Manager Tools

Your Job Includes Teaching Professionalism - Chapter 1 - Timeliness

27 min

This episode of Manager Tools argues that managers must actively teach basic professionalism skills like timeliness to new employees, challenging the belief that these skills are innate or should be learned elsewhere. The hosts explain the 'curse of knowledge'—the tendency for managers to forget they once didn't know these skills—as a key barrier to effective onboarding. They emphasize that teaching professionalism, especially timeliness, is essential for organizational effectiveness and individual development.

Summarized by Podsumo

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✨ Key Takeaways

1

Managers must teach basic professional skills like timeliness because new employees, especially those new to large organizations, do not come pre-programmed with them.
2

The 'curse of knowledge' causes managers to assume others know what they know, leading to frustration and missed opportunities for teaching.
3

Generational management (e.g., blaming Gen Z or Millennials for lacking professionalism) is a fallacy; these workplace behavior challenges have always existed and are about newness, not generation.
4

Professionalism, including timeliness, is critical for organizational effectiveness; without it, companies struggle to scale and succeed.
5

Teaching timeliness doesn't require formal classes; it should be part of a manager's everyday coaching and feedback approach.

💬 Notable Quotes

"A professional who isn't timely isn't a professional at all. — Sarah"
"The curse of knowledge is once you learn something, you forgot you ever didn't know it, and you assume others know what you know, and it shocks you when they don't. — Mark"
"Don't ask the fish about the water. — Mark (referring to new employees not knowing organizational norms)"