"John has a great girlfriend..."

2012-02-03

During Christmas break, I had a meeting with one of my mentors, a successful businessman. We discussed my major, internship opportunities, and career aspirations. We spent the largest amount of time discussing my major, which is business management. My mentor had an extremely insightful analogy about management, and I would like to share that with you.

John has a great girlfriend; let’s call her Jane. In John’s eyes, Jane is too good for him. John thinks that he has two options to make sure he keeps Jane in his life.

• Option #1: Never tell Jane about how great she is. Telling Jane that she is wonderful will make her realize that she can do better than him.
• Option #2: Consistently tell Jane about how amazing she is. Telling Jane that she is an incredible person will make her feel valued and will make her want to stay with him.

These “options” can be applied to the management of people. If you are a leader of successful workers, you’ll clearly want to keep them. In essence, you have two options.

• Option #1: Never express how amazing your employees are. If you let them know how much of an asset they are, they may want to “move up the ladder” and leave you in the dust.
• Option #2: Consistently tell your employees that they are a huge asset. If you make them feel valued and appreciated, they will work harder and will want to keep you as their leader.

As DECA members, we are leaders. As leaders, we have the responsibility of managing people. Which of the foregoing options do you think is best? How do you want to treat the people you lead? Don’t take this decision lightly.

DECA Wishes,

Micah Melling

Central Region Vice President