93
Truth 28 There is no “but” in “I’m sorry” 97
PART IV The Truth About Motivation
Truth 29 Engagement happens one person at a time 101
Truth 30 If you’re a manager, you’re a career coach 104
Truth 31 The candidates you’re seeking may not be the ones you need 107
Truth 32 Ask for cheese—you might get the moon 111
Truth 33 You lead better when you get off your pedestal 114
Truth 34 Trust is your strongest persuasion tool 118
Truth 35 If they aren’t buying it, they aren’t doing it 121
Truth 36 Overselling an opportunity can cost you precious talent 124
Truth 37 Focusing on what’s right can help solve what’s wrong 128
Truth 38 High performers are motivated by a piece of the action 131
Truth 39 All the generations want the same thing 135
PART V The Truth About Performance
Truth 40 Compassion promotes performance 139
Truth 41 A hot star can brighten your whole team 142
Truth 42 B players are your A team 146
Truth 43 High performers have enough coffee mugs 149
Truth 44 Discipline deepens engagement 152
Truth 45 You don’t have to inherit the problem employees 155
Truth 46 Performance appraisals are really about you 159
Truth 47 New hires can inspire current employees 162
Truth 48 Terminations are an engagement tool 165
PART VI The Truth About Creativity
Truth 49 Innovation begins with y-e-s 169
Truth 50 Everyone can be creative 172
Truth 51 You stand between inspiration and implementation 176
Truth 52 Failures promote progress 179
Truth 53 People don’t quit their bosses, they quit their colleagues 182
Truth 54 Extreme pressure kills inspired performance 186
Truth 55 Creativity is a balancing act 189
PART VII The Truth About Communication
Truth 56 Open questions ignite inspiring answers 193
Truth 57 Serving your employees means managing your boss 196
Truth 58 Bad news is good news 200
Truth 59 Trivial conversations are essential 203
Truth 60 The way you listen speaks volumes 206
Truth 61 Crap happens 210
Truth 62 Engaged employees need to know more 213
PART VIII The Truth About Teams
Truth 63 Absence makes the employee happier 217
Truth 64 Your team has untapped talent 221
Truth 65 People need to fight their own battles 224
Truth 66 Games don’t build teams 228
Truth 67 Answers build teams 231
Truth 68 Your team can lead you to greatness 234
Truth 69 You’re still the boss 237
References 240
About the Author 242
The Truth About Managing People, Third Edition
Preface vii
PART I THE TRUTH ABOUT HIRING
Truth 1 First Impressions DO Count! 1
Truth 2 Forget Traits; It’s Behavior That Counts 5
Truth 3 Brains Matter; or Why You Should Hire Smart People 9
Truth 4 When in Doubt, Hire Conscientious People! 13
Truth 5 Want Friendly Employees? It’s in the Genes! 7
Truth 6 Realistic Job Previews: What You See Is What You Get 21
Truth 7 Throw Out Your Age Stereotypes 25
Truth 8 Match Personalities and Jobs 29
Truth 9 Hire People Who Fit Your Culture: My “Good Employee” Is Your Stinker! 33
Truth 10 Good Citizenship Counts! 37
Truth 11 Manage the Socialization of New Employees 39
PART II THE TRUTH ABOUT MOTIVATION
Truth 12 Why Many Workers Aren’t Motivated at Work Today 43
Truth 13 Telling Employees to “Do Your Best” Isn’t Likely to Achieve Their Best 47
Truth 14 Not Everyone Wants to Participate in Setting Goals 51
Truth 15 Professional Workers Go for the Flow 55
Truth 16 When Giving Feedback: Criticize Behaviors, Not People 59
Truth 17 Managing Across the Generation Gap 63
Truth 18 You Get What You Reward 67
Truth 19 It’s All Relative! 71
Truth 20 Recognition Motivates (and It Costs Very Little!) 75
Truth 21 There’s More to High Employee Performance Than Just Motivation 79
PART III THE TRUTH ABOUT LEADERSHIP
Truth 22 Five Leadership Myths Debunked 83
Truth 23 The Essence of Leadership Is Trust 87
Truth 24 Experience Counts! Wrong! 91
Truth 25 Effective Leaders Know How to Frame Issues 95
Truth 26 You Get What You Expect 99
Truth 27 Charisma Can Be Learned 103
Truth 28 Charisma Is Not Always an Asset 107
Truth 29 Make Others Dependent on You 111
Truth 30 Successful Leaders Are Politically Adept 115
Truth 31 Ethical Leadership 119
Truth 32 Virtual Leadership: Leading from Afar 123
Truth 33 Adjust Your Leadership Style for Cultural Differences, or When in Rome 127
PART IV THE TRUTH ABOUT COMMUNICATION
Truth 34 Hearing Isn’t Listening 131
Truth 35 Listen to the Grapevine 135
Truth 36 Men and Women Communicate Differently 139
Truth 37 What You Do Overpowers What You Say 143
Truth 38 The Value of Silence 147
Truth 39 Watch Out for Digital Distractions 151
PART V THE TRUTH ABOUT BUILDING TEAMS
Truth 40 What We Know That Makes Teams Work 155
Truth 41 2 + 2 Doesn’t Necessarily Equal 4 159
Truth 42 The Value of Diversity on Teams 163
Truth 43 We’re Not All Equal: Status Matters! 167
Truth 44 Not Everyone Is Team Material 171
PART VI THE TRUTH ABOUT MANAGING CONFLICTS
Truth 45 The Case FOR Conflict 175
Truth 46 Beware of Groupthink 179
Truth 47 How to Reduce Work–Life Conflicts 183
Truth 48 Negotiating Isn’t About Winning and Losing 187
PART VII THE TRUTH ABOUT DESIGNING JOBS
Truth 49 Not Everyone Wants a Challenging Job 191
Truth 50 Four Job-Design Actions That Will Make Employees More Productive 195
PART VIII THE TRUTH ABOUT PERFORMANCE EVALUATION
Truth 51 Annual Reviews: The Best Surprise Is No Surprise! 199
Truth 52 Don’t Blame Me! The Role of Self-Serving Bias 203
Truth 53 Judging Others: Tips for Making Better Decisions 207
Truth 54 The Case for 360-Degree Feedback Appraisals: More IS Better! 211
PART IX THE TRUTH ABOUT COPING WITH CHANGE
Truth 55 Most People Resist Any Change That Doesn’t Jingle in Their Pockets! 215
Truth 56 Use Participation to Reduce Resistance to Change 219
Truth 57 Employee Turnover Can Be a Good Thing 223
Truth 58 In Cutbacks: Don’t Neglect the Survivors 227
Truth 59 Beware of the Quick Fix 231
References 235
The Truth About Negotiations, Second Edition
Introduction vii
Part 1: Negotiation: A 30,000-foot view 1
Truth 1: Negotiation: A natural gift? 3
Truth 2: The magic bullet: Preparation 7
Truth 3: Your industry is unique (and other myths) 11
Truth 4: Win–win, win–lose, and lose–lose negotiations 15
Truth 5: Four sand traps in the golf game of negotiation 19
Truth 6: If you have only one hour to prepare 23
Part 2: The bottom line on bottom lines 27
Truth 7: Identify your BATNA 29
Truth 8: Develop your reservation price 33
Truth 9: It’s alive! Constantly improve your BATNA 37
Truth 10: Don’t reveal your BATNA 41
Truth 11: Don’t lie about your BATNA 45
Truth 12: Signal your BATNA 49
Truth 13: Research the other party’s BATNA 53
Part 3: Black belt negotiation skills 55
Truth 14: Set optimistic but realistic aspirations 57
Truth 15: The power of making the first offer 61
Truth 16: What if the other party makes the first offer? 65
Truth 17: Plan your concessions 69
Truth 18: Be aware of the “even-split” ploy 73
Truth 19: Reveal your interests 77
Truth 20: Negotiate issues simultaneously, not sequentially 81
Truth 21: Logrolling (I scratch your back, you scratch mine) 85
Truth 22: Make multiple offers of equivalent value simultaneously 89
Truth 23: Postsettlement settlements 93
Truth 24: Contingent agreements 97
Part 4: Psychology 101
Truth 25: The reciprocity principle 103
Truth 26: The reinforcement principle 107
Truth 27: The similarity principle 111
Truth 28: The anchoring principle 115
Truth 29: The framing principle 119
Part 5: People problems (and solutions) 123
Truth 30: Responding to temper tantrums 125
Truth 31: How to negotiate with someone you hate 129
Truth 32: How to negotiate with someone you love 133
Truth 33: Of men, women, and pie-slicing 137
Truth 34: Your reputation 141
Truth 35: Building trust 145
Truth 36: Repairing broken trust 149
Truth 37: Saving face 153
Part 6: I-negotiations and E-negotiations 157
Truth 38: Negotiating on the phone 159
Truth 39: Negotiating via email and the Internet 163
Truth 40: When negotiations shift from relational to highly transactional 167
Truth 41: Negotiating across generations 171
Truth 42: Negotiating with different organizational cultures 175
Truth 43: Negotiating with different demographic cultures 179
Part 7: Negotiation Yoga 183
Truth 44: What’s your sign? (Know your disputing style) 185
Truth 45: Satisficing versus optimizing 189
Truth 46: Are you an enlightened negotiator? 193
References 197
Acknowledgments 203
About the Author 204
