Supervisory Leadership

The world is filled with people who love to garden. And, it turns out that growing people in an organization is an awful lot like growing things out there in the backyard in your garden. Here are some things about supervision that you can learn from gardening.

If you are getting oats, and you want corn, plant something different. If you are working with a subordinate and not getting the results you want, you have got to change what you do before you can expect that person to change what they do.

Growing things need care. Take care of their environment and keep them safe. Do that, and your plants and your people will grow better.

Hothouse plants aren't strong. If you protect your people too much, they never grow and they never develop. That is bad for them and bad for you.

The ideal subordinate for most supervisors is someone who can tackle any job without close supervision and get that job done right. That kind of skill and confidence can't develop without the stretching and difficulty that go with learning.

Sometimes a plant doesn't grow, because it's not right for the garden or the climate. Sometimes people don't work out in an organization, because they are not a good match for the organization.

You have probably known folks like that in your business life, they are good people and they work hard, but they just don't seem to fit where they are. Stay focused on their behavior as a supervisor, but help them see where they might do better somewhere else.

The more seeds and the more tools and the more techniques you have, the more options you have, and the more likely that you will have a great garden and a great team.

Do the things that help the people in your supervisory leadership garden grow.

You may reprint or repost this article providing that the following conditions are met:

• The article remains essentially unaltered.
• Wally Bock is shown as the author.
• The notice Copyright 2005 by Wally Bock or similar appears on the article.
• Contact information for Wally is included with the article. You may refer readers to this Web site as a way to meet this requirement, or use the information on our contact page.

Any other reprinting or reposting requires specific permission which is almost always granted. Click here to request permission if necessary.

Return to Top | Site Map | About Wally Bock | Contact Us
Media Center | Speeches & Training | Sign Up for Our Newsletter

© 2005 Wally Bock. Click for Contact Information.