HBR Management Tips Collection (2 Books)

Harvard Business Review

• Publisher: Harvard Business Review Press
• Year: 2020
• eBook ISBN: 9781647820336
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Management
• Index: Business

Quick, practical management advice from Harvard Business Review to help you do your job better.

Drawing from HBR's popular Management Tip of the Day newsletter, these concise, handy guides are packed with easy-to-read tips on a broad range of topics. Each book puts the best management practices and insights, from top thinkers in the field, right at your fingertips. Pick one up any time you have a few minutes to spare, and you'll have a fresh, powerful idea you can immediately put into action. This collection includes the original best-selling Management Tips and the newly released Management Tips 2.

Copyright

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Copyright 2021 Harvard Business School Publishing Corporation

All rights reserved

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior permission of the publisher. Requests for permission should be directed to [email protected], or mailed to Permissions, Harvard Business School Publishing, 60 Harvard Way, Boston, Massachusetts 02163.

First eBook Edition: Nov 2020

ISBN: 978-1-64782-014-5
eISBN: 978-1-64782-015-2

Contents

About the Book

Managing Yourself

Managing Your Team

Attributions

Index

About the Book

Management Tips 2 is a compilation of the Management Tip of the Day by Harvard Business Review. Adapted from digital articles and other content, these tips offer quick and practical advice on how to manage yourself and your team. Please turn to the list of attributions at the back of the book for more information on the sources from which these tips were adapted, and visit hbr.org for more tips and content.

Know and Live by Your Personal Philosophy

Worrying about what other people think of us can be paralyzing. We stop taking chances and play it safe. Our careers suffer. To fight these anxieties, develop a personal philosophy that articulates your sense of who you are. What values drive your actions? Who has qualities that align with yours, and what are they? What makes you feel that you’re performing at your best? How do you want to live your life? Write down your answers and look for what they have in common. Use the words that stand out to come up with your personal philosophy. Then commit to living by it. When something at work starts to lower your confidence, let your philosophy remind you of why you do what you do. Shut out others’ opinions and focus on the things that really matter.

Lead Confidently When You Aren’t Feeling Confident

When faced with a tough challenge, you may feel uncertain and even afraid. But it’s hard to inspire your team if they sense that you’re intimidated. You can project confidence by doing four things. First, demonstrate empathy for your team members. They want to know that you aren’t out of touch with their feelings. Second, communicate your vision for the team and that tough challenge. People need to have a clear sense of where they are headed. Third, set a direction. Show the team how you’ll reach the vision together. Last, give people proof so they have a reason to buy in to what you’re telling them. Offer evidence for your direction and optimism. Be specific, be personal, and reference the work that the team is already doing to build their confidence and your own.

Improve Your Critical Thinking

To make good decisions, think critically. Too many leaders accept the first solution proposed or don’t evaluate a topic from all sides. To guard against these mistakes, you can hone your critical thinking skills. First, question your assumptions, especially when the stakes are high. If you’re coming up with a new business strategy, for example, ask: Why is this the best way forward? What does the research say about our expectations for the future of the market? Second, poke at the logic. When evaluating arguments, consider if the evidence builds up to a sound conclusion. Is the logic supported by data at each point? Third, seek fresh perspectives. Relying on your inner circle to help you think through these questions won’t be productive if they all look and think like you. Ask other people to question and challenge your logic.

Focus on “Microhabits”

High achievers often have lofty aspirations for self-improvement. But big goals such as “meditate for an hour every day” or “read more” are often more burdensome than sustainable. So, start small by focusing on “microhabits,” more achievable behaviors that you build over a long time. These habits should be ridiculously small, like meditating for thirty seconds or reading a paragraph each night. Piggyback on a daily task. Perform your new action at the same time as (or right before) something you already do every day. Read that one paragraph while brushing your teeth. Meditate while waiting for your coffee to brew. Then, track your progress, but keep it simple. Try using a “yes list” where you write down the desired action, and under each date, simply note a Y or N to indicate if you completed the task. Once you’ve accrued several weeks of Ys, you can increase your microhabit by a small increment, say 10 percent. Continue these incremental adjustments until the new habit is part of your muscle memory. By starting small, you can achieve big results.

Don’t Let Perfectionism Get in Your Way

Perfectionism can push you to excellence, but it can also increase your anxiety and lower your productivity. Learn when to let go and move on. Create a checklist of a task’s essentials. If you’re working on a client pitch, for example, make sure the presentation addresses the client’s major concerns and details why the client should hire your company. Your inner perfectionist might fret over the font choice and every semicolon, but once your checklist is complete, slowly back away. Or ask a trusted colleague to help you get perspective. Do you need someone to tell you when your firs...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Contents
• Management Tips: From Harvard Business Review
• Management Tips 2: From Harvard Business Review