Beware of “The Nodders” | No BS Management Advice
By Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter
An interview I listened to with Simon Cowell is the trigger for this video.
I want to talk with you about a piece of management advice that too few people really take it. I’ll use an illustration.
I remember when I was growing up, there was an American President ,Lyndon Johnson ,who surrounded himself with what we referred to as “Yes Men– –” people who agreed with him about everything he thought or said. That lack of diverse opinions, differing opinion proved costly to him as he became more in immersed in the Vietnam War.
I was listening to a podcast recently where Simon Cowell was being interviewed. (And if you haven’t subscribed to Oprah Winfrey’s podcast series, it’s really very good as she basically turns over a platform to people who are successful to talk about their challenges on the way to success) and Cowell spoke about “the nodders,” which is what I’m referring to on this particular video. You know the people who sit there, nodding in agreement, never really offering anything contradictory or specific but they are there providing a form of flattery. This flattery can be dangerous for a manager, a c-suite professional, a CEO because once people believe that they can flatter you into, shall we say, agreement, flattered you into advancement, ultimately, what winds up happening is you’re losing. You’re losing difference of opinion that you really need because as a business leader or just as a manager on up and into the presidency of an organization, you will lose something that’s critical.
If you notice that you’re sitting in a meeting and you’re offering an opinion and you are seeing the heads of agreement, call a time out and say, “I don’t need agreement. What I need is what are my blind spots here? What am I not seeing?” And In doing that, you may ultimately come to the same decision, but,what you’re really going to get Is a leadership team, a staff of individuals who are invested in the success of the organization, not how far up your butt they’re sticking their nose.
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Standing Out on an Interview
ABOUT JEFF ALTMAN, THE BIG GAME HUNTER
Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter is a career and leadership coach who worked as a recruiter for more than 40 years. He is the host of “No BS Job Search Advice Radio,” the #1 podcast in iTunes for job search with more than 2300 episodes. He also hosts Job
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