Who Am I?

I recently received the gift of Sirius Radio for my car so I can now indulge in my love of Broadway musicals (and jazz and bluegrass and reggae…). Earlier this week I listened to the opening piece from A Chorus Line, which closes with a single voice singing “Who am I anyway, am I my resume? That is a picture of a person I don’t know. What does he want from me, How should I try to be?”

Introspection can be very helpful so from time to time I like to re-examine hows and whys of my professional life. It's important to stay true to our core values. For those of you who haven’t yet had the opportunity to work with me, here are some insights regarding my values:

People are your most valuable resource.
All employees deserve to be treated with respect and dignity.
Behavioral changes take time. Sending someone for training with no follow up or positive encouragement from management dooms the training to failure and lowers morale.
Expect the best and you will get it. Just make sure people are given the right tools to make it happen.
It’s OK to fire someone for non-performance.
Just because a person reports to you doesn’t mean they couldn’t do your job – sometimes they’ve simply made different life decisions.
All managers, supervisors and business owners are responsible for coaching people to success.
Yelling in the office is unacceptable. (unless the place is on fire)
Employment is a two way street: employees should earn their compensation; employers should treat people as more than just a pair of replaceable hands.
People want to do a good job.

For more insights and a few of my “rules”, follow me on twitter. @kirbyjt