45 manager tattoos. Rules of the Russian leader (M. Batyrev)

Abstract

The titles of the chapters in this book are tattoos. This is a set of principles and rules, proven by many years of practice of a successful manager, his everyday and organizational experience. These are simple and vivid stories about how and why you need to do business if you want to succeed. Behind each of these chapters are meaningful actions, someone’s pain, anguish, joys, good and bad experiences, dismissals and leadership, and most importantly — the desired result.

Resolution: study, outline, comprehend, apply!

You need to read this book. Thoughtfully. Leisurely. If you are a leader or want to become one. If you are successful and if not so. Why? It was written by a PROFESSIONAL. A person who systematized and described his WAY. To success. Warning: not good luck. To success.

You may be asking: what is success? And add: well, you know, this is such a complicated concept … Of course. You’re right. But there is one sign that takes into account all the nuances. A successful person, when asked if you are happy, answers: Yes. He does not say: well … happiness … you know … it is different for everyone …

This is a book about management. There are millions of management books. But this book was written by a professional. And he described in it the rules, the effectiveness and significance of which he tested on himself. And so he has the right to share with you.

You may ask: what are the guarantees? None. For there is no technology that will allow you not to use your head. That is why I put such a resolution in the title.

The management rules from Maxim Batyrev (he is known by the nickname Kombat) are specific, practical, efficient and reasonable. They are based on the principles of effective management. Therefore, if you start using them, you will see: the work of your subordinates becomes more meaningful, responsible and productive.

Will it be easy to apply these rules? Perhaps not. And it won’t work right away. Because using any new skill requires changing your habits. But it is precisely our current habits that do not allow us to be at the desired point in the world. So that…

True, there is another way. For example, sit under the tree and wait for Santa Claus. Or buy “happiness pills”, especially since there are a huge number of sellers.

Is it enough to learn these rules to become an effective leader? No. There is no sufficient knowledge in management. The leader follows the path of the warrior. And he knows that the pinnacle of mastery is unattainable, but every day is given to us in order to get one step closer to it. And the master is not the one who has reached the heights, but the one who is always on the way. Therefore, Maxim Batyrev is a master. And his rules are noteworthy.

Perhaps some rules will frighten the leaders of the beautiful and quivering, who are eager to turn their structures into a flock of joyfully fluttering contented moths, joyfully and enthusiastically working under the guidance of a wise and kind boss. And they regularly bring him buckets of nectar. If you are a bit like the type described, then you should not read this book. To avoid, as they say. Because it does not contain a word about any kind of «corporate values» with which many people try to «feed» their companies in the hope of a result. I have read many such documents. They all sound like a bad translation of the Bible. And none work. What surprises the authors.

So, Maxim’s rules work. If you apply them, and do not limit yourself to reading the text.

Do I agree with Maxim Kombat Batyrev in everything? No. Some questions I propose to solve in a different way. But for Maxim — the result, so his technique should be studied. And as the great Confucius taught us, «… there are different ways to achieve a result.»

In 2013, I celebrate the twentieth anniversary of my work in the profession. I have trained many leaders. But when my technologies are approved by leaders — masters such as Maxim — this is a separate pleasure and special pride.

Recommend. Unless, of course, you are interested in the result.

Dedicated to my main teachers Valery Vladimirovich and Tatyana Vitalievna BATYREV

Any resemblance to real people, please consider an accident.

During the writing of the book, not a single person or animal was harmed.

From the author

The boomerang was invented in Australia. And what would happen if it was invented in Russia?

Why do we need a boomerang? We have rakes!

Joke from KVN

They say that everyone wants to write a book. At the same time, there are a thousand reasons why this should be done “later”. The last time, a couple of years ago, I came up with this reason for myself: I don’t have enough convincing arguments for managers (that’s what I call managers, not sales people at all) to buy this book.

Having become the winner in the all-Russian contests «Commercial Director of the Year 2012» (it was held by Salecraft), «Manager of the Year 2012» (organized by the International Academy of Management and the Government of Moscow) and entered the TOP-1000 of the best managers of the country according to the Kommersant Publishing House, I am found the arguments. Here, for example: the company Chto Delat Consult, in which I am one of the directors, has become the undisputed leader in its industry for the fifth year in a row.

We have not always been leaders, and I have not always been a director. Strategic management consultant Tigran Harutyunyan says that my success is not a classic case for world practice: I managed to achieve it in just eleven years, without connections, setbacks, European education, but with a thousand mistakes, a hundred falls and serious tests like a four-hour sleep per night for several years.

Why should a top manager write a book? Not a consultant who will sell his name and services thanks to her, and not a business owner who will publicize his company in this way? Top manager — why?

For example, because we have practically no domestic books that hired managers write for hired managers. At the same time, we have orders of magnitude more hired managers than owners and consultants.

It first.

Having made my way from a small seller to the winner of a federal-scale professional competition, I want to share my experience. I want to show my rake, which I stepped on and stuffed myself with bumps, my successes and failures, so that it would be easier for other hired managers or those who want to become one to rise and revive our country.

Secondly, this book is then that you need to be able to be grateful. Those people from whom you learn both good and bad. Teachers, managers, staff and loved ones.

Everything that is described here took place within the same organization — in the company «What to do Consult», which turns 2013 years old in 20. The book shows our organization from the inside — with all the difficulties, problems, inner kitchen. Sometimes it happens like this: you read about a cool company, and a lump rolls up in your throat, it becomes disgusting from pretense and falsehood. Everything is true here. Here is about fate with its twists and turns and how we went straight together.

I tried very hard to make it easy to read, because I hate cautionary tales like “how to become a successful/billionaire in 24 hours” or management recipe books. After all, even if you absolutely accurately reproduce all the technologies and methods from such books, they will not work without a solid foundation on which your company and your division are built. And the foundation is, first of all, the principles by which you conduct business. In this book, I refer to the principles as tattoos because they are permanently imprinted on me after various events in my life. From a blow to the jaw to waterfalls of female tears. These are my rakes, these are my bumps, these are my tattoos. My leader Olga Firsovna Samokhina says that in this book I expose my managerial heart to the reader and that not everyone can decide to take such a step.

The title of each chapter is a tattoo left for a long memory by the lessons that the fate of the manager and other sharp turns of life taught me. They will never disappear from my memory, like real tattoos from the body, and always accompany me.

My main goal is to explain why it is necessary to conduct business in the ways described here if you want to succeed. Behind each new chapter lie meaningful actions, someone’s pain, anguish, joys, good and bad experiences, ups and downs, dismissals and leadership, and most importantly — the desired result.

And further. I know that this book will be read by people who have a dissenting opinion on any subject. There are plenty of these everywhere. So, if you have a desire to criticize me, argue with me, then you don’t need to do this. This is my experience, this is my life, this is my way, and I think they are right. I have no claims to be an expert or the ultimate truth, and I do not impose my opinion on you. But I know for sure: any person is always in one of only two states — protection or training. Reading this book, you can learn, and you can swear.

I’m finishing. Before you start looking at my tattoos, I will remember one of my favorite sayings. Leonardo da Vinci said it.

All people are divided into three types:

— those who see

— those who see when they are shown,

— those who do not see.

I wish you to see always and everywhere!

1. First learn to play by the rules, then invent your own

Workers should come to dance evenings in light clothes and shoes. Dancing in working and sports clothes is prohibited.

Dancing in a distorted way is prohibited.

The dancer must perform the dance correctly, clearly and equally well with both the right and left foot.

A woman has the right to politely express displeasure at a man’s failure to comply with the prescribed distance of three centimeters and demand an explanation in a polite manner.

Smoking and laughing should be in specially designated areas.

Rules of conduct at dance parties, USSR, 1974

In some not very memorable business book (I apologize in advance to the author), I read a particularly memorable example about how wonderful it is to break the rules. Since I don’t remember the author and the source, I will convey the meaning of what I read close to the text:

Breaking the rules is great! Only those who break the rules can achieve truly outstanding results. Let’s look at my statement using Hollywood as an example. It has long been known that Hollywood has a formula for success that generates hundreds of millions of dollars in box office receipts. This formula has three components:

1) the film should not run for more than two hours;

2) the film must have a happy ending;

3) the main character must stay alive at the end.

And then James Cameron appeared on the scene with «Titanic» — a film that changed the entire film industry! He broke every possible rule!

1) the film is almost 3,5 hours long;

2) at the end, almost all the characters die, including …

3) … the main character.

As you know, this film was the first in history to gross more than a billion dollars at the box office around the world and still continues to hold the first position in the ratings!

Learn from James Cameron! He didn’t follow the rules and won!

When I read this, I got angry.

Guys, what are you doing?! But what about «Terminator», «Aliens», «True Lies»?

All those films that made Cameron famous, hits that broke box office records, are made by the rules of Hollywood! Is not it so?

I’m not just annoyed, I’m infuriated by the trend that has been observed over the past few years and clogs the brains of the younger generation: “You don’t need to study! Bill Gates and Steve Jobs had no education and became billionaires! Universities and schools do not give anything!”

But nothing that they plowed like damned twenty hours a day? Nothing that they were geniuses, that such people can be counted on the fingers of one hand — and there are several billion of us on the planet?

A newfangled wave — the Business Youth community keeps saying: “Don’t work for your uncle! Open your companies guys! Here is a sixteen-year-old girl, Olya from Syktyvkar, who started washing windows — and now she earns 40 USD every month!”

And what will happen to Olya in five years?! She won’t learn anything! She’s been cleaning windows all her life!

No need to read! Someone is trying to impose their opinion on you and brainwash you! Be free, do what you want!

But what about the development of the mind, spurring one’s own imagination, the formation of personal beliefs based on basic knowledge? ..

Sometimes it reminds me of a strange kind of genocide — intellectual. It is even sometimes scary what will happen to those who are fourteen or fifteen now, ten years from now.

I deeply believe that in any society you must first learn to play by the rules, and I constantly tell my employees who are looking for the “magic buttons” of success.

And the boxing section, which I got into just at the age of fourteen, taught me this.

… Back in 1995, after the next series of «Rocky», I decided that it was time to become a boxer.

When I rode the bus for the first time to the neighboring city for the first boxing class, I imagined, as if in reality, the ring, the title of the absolute world champion, thousands of fans, hands stretching the champion’s belt over my head, the unhappy face of my opponent and beautiful women lining up in queue for an autograph.

Mom and dad, after much persuasion, found money for real men’s sports, and even bought me new sneakers. I went into the hall, saw a group of older comrades boxing in the ring (in a real ring!), A dozen punching bags, stern male faces with flat noses and a hefty coach. Everything was like in a movie.

«Hey newbie! Get in line!» they called to me.

There were twenty-five of us. I expected that they would give us punching bags and start teaching us how to hit correctly, but we were forced to run around the ring. Sixty circles.

After that, the coach said that we are free and can go home.

Of course, I was discouraged by this development of events, but I thought that this was a test of strength, and I came next time. We were made to run sixty laps and another ten to squat. And we were not taught to beat the villains again.

The third time was the same as the second, and the fourth the same as the third, plus 10 laps of running, but only backwards.

I was indignant and annoyed. How so? Where is my championship belt?! Where is the setting of blows to the jaw? Where is the instruction on how to correctly insert the mouthguard and spit into the bucket that the assistant coach is holding near you?!

After the fifth time, I could not stand it and went to the coach.

— Something I don’t understand, is there a section of runners around the ring or a real men’s club?

— We are developing a breather. Before you can be taught anything, boys, you need to learn how to breathe.

— I can breathe, let’s teach me how to box!

— Wait, everything should be in order.

“I want gloves and a sparring partner. Teach me to fight, not run!

The trainer smiled, called the squat guy, whispered something in his ear and said that in the next lesson he would spar with me.

Before the fight, I watched “Rocky” again, setting myself up for the main battle in my life, kneading my fists, cracking my knuckles, twisting my head, bouncing like a real boxer, imagining how I would someday stand on a pedestal and shed a tear to the Russian anthem .

And here it is, this moment! The trainer, grinning slightly, put on gloves for me, laced up the helmet and put a real mouth guard in my mouth. It was strange for me, but I knew that every real boxer went through it. Ring, give me the ring!

Twenty-four pairs of eyes from the nursery followed me with envious glances. My opponent looks calm, he is not wearing a helmet, which means that we must immediately hit the jaw!

I run up to him, swinging like an ancient Russian hero in an open field. Hit. Oh, there is no opponent, he is already jumping from behind and smiling. Ah well! Will you run from me? On you!

…He’s gone again.

In general, this went on for about five minutes, after which I felt a slight dizziness and wild thirst. I had nothing to breathe in this fucking helmet, my gloves got heavy, and my legs generally became lead. As you can imagine, none of my hits hit the target.

And then my opponent appears out of nowhere in front of me and beats me with his right hand, which for some reason looks terribly like a reinforced concrete beam. Although the sympathetic comrades who watched me told me that he only kicked me lightly, it did not seem so to me. At the moment of falling into the ring, I thought that a freight train had run into me.

This was my last fight and a good lesson for those guys who supported me at first and also didn’t want to just run around the ring. After that, they abruptly changed their minds and ran their marathon with great joy.

Since then, I have a tattoo on my jaw: “First learn to play by the rules, then invent your own.”

The boxer did not come out of me, but I remembered the lesson for the rest of my life. Wherever I have appeared since then, I have learned to play by the rules of the system, trying to understand the nature of those rules and the motives behind them.

It’s the same in business. In life too. You can’t earn a million at once if you haven’t learned how to earn cu. You can’t become a director if you haven’t led a department. You can’t attract many clients if you haven’t learned to understand what drives them. Etc.

You should always learn to play by the rules and not look for magic buttons.

Even if James Cameron personally tells you how to break the rules, you are unlikely to succeed in Avatar.

And the probability that you are Steve Jobs is 1:7.

2. Read, comprehend. Train the main muscle

How to develop imagination if you are fed ready-made images all the time?

Doublethink means consciously believing a lie, knowing that it is a lie!

Examples from everyday life: “you have to be beautiful to be happy”, “I need an operation to become beautiful”, “I have to be thin, famous, fashionable” …

Young men are taught that girls are whores, females, things.

They can be beaten, humiliated… This is a marketing holocaust!!!

Around the clock, all our lives, those in power stupefy us! Therefore, in order to protect ourselves from the penetration of this stupidity into our thinking, we must learn to read!

We must stimulate our own imagination, develop our minds, stand up for our beliefs, believe in them! We must be able to do this in order to preserve and preserve our own personality.

«Teacher for the change». Monologue of the teacher in front of the students

They say that collecting anything is not normal.

I’m very abnormal in many ways. You could even say that I’m a fetishist. And one of my strongest addictions is books.

I have been reading all my adult life. Definitely thanks to my parents, for which a special thank you to them.

I remember how in the first grade those comrades who tested us under an hourglass for speed reading were amazed: I finished the paragraphs that had to be read in a minute by the middle of the deadline.

In the fifth grade in the city library, the children’s literature that I had not read ended. I had to switch to «adult» books.

My parents signed me up for four or five periodicals, which I devoured the same day they were dropped into the mailbox.

I remember when I studied at a military school, the surprise of classmates. I was the only cadet subscribed to newspapers, and I devoured books one by one. In senior years, we were given as much as 1200 cu in scholarships, and we had to go to Moscow, to publishing houses, because it was cheaper that way. Extremely pleased with myself, I brought back stacks of books and joyfully nailed another shelf to the wall of a small dorm room. My roommate was, alas, not happy.

But when I got a job, I had no desire to read professional literature. I honestly tried, and nothing worked: I perceived the advice of the authors of business literature as an attempt to teach me how to live. Me! A twenty-two-year-old, «adult» man with «colossal worldly experience», some unfamiliar uncles and aunts are trying to teach how to live! Let them go!

My first supervisor, N.A., very actively insisted that I read one business book on negotiation. I remember very well that it was a book by Asya Barysheva, a well-known sales business coach. I had to force myself, because the pressure of the leader was stronger than the unwillingness to learn from strangers.

Looking ahead, I’ll say: ten years later, by the time her third book, Selling Like an Adult, came out, Asya was already a good friend of mine. She devoted an entire chapter to the work of the unit I lead.

The tricks, tools and techniques from that book worked, I got my first sales, and, of course, I began to swallow professional literature without chewing. My library grew exponentially, and business books became a drug.

According to my own assessment, most of my personal achievements are related to what I read, and with subsequent reflection, which quickly turns into action.

Nevertheless, very, very many people did not understand why I spend 1000-3000 — 5000, and sometimes even 10 USD per month on books. They literally twisted a finger at the temple and said that I was crazy. Yes, I really was. But people who do not read always remained somewhere behind, in place, continuing to twist their fingers. And those who read grew with me by leaps and bounds. And I was very glad that I managed to get several dozen people hooked on this drug.

Do you know what is the most interesting? A lot of people, having started reading, say: “What a fool I was that I didn’t start earlier!”

And I confess honestly: books are investments that return.

All the money spent was returned within a couple of months …

Once Igor Mann conducted a seminar in our company. He said that he reads everywhere and now in his piggy bank about six hundred books on business. Then I caught fire and decided to beat his record. I read the six hundredth when I was in my early thirties.

The books dragged on. Need to learn how to coach? I studied the writings of smart people and extracted something of my own from ten books. Need to learn how to interview? I bought publications for journalists and turned knowledge into skills. Explore leadership? Recruitment? Delegations? Motivation? Copywriting? Blogging? Dozens of volumes, thousands of pages on every subject!

One day, a photo of my bookcase, posted on the Mann, Ivanov and Ferber Facebook page, won a bookcase competition, for which I was given a couple more autographed books.

At work, a wardrobe with sagging shelves did not look very attractive, and we created a library of our company from these books — let employees read and develop.

Nevertheless, not everyone was able to infect everyone by personal example. A lot of people didn’t want to read. Until now, I sometimes hear strange phrases like: “Yes, what can I read there? Life will teach me.» Or: “All these American models will never suit our Russian business.”

I still think that people who don’t even try to start reading just came up with a steel alibi for themselves, which cover up their own weakness and laziness.

Although there are other, special people. They just read. I met one of these comrades a few years ago and for a long time could not understand why books pass through him like water through a sieve. It turned out that this person reads business literature like an ordinary book. And he does not understand the information received at all. He doesn’t even reflect on what he has read. I read it and everything.

I could not even imagine that people can read differently from me. But when I met this man — and he, you know, just raised his intellectual level and turned into a good theoretician — then I got a tattoo: “READ AND COMPREHENSIVE WHAT YOU READ!”

It was this reading that helped me. If I didn’t apply ideas and tricks from someone else’s successful business experience, I would have given up on the third book and would have stopped reading. I would be convinced, like others, that “there is no point”, and quit.

But even this is not the most important thing.

Now a difficult text will go, but please tighten up. What follows is very serious.

Talking with many people, I came to the conclusion that the level of intelligence and creativity is in direct proportion to the quality and quantity of stimuli that our brain receives. Like any muscle, any muscle develops through exercise. The more and more often we use our creative “muscle”, or, more simply, the brain, the stronger it will become. In short, the brain needs to be trained.

It is probably not a secret for anyone that not a single living system (human organism, collective, country, tree, cauliflower) can remain in a neutral state. It either degrades or develops. No other is given. It can develop solely from the influence of external factors, or incentives. If there is no incentive, the system begins to degrade. At the same time, incentives can also be destructive if they are of poor quality. Poor-quality stimulus for the human brain can be, for example, «Dom-2» on TNT, or for the stomach — semi-finished products with the addition of an infinite amount of carcinogens.

Lack of incentives leads to the death of the system. This is the essence of evolution: everything that does not find use in us, nature simply takes back. Some fish living in the depths of the ocean do not have eyes. The reason is that these fish do not use sight, and everything that is not used gradually atrophies. And vice versa: everything that we use and constantly train is filled with strength.

This means that the more a person reads books about sales, communications, management, marketing (yes, about anything!), the more often new ideas for business, for personal effectiveness come to his mind.

And therefore, every day such people understand the essence, the meanings, the logic of what they are passionate about better and better. And this, in turn, happens because the brain responds to the stimuli we give it.

In short, just like that, a brilliant idea cannot come to mind.

Now about the quality of incentives.

Recently I read a short story about Academician Natalya Petrovna Bekhtereva in Chief Time magazine. This is the scientific director of the Institute of the Human Brain of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

The gist of the article was as follows. SCIENTIFICLY ESTABLISHED what happens in the brain under a variety of influences.

When a person begins to do something new, the whole brain first turns on, which begins to work actively. Gradually, its various areas begin to turn off, and only those necessary for current operational activities remain in working condition. Therefore, if a person has been engaged in “stereotypical” activities all his life — for example, he stands behind a conveyor belt and does not read anything new, but spends his free time playing dominoes — then only two parts of the brain are involved: one is responsible for the conveyor belt, and the other for dominoes.

So now the most important thing. The rest of the brain has atrophied.

And at the age of 40, this person will never be able to learn a foreign language. This part of the brain, underloaded with stimuli, got used to not working for many years — and stopped working.

Here is an excerpt from an article about Natalya Bekhtereva: “When I worked with patients who had difficulty with memory, and asked them: “Do you read a lot?” “Yes, all the newspapers.” And then all our newspapers were almost the same, and I answered: “If you don’t read something else, then I don’t envy your old age.” You need to practice at least a variety of reading.

If you want to have strong arms, you need to pump the muscles in your arms.

If you want to have strong legs, you have to run and squat.

If you want to think fast, make quick decisions and make discoveries, you need to pump the most important muscle in the body — our precious brain.

By reading professional literature, you begin to understand the concepts and meaning of doing business. And you get stronger.

Reading fiction, you begin to understand life. And you become wiser. By the way, tabloid novels are a low-quality stimulus.

Communicating with smart and successful people, you perceive their experience and become closer to success yourself.

You start to understand Eastern culture, watch smart movies, master any new and high-quality skills and theories — and your muscle will work at full capacity, driving your development. If you dodge, it will atrophy and degrade. Or, if you prefer, numb.

So read, master what you read and train the most important muscle in the body. And don’t forget to get yourself a tattoo, right on your forehead. I have one. Helps!

3. Give up wrong strategies — this is a manifestation of strength

In the village lived a stubborn donkey,

He nibbled grass without a care.

I ate oats, but did not obey my mother

And he did the opposite.

Disobeying your mother — is it possible?

Even the elephant was surprised

But the stubborn donkey did not obey his mother,

Therefore, the donkey grew up.

children’s poem

In 2000, I was only a year away from graduating from the Serpukhov Higher Military Command Engineering School of the Strategic Missile Forces of the Russian Federation. I have already more than adapted and gained strength, I had many friends and like-minded people, and, of course, I wanted to become a real officer. I very clearly imagined splashes of champagne at graduation, golden shoulder straps on a white coat and distribution somewhere in the Kansk region or, with luck, Teikovo with further service on the glorious Topol-M.

Just at the same time, my father retired from the same troops on the basis of seniority. I don’t know what kind of fraud was carried out at that moment in the Ministry of Defense, but after twenty-seven years of service, the lieutenant colonel of the Armed Forces of our country was left without a housing certificate, which was required for all military pensioners.

After that, my father considered it his duty not to let me make a career as an officer. One Sunday he came to visit me at the school. The conversation was heavy. I really did not want to throw the distance a hundred meters before the finish line. I was one of the best cadets in my company, over the past three years I have not received a single B in my certificate, and I even had my thesis written. In addition, youthful romance played in me, the state of uncertainty in the «citizen» was frightening.

But my father insisted. “Son, this is the wrong life strategy. I’ve already served more than half my life for the two of us. This is enough for you too, we have paid our debt to the country. If you think that deviating from the intended strategies is a weak position, you are mistaken. This is a manifestation of power — to direct your life in a different direction and manifest yourself in a different direction.

Of course, after such words, I stopped wanting to become an officer and went to Moscow to transfer to a civilian university.

I have remembered this lesson for the rest of my life.

It is always a pity to give up what you create around you, what you acquire, what you know and know. Here everything is so familiar, but there, in the unknown, it is scary and unclear. Better a titmouse in the hands than a giraffe in the clouds.

But you still need to be able to change the strategy. You need to be able to turn off the path, look for other behaviors, try something new, sometimes take a step back if, after pushing around, you understand that you can’t achieve what you wanted so much.

Sometimes I have to fire people as managers because they can’t do it. This is unpleasant not only for them, but also for me, I’ll tell you. It is not an easy task to tell a person that he did not cope, and at the same time leave him to work in a company in another position. People in such cases are clearly divided into two categories: some do not want to hear anything, “cling” to the position, try to stay in the big boss’s chair with tricks, persuasion and manipulation, and when it doesn’t work out, they leave the company. The second is much harder, but they hold on with dignity and take a step back. In my experience, these employees, abandoning the old strategy, win XNUMX percent of the time. They return to previous positions where their activities were effective and efficient. Former executives have the opportunity to look at business with different eyes. Knowing what and how happens at a higher level and how decisions are made there, these people begin to work even more fruitfully and, as a rule, show themselves to be real experts in all matters at their new / old level.

I once read an interview with a Japanese top manager who claimed that the most important lesson in his life was demotion. This allowed him later to achieve serious career and professional success.

A change in strategy, including abandoning a previously chosen one, can lead to excellent results. The most important thing is the position of the strong. The conscious position of a hardened, courageous person.

People who resist when they fail to implement their strategy, and at the same time do not change the ways of achieving the goal and hold on to their strategy with their hands and feet, are weaklings. They look pitiful. How many times have I seen how, for the sake of the inscription on the business card “head of department”, people changed jobs, left for small gray organizations for a lower salary, but remained “with shoulder straps”.

And it happens that people from the outside come to the interview for the position of the head. I tell them: “It’s all right, we are ready to start working with you, but you have to show yourself, work for two, three, four months with clients. If it is confirmed that you are really capable of selling in the field, we will appoint you. It’s important in our business.» Sometimes, from such my words, they literally begin to shake. And under the pretext that “he already spent a WHOLE 1,5 years of his life on a line position of a specialist and working with clients”, these “leaders” go to the same small gray organization for a salary less than they would receive from us, being specialists.

From the outside, this does not seem like a strong position. A person cannot change his personal strategy — «to be the leader of someone and somewhere» — and this sometimes becomes funny.

Many will ask me, but what about the example of Thomas Edison, who tried to invent a light bulb 6000 times? Well, firstly, this is an exception, and secondly, Edison himself said: “I was not mistaken 6000 times. I just came up with 5999 ways why it doesn’t work.» He tried again every time and changed strategy all the time.

Let me give you a tougher example. Let me tell you about the founder of Boffo business literature boutique Dima Lebedev, whom we met in the summer of 2012. A very competent and pleasant guy who wanted to change the world. He created a really cool company with a cool client-oriented approach, he resisted for a very long time, worked very hard, was very worried about his offspring, but he did not change the strategy. Maybe Boffo was ahead of its time, maybe its time has not come yet, maybe we will never be able to create a mass demand for cool business literature, or maybe some manager’s toggle switch will switch someday, but Dimina history is known to all. He sold everything he could, including an apartment, did not go on vacation for several years, but he never taught people to read much about business.

And then he changed his strategy and began to earn his first money on tea and coffee boutiques, US dollars and shirts, dishes and cookbooks, even on beer. All under the Boffo brand. I am happy for Dima and I want everything to work out for him. As honestly as he is, few people work in our country. But, if he had not changed the strategy, the brand could have disappeared with him.

Do not give up the chosen strategy if nothing works out, bang your head against the same wall, keep your strategy, even though you are slowly sinking — this is the position of a public victim. “I will be true to my ideals, and for them I will die young. Look, look at how bad I feel, but I am a patriot of my strategy … »

To abandon an incorrectly chosen strategy means to show common sense, the ability to take control of the situation, apply the brakes in time, and turn the steering wheel in time. Let them laugh at you and say that you lost, since you stopped. Let’s see what will happen to these people, who will be the very last one who laughs well.

I think that Dima Lebedev has a tattoo all over his back: “REJECT WRONG STRATEGIES. THIS IS STRENGTH.”

I have one too. My father made it for me.

4. What is obvious to you is not obvious to others.

— Maxim, have you heard Elena Vaenga’s new song “I Stand Alone Again”?

— Dad, I don’t know who Elena Vaenga is.

— How, son, you DO NOT KNOW VAENGA ?! Everyone knows her!

— But not me…

Recent conversation with father

On July 29, 2002, I came to work for the Chto Delat Consult company, with which I connected my future life.

I got there, like most of my friends, by accident. After graduation, he was looking for a job in his specialty and came to get a job as a service engineer. Employees of the personnel service, having magically recognized the talent of a negotiator in me, assured me that they would teach me this. So I ended up here.

I want to immediately draw attention to the following aspects.

I haven’t worked in a commercial organization for a single day, all my classes before that were like Tom Sawyer’s.

I didn’t know why they recognized me as a negotiator, since I had never worked with clients either.

Before that, I spent four years in the army, where I was somewhat isolated from the developing society, which sometimes made me feel like a savage.

Moscow was not then a city of opportunities for me. The place where there was work, whereas in my homeland it was extremely difficult to find work.

And here it is, the first day of work. My first supervisor, N.A., gives me the task of visiting a client on the other side of Moscow, a disk with a demo version of ConsultantPlus, and some instructions that I forgot about as soon as I got down to the subway.

The negotiations, in my opinion, went remarkably well. Nobody kicked me out of the door, they didn’t shout at me, they listened to me, politely saying that, probably, someday the information would come in handy, and they sent me back.

I was afraid of N.A., I did not know what to expect from her. When she saw me, she said: “Fill out the report. Come back in half an hour.» What report? Where to donate? How to fill?

I didn’t like this situation. And for some reason I was embarrassed to ask, because I didn’t know anyone, they didn’t approach me to get acquainted either, people around were minding their own business. So he sat like an idol, looking at the flickering screen of the monitor. A disgusting feeling.

My two roommates were talking, I overheard their conversation out of the corner of my ear, and then (oh, miracle!) One of them says: “I’m going to N.A. in 5 minutes, I still have to fill out a report”, takes out an application paper to leave, turns sheet and starts filling in the fields. Ah, that’s it! I took out my sheet, turned it over, began to study carefully, slowly filling in what I understood. But what, for example, “Segment: BJ, KM, KGS, K, S, M, Gar”, I did not guess.

Somehow, groaning, an hour and a half later he hobbled over to N.A. and began to hand over to her a half-filled report.

– And why didn’t you issue an invoice to the client, since there was an interest in us?

What to say? What I did not know about the need to issue an invoice to the client and for the first time I hear about it? That I have no idea what an invoice is and how to issue one? That it’s my first day on the job and I can count on being treated like a newbie? That on the first day I don’t want to seem stupid, so I don’t admit to N.A. that I don’t understand a damn thing?

Without waiting for an answer, N.A. shouted to one of the seasoned employees:

— Vaclav, help the newcomer to issue an invoice!

Vatslav, without bothering for a long time, did something quickly, quickly called someone, found out the account number, poked something on the calculator. Five minutes later I had a freshly printed bill in my hands.

What should I do with him next, I didn’t imagine at all, since the words “issue an invoice to the client” didn’t add up to a single meaning for me. I remotely understood who the clients were and what the invoice was, I understood well what the word “issue” meant, since in the army we posted sentries around protected objects, but the phrase “issue the client an invoice” definitely did not fit into the framework. My intuition was failing me at that moment, and it was scary to ask, so that they would not think that I was “special”. What to do, I did not know.

N.A., passing by, asked:

— Well, did you send the bill?

Oops! Now also «sent». How to send it? «Post of Russia», or what?

“No,” I say, “I didn’t send it.

— Well, there’s a fax. Go send it quickly.

It was felt that my leader was already starting to get annoyed.

Probably, many people, reading all this, think that I am a narrow-minded person. Only I don’t believe you’re born with the ability to send a fax. In 2002, I couldn’t either. After standing for about three minutes over a strange machine called Fax, I realized that it was not only the first, but also the last day of my work. Now I’ll slow down a little more, and they’ll fire me. I also understood that the client needed to deliver the bill, so I got ready, dressed and went to the other end of Moscow. The client was surprised when she saw me for the second time that day, I smiled, handed her the bill and said:

— The manager asked me to give you an invoice, as you have shown interest in our services. Here, take it, please.

— Maxim, but why did you go? They would fax it to me.

“I decided to do it personally. I thought it was better, — I said and went back.

I had already been searched in the office, and I received a scolding from N.A. for leaving without warning for a client. But since I understood that this was my last day and there was nothing more to be afraid of, I told her without any hesitation that I did not know how to send a fax, but I completed the task of delivering the bill. To which I received a logical answer:

What was hard to ask?

I answered yes, because I wasn’t used to running around and asking questions, I wasn’t used to the fact that everyone is left to himself, I wasn’t used to guessing about certain things.

That I don’t know where the report is, how to fill it out and when to submit it.

What is an invoice, how to issue it, for what, at what moments and whom to call to get an invoice number.

What is a fax and how to send it.

That I do not understand local abbreviations such as BJ, KM and others.

We agreed with N.A. that I would ask her about everything that I did not understand, and that she would explain everything to me, but only after I asked. And that I should learn it. That this is not an army, where they think for you, and you are a performer.

I remember the evening after the first day of work.

I rode the train, looked at the trees flying outside the window and thought: if I ever become a leader, I will never make my subordinates feel the way I had today. Confused, frightened, stupid sucker.

During these two hours, my first working tattoo was formed: «WHAT IS OBVIOUS TO ME, IS NOT OBVIOUS TO OTHERS.» It subsequently became Rule #1 of my management style. And in working with clients, by the way, she also helps a lot.

I always treat every young applicant, employee, trainee with understanding and work with him as a mentor, spend the first days and weeks telling how we usually work, by what rules, what is the result of the work, to whom on what issues you can and you need to apply, and so on … All this happens on my initiative, I do not wait for a person to find himself in an uncomfortable situation, because he may not admit that he does not know or understand something. I remember how I felt myself when I was a beginner.

And to all the moans of managers who lament that their employees are weak and slow-witted, not like “we were in our time”, that they don’t even know how to work with a database, that they don’t even prepare for negotiations, that they don’t even ask clients for elementary things, that they don’t read such and such books, I always answer with a question: “Did you tell him that this is how it should be? Did you teach him?»

«So it’s elementary!» I hear in response.

And I always say the same thing: «WHAT IS OBVIOUS TO YOU IS NOT OBVIOUS TO OTHERS.»

This rule is important for the leader of any link, and it is always with me.

5. Look for the strong, the weak will stick by themselves

To wisely live life, you need to know a lot.

Two important rules to remember for a start:

You better starve, than what horrible there is,

And it’s better to be alone than with just anyone.

Omar Khayyam

If you say you can, you are right.

If you say you can’t, you’re right too.

Henry Ford

Perhaps, in all books about personal happiness, about achievements, efficiency, effectiveness, and so on and so forth, you will find advice of something like this: to become strong, you need to communicate with strong people.

I will not be an exception, with only one caveat: in order to communicate with the strong, you need to make an effort, because they don’t need you in FIG. But the weak are needed, they must drink someone’s blood …

And now a little story.

On July 29, 2002, when I was hired, one more comrade was hired besides me. I immediately nicknamed him Gudk, by the similarity of his surname with this nickname.

Hooter was a strange character, with a scar on half his head. He was very fond of baseless show off, and in the inner pocket of his jacket he always carried a flat bottle of cognac with a volume of 0,25, which he used during lunch, and sometimes, as it seemed to me, breakfast.

Since we came on the same day, at least something united us, and we spent our free time from clients together. Gudok kept talking about how cool he was at his old job, when he ran a warehouse and made money from fish and rubber boots. The warehouse, he said, was a real goldmine. All this he was broadcasting near a barrel of cheap kvass, which replaced our lunch. He also said that he knew Nasos and Borisych from Zheleznodorozhny, and that he and these boys had bet someone for two thousand dollars and would soon be rich and happy.

Not a word about the current work, not a word about why he left his gold warehouse, I could not get out of him. I didn’t talk much about myself, but Gudok, especially after a hundred grams, turned into Al Capone and endlessly narrated about his heroic showdowns, all the while confusing details in the same plots.

The only person whom Gudok was afraid of was N.A.: she had to submit reports, but oh, how she did not want to do this. Especially after Gudok went out to dinner one day. N.A. asked him to breathe, and Gudok, crimson with fear, began to mumble something, as if he had a stomach ulcer and needed to take medicine every day. N.A. asked to bring her a pack, supposedly she wanted to know the composition of such a strange medicine. Here Gudok pretended to be a hamster, blinked stupidly and blushed, trying to imperceptibly show me with gestures that I should urgently leave the office, run to the pharmacy, buy something and bring it to him. But N.A. saw his gestures, after which she said:

— So, yes. Either you stop drinking or you don’t work here.

The whistle at that moment did not at all look like a kid who bets someone for two thousand dollars on the outskirts of Zheleznodorozhny. But he looked like a small nosed koala with red ears.

After this conversation, Gudok changed. He miraculously postponed the «treatment» of his ulcer for dinner, but he began to intensively blow my mind on the topic «How bad everything is.» How hard it is to sell «ConsultantPlus» in an oversaturated market, what impudent clients and greyhound leaders we have, what miserable money we work for. In a word, the classic speech of a wimp. The classic whining of the majority of the population of our country.

This is what happens and will always happen.

Thousands of people will walk around you and complain about life, or about injustice, or something else. They want you to help them solve their problems or give them moral support and tell them they are right. And even better, you become their like-minded people. They are vampires who are looking for victims to make them vampires too.

Kind of complaining vampires who don’t want to do much but whine a lot. It’s hard to do, but it’s easy to complain. In general, I get the feeling that complaining is now fashionable. In our country, this is a way of self-expression. The more you complain, the higher your rating.

And, if you do not become Blade — a fighter against bloodsuckers from the film of the same name and do not resist this infection, vampires will take you into their community and you will also become a whiner and a weakling. What is most interesting, you do not need to look for vampires, they will find you themselves. They need you in order to make you weak, otherwise they will not feel right and right, and this is important to them.

I did not resist, and Gudok infected me. My probationary period was getting grayer and more severe, I also began to complain about life and work, and this continued until N.A. called us. She said: if we don’t have a result within a week, we will have to leave the company as not having passed the probationary period.

After this conversation, Gudok confidently walked to the subway and returned with a thick magazine «Jobs and Wages», but for some reason I really wanted to stay. Maybe because wonderful people worked here, or maybe because I did not want to go with Gudok to the vegetable warehouse.

And I began to work with tripled energy, just to achieve the result that N.A. was waiting for. But no matter how hard I tried, nothing worked out for me. Gudok smiled condescendingly and rejoiced that nothing came of it.

And then I decided to go to the coolest salesman who worked for us. Everyone called him Aleksey Sergeevich, but he didn’t even know what my name was, because he didn’t care. His suit cost eighteen times more than mine, and he was loud, funny, smiling and successful.

— Alexey, can I consult with you?

He looked at me, smiled, nodded to a chair nearby and said: «Go ahead.»

I told him that I have been working for a long time (a whole month and a half!), I can’t sell, and now there are three days left, and I will be fired if I don’t bring a single client. And I respect his success and want him to share his experience with me.

Alexei smiled again and asked me why he was helping me.

I was shocked. And even got angry. After all, he came, normally asked for help, spoke delicately, even gave him a compliment along the way. Alexey Sergeevich said:

“Understand, I will spend time on you that I could spend on myself and my clients. You may not be here in three days, but I can work well for these three days. Why should I waste time on you instead of myself?

He was clearly ironic, although I did not feel any aggression. On the contrary, he was obviously good-natured and wanted to hear something from me.

“I want to be as successful as you. I want my first job in Moscow not to be my last. I want to learn from you, Alexey Sergeevich.

Alexei Sergeevich smiled even wider, clapped his huge hand on my arm and said:

— Three beers from you in the cafe «Dzhanga» at 18:30 after work.

At first I was indignant, because at that time I had to take the train, and then it would take 2,5 hours to get home … but quickly stopped: it would be completely unreasonable to count on the fact that Alexei Sergeevich would start helping during working hours.

In general, he met with me. And the next day, too, and the next. He became Lyokha for me, and it turned out that he was three years younger than me, which I still hardly believe: I thought he was at least ten years older. He talked about the meaning of work, about the ability to hold on and fall, about the fact that you need to remain a person and be able to enjoy the little things, that you need to set goals and love your parents. Nothing special about clients, nothing practical about work.

But he burned with zest for life, he was full of positive energy and success, and my shoulders automatically straightened. I wanted to live. If Lyokha had known that in eight months I would be ahead of him in terms of results, he probably would not have bothered with me then. But I liked him clearly more than Gudok.

Now, eleven years later, I perfectly understand the words: “Communicate with strong people. Only under these conditions can you yourself become strong.” And one of my favorite tattoos says: «LOOK FOR THE STRONG, THE WEAK WILL STICK ITSELF». This tattoo was made to me by Lyokha in the Dzhanga cafe.

The strong will never come up to you and say first: “Hi! How are you? I’m strong, what’s your name? Oh, are you Weak? Do you want me to help? Do you want me to make you just like me? Hold your hand tight, let’s run into a brighter future!

Encounters with the strong must be achieved. The strong must be sought. The strong need to be equal, the strong need to take an example.

The weak will find you. And they will come with a big spoon to scoop up your dreams, hopes, good mood, faith in success and smiles with this spoon. How did Gudok do it.

My first trade went through on the last day of a two-month trial period, more precisely, in the last hour. And I stayed at Chto Delat Consult for decades. And Gudok was fired, as promised.

When he left, he said that the company was bad, but he was good, but I did not listen to him anymore. For two years he periodically called me and told me about his glorious past. I listened to him and smiled. And so he called me once again, and I happily informed him: I was appointed head of the sales department. At that moment, he worked as a security guard at a food depot and drank 0,25 cognac every evening near the metro. For some reason he never called again.

Probably found someone else to whom you can tell about Borisych from Zheleznodorozhny and rubber boots …

6. Everyone can be forgiven for making a mistake (under certain circumstances)

self-indulgent,

We are too merciless to others,

To their unlucky fate,

To their mistakes, words, passions.

We should remember, raising the sword

On the other with enviable zeal:

Even a match for the right to live

Pays with total self-immolation!

Igor Kholupsky

Each person, probably, has cases for which he is truly ashamed. I will tell about such a case of mine just now. But before that, a little about the ConsultantPlus business — it is important to understand the meaning of my misconduct.

Business «ConsultantPlus» is unusual for our country. All my friends who hear stories about working in this big network say this. The whole strength of the huge structure that unites all the cities of Russia and more than half a million legal entities lies in the fact that all RICs (regional information centers — companies representing the interests of the network in their region) work strictly and exclusively according to the rules set by the vendor.

Everything rests on executive discipline, adherence to strict service standards, a well-balanced pricing policy, compliance with marketing rules and a collective security system. In general, this business is the embodiment of the dream of any politician, since all RICs live according to the same laws that must be observed, otherwise they can simply break the distribution agreement with you and you will cease to be part of a single system. At the same time, the rules have to be observed on a voluntary-compulsory basis, since periodically each RIC is checked by specially trained employees of the ConsultantPlus Coordination Center. If you violate any rules and regulations, you can be fined a very decent amount.

Most importantly, the rules are about morality and high morality: do not give kickbacks, update the system in a timely manner, respect customers, do not bring untested products to the market, compete fairly, and so on. It is not surprising that over the past five years, ConsultantPlus has practically forced its main competitor, Garant, to capitulate, which, with all due respect, has not been going well for a long time … But once it was a fairly serious company that, when working with Potential customers should even be afraid.

And in November 2003, I had a collision with one of the dealers of our main competitor. I worked as hard as I could, but my opponents dropped the price to three times ours and watched what happened next. And then I, with my supervisor on the report, began to develop a plan to retain the benefits.

And then my manager smiles slyly and says: there is, they say, one way.

And invites me to break the rules.

I won’t go into details, I’ll just say: under certain circumstances, the price of supplying the kit could be the same as offered by our competitors.

I was somewhat shocked and even said that we have always worked honestly and that this is what distinguishes us from the bulk, but she insisted on her own. In short, I succumbed and deliberately violated the rules, and I did it under the strict guidance of the manager.

In those negotiations, for the first time in my heart, I hoped that the client would not choose us. However, with the same price offer, the client signed my contract. So I became a «violator of generally accepted rules.» Honestly, I really suffered and scrolled through that report a hundred times, after which I had to do this. And even now, ten years later, I am still experiencing that incident.

December passed, then January, followed by February and March, spring came in April, and now the time has come for the whole country to leave for the May holidays — some to summer cottages, some to Turkey.

On April 30, 2004, three hours before the start of the May holidays, my manager came into the office where our department was sitting and announced in a grave voice that «we were all caught.» Within five minutes, I found out that I was not the only such «violator», but each of us was involved in this dark matter. Ten minutes later, I found out that all of us, but each one in turn, were called by the founder of the company, Pavel Mikhailovich Gorislavtsev.

Everyone, cheerfully chirping, began to collect portfolios. Here and there, exclamations were heard: “What do they want to work in such conditions?”, “Well, it was a necessary measure”, “Let’s see how he would have acted in my place”, “We will all be fired, ha ha hah» and the like.

I don’t want to seem better than others, but I’m writing something frankly … then for some reason I didn’t want to laugh. It was a little disgusting because of everything that was going on around. And at the same time, I felt a heavy stone fall from my soul. I remember my thoughts: “Come on, answer now. The earth is round. Here comes the last hour of your work in this company.

Let me remind you: the entire business of the ConsultantPlus network is based on highly ethical norms and rules, and our founder stood at the origins of creating a business and very skillfully defends its interests.

Pavel Mikhailovich (or P. M., as we usually call him) talked with each person for about forty minutes. People came out pale, no longer joking. They came up to me, shook hands and, dragging their feet, left the office. Some didn’t even come up and say goodbye. All were fired. I didn’t expect anything else to happen to me.

The time was already 22:00, after 40 minutes the last train left the station, but this question worried me the least. I was the last one left.

I was called to the office. P.M. gave me a blank sheet of paper and told me to write an explanation of how my manager forced me to forge documents, thanks to which we were able to offer the client super-preferential conditions. I did not write and said:

— Pavel Mikhailovich, no one forced me to do this. It was a conscious act of an adult. Let me write about myself, not about my manager.

“I have a bunch of explanatory notes from other ex-employees, all about the same thing. Write and you.

— I will not hand over my leader, even if he is wrong. Punish me.

— Oh, how brave and honest! Did you bring the client in an honest way?

— Not. And I’m still in pain. I am ready to return all the money associated with the costs of this client.

— You will definitely return. Igor Yuryevich, — P. M. turned to the top manager sitting in the other corner of the office, — is he our best seller? And how did he become the best? Is this the way?

All other trades are clean. I personally checked. One is stray, but in the rating among sellers he has the first place with a wide margin from the second, so everything is legal, — said Igor Yuryevich.

I looked at the clock and realized that I would spend the night at the station today. I was so disgusted that I wanted to burn with shame or sink into the ground. I said:

— I am fully aware of my guilt and suggest not to waste time. Voice your decision. All previous decisions regarding my other colleagues are known to me, so there is no need to stand on ceremony with me separately.

P.M. lit a cigarette, said that I could be free, and started blowing clouds of smoke at the ceiling. I did not understand anything, so I asked again:

— You mean free?

— You stay with the company.

Why such a privilege?

«Because you’re the only one who thinks he made a mistake himself.» You’re the only one who doesn’t blame others. And you are the only one who is ready to do anything to correct the mistake.

“But this is a violation of established norms and procedures.

Everyone has the right to make a serious mistake, but only one. And everyone has the right to be forgiven. Under certain circumstances.

— Under what?

— With people like you. When you’re ready to come out of your skin just to restore your reputation in my eyes. Also, you take the hit. I like it.

I thanked P.M., left the office, bought a bottle of warm beer and spent one of the happiest nights of my life walking around Moscow at night. I clearly had something to think about.

After that night, I had a tattoo on my left buttock: «EVERYONE CAN BE FORGIVEN FOR A MISTAKE, BUT ONLY UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES.» You can receive forgiveness by repenting of your deed, accept the blame, be ready to make efforts to save face.

Six months later, Igor Yuryevich and Pavel Mikhailovich appointed me the head of the department. They probably knew that I would never step on that rake a second time. And I won’t give it to others.

For ten years now, I have been fiercely defending the interests of business, fanatically monitoring compliance with those same rules and regulations and forcing every employee to know and comply with these rules “from the cradle”. Because someone who, but I know exactly what our business is based on.

And the tattoo “Everyone can be forgiven for a mistake …” helped me more than once: for example, when it was necessary to return one erring employee who accidentally ended up with our competitors ….

But only under certain circumstances.

7. Do not do work for subordinates

Once, all the management of a large company was taken far away to the islands for a long training. None of the managers in the company remained.

Upon returning, it was found that all divisions of the company were divided into three categories:

1) result dropped

;2) the result has not changed

;3) the result has grown.

After that, top managers, together with the owner, made decisions.

1. Send the heads of departments where the result fell to another monthly training so that they learn how to delegate their authority.

2. Give an annual bonus to managers whose departments have remained stable in their absence.

3. Dismiss the managers of departments where the result has grown, since people without them work better than with them.

Bike from one of the management trainings

Doing work for subordinates is a classic mistake of all leaders who “grew up from below”. Or they worked, worked well and successfully, and then they were appointed managers in the same or similar division for good work. This is not even a mistake, but a trap that can deprive any young leader of any desire to be a manager.

I fell into this trap in October 2004, immediately after being appointed to my first managerial position — the head of the sales department. Please note that at that time it was a weak division, which was at the bottom of the rating of all sales departments in the company. At the same time, his previous managers were wonderful people. They were removed from their positions, and I was sent there on a rescue mission.

I was then the company’s top salesman, proud, cocky, a little dashing and silly, but absolutely knew what to do to feed myself, my family and even my friends, my mother’s dog and my cat. But then the environment around me changed: there were many people who also wanted to eat. These people were now called my subordinates.

Now I understand that with the appointment, I only began to be called a leader, but did not become one.

So what did I do? I started working as a salesperson. One for all! I decided that I, as an expert in sales, would show by personal example how to act. I knew exactly what a salesperson needs to do every day to achieve great results. And, succumbing to the temptation, he began to help his employees in what he knew best and was able to do himself. But if before I solved five problems, now I had to cope with twenty-five. Every day, for every person.

The result was stunning. The department in the first month of work took first place in the company. I was Superman, and my people understood everything and sat comfortably on my neck. They almost demanded «help» from me. Manipulations like “you can do better”, “this is a client that only you can handle”, and “teach me by example” worked perfectly. Employees got their first money, and they understood how to earn it without making any effort.

You know what’s the worst? They haven’t learned anything! The tutorial didn’t work.

The second month of work was the same. This time the second place in the company, happy employees and my cracked nerves. People again didn’t grow up a bit, and again I didn’t learn anything.

And then my boss finally came to me and said that he wanted to sit in my department for a week and watch how I build the work.

He had enough for a day. Black with anger, he called me to his office and said something like the following (profanity removed by the editor of the book):

“If I see you doing work for your subordinates again, I will fire you. Do you understand that if you go on vacation or get sick, your unit will instantly fall apart?

Most likely, at that moment, a tattoo appeared on me just below the back: “DO NOT DO WORK FOR SUBORDINATES.”

I somehow immediately understood everything and stopped. And the following month, the department again fell in the ratings to the bottom, as if there were no previous two. Only now, in addition to the horrifying result, I also received offended people who were indignant at the fact that I abruptly stopped working with their clients.

It turned out that the twenty-five actions that I performed to get the result were not at all what was needed.

It turned out that the key competencies that I possessed as a negotiator were not needed. Other five or twenty-five competencies were needed (this book is about them).

It turned out that people are not like me. Not greedy for new knowledge and skills. They don’t want to do what I did, and they don’t even understand that you need to do this if you want to get a result.

And my experience as the best seller, as it turned out, did not mean at all that I would become a good manager.

Of course, I still sometimes work with clients myself, but only if my best employees cannot cope with it, and the price of the issue is high. Or when you need to show young guys that «there is still gunpowder in the flasks and berries in the buttocks.» That is, when common sense requires it. In the situation described above, there was no smell of common sense.

Now I myself appoint people to positions of managers. And one of the main recommendations that I give to all young leaders is this: you must find a «golden mean», being able to give up your previous experience — even if you were a great fellow there. But at the same time, do not lose it, because it can come in handy at any moment.

Your main five tasks for today lie in another area. Now you need to solve the general issues of your department and only in this way guarantee the expected result to the big bosses who once appointed you to this position.

And then they might come again. But now to remove you from office. Bosses are so…

8. Don’t Negotiate with Terrorists

“You’re gray, and I, mate, sed,

And I have long known your wolf nature

Therefore, my custom:

With wolves, do not do world otherwise

How to skin them off. ”

And then he released a flock of hounds on the Wolf.

I. A. Krylov. Wolf in the kennel

I don’t know how true this is, but a friend of mine told me that there are no terrorists in Japan. More precisely, those who take hostages. He argued that in the Land of the Rising Sun there is a certain law or other rule of law, according to which a person who has become a hostage, from the moment of capture, ceases to be considered a citizen of Japan. And the state ceases to be responsible for such a person.

Therefore, the power structures of the only empire left in the world consider it their duty to immediately destroy everyone who has fallen into the situation — terrorists and hostages are simply swept off the face of the earth. As you understand, under such circumstances, there will be no point in capturing someone and demanding something. Actually, that’s why there are no terrorists in Japan.

Who can be considered terrorists in business?

Any employee who threatens you in any way is a so-called terrorist. Particular lovers of such threats are departments or personnel, without which the organization does not function, or employees with unique functionality.

In our business, one of the main services through which we provide customers with continuous support is the hotline. I perfectly understand what it is from the point of view of 99% of readers. If I didn’t know how our guys work, then most likely I myself would have an image of an always busy phone, a robot answering machine or stupid girls on the other end of the line. At one time we did everything to have nothing to do with such an idea. The hotline has become, perhaps, our most important additional service, which all customers are satisfied with.

And the employees of the hotline are a kind of “golden nail” of our car, without which the car will not budge.

And I remember how back in 2004 our hotline became a gang of terrorists…

The guys there worked well, advised clients competently, were friendly and pleasant. They were friends, met on weekends and decently earned. But at one fine moment, one of them began to show dissatisfaction with the fact that Pavel Mikhailovich, who was then studying for an Executive MBA at the Institute of Business and Business Administration, decided to completely rebuild our company, i.e., in fact, create something completely different.

Our company was different back then. It was dominated by a kind of cool mixture of entrepreneurial recklessness of the 90s and a Soviet approach to work. For example, if in one room, where two people usually work, the phone of someone who is currently absent from the place rang, his colleague could calmly continue working without removing the TEU. P. M. made me intercept the phone. What if it’s a client calling?

P. M. made it a habit to take off the TUE no later than after the third signal. Suddenly the client will not wait?

P. M. made it a rule not to leave the office all at once, but be sure to leave an employee on duty who would not make the client nervous, but would be able to talk to him.

P.M. has banned drinking tea and coffee in the workplace, so as not to embarrass clients who might accidentally rush into the office.

Pavel Mikhailovich was immersed in customer focus issues and introduced new procedures, standards and rules for working with clients. Precisely in order to leave no room for such a hotline, which I described above.

And on a gloomy day, a gloomy hotline employee began to express dissatisfaction with the new order aloud. Of course, all the changes were perceived as an attack on personal freedom. “It used to be good for us, but now…,…,…”

Khmury began to hit his colleagues on the sore spots:

«Why can’t we go out to dinner together? Always went, but here … »

“Let them arrange surveillance of us and hang cameras in the toilets!”

“How long will this chaos continue? They thought about the clients, but about us?!”

He showed unreasonable behavior in every possible way, continuing to drink coffee from a large mug with a defiant look in his eyes and inciting everyone to leave for dinner together.

It is much easier for people to stay in the status quo than to start living in a new way. Therefore Khmuriy was supported. This made him even more excited, considering himself Lenin in an armored car, and shouted even louder. «Yes! We are not a tribe! We are civilized people!”, “We have the right to freedom from office slavery!”, “Everything in this company depends on us! We are the center of the universe!”

In general, at the time when Pavel Mikhailovich was creating a client-oriented service, Khmury was creating a coalition against the authorities.

P.M. could go into any office at any time to check if there was at least one person in the room. I called different phones to make sure that the TUE was removed no later than after the third ring. With personal attention and constant presence, he instilled in us respect for customers and discipline.

And then one day Pavel Mikhailovich went into the office where our hotline was located, or rather, where its employees were supposed to stay.

Phones were broken. There was no one in the room. Coffee mugs lay on the tables. P.M. sat down at the table and started answering the phone.

After 20 minutes, the tight-knit team of consultants returned to the office, where they were surprised to find the owner doing their job.

There was a serious conversation.

I remind you that without a hotline, the existence of our business is in jeopardy. Unfortunately, everyone knew about this fact, including the hotline consultants. Khmury stepped forward and began to swing the rights: “We are the brain of the company. We need special working conditions. We do not agree with the decisions that are made in the company. If you do not agree that we are an exclusive division, we will work in the same way as you feel about us!

P.M., saddened, asked the others:

— Everyone agrees?

Everyone nodded in unison, furrowing their brows.

The terrorists took Pavel Mikhailovich hostage.

Thirty minutes later, all the former hotline consultants were gathering their belongings and running out of the office with their tails between their legs. They were fired in an instant.

Our company was left without one of the most necessary departments. And it was very difficult to find good consultants for the hotline in those days.

P.M. called a meeting of managers, spoke about the situation, asked for help, and all the middle managers volunteered to help. Every day, different managers were on duty at the hotline, managing to manage their departments at the same time.

Company executives closed the gap for several months while recruiting new consultants. And none of our customers noticed a decrease in the quality of service. And none of the leaders made a single legal mistake. Fortunately, «ConsultantPlus» was always at hand.

I remember how much I admired P.M.’s approach then. I even have a neatly drawn tattoo in honor of this: «DO NOT NEGOTIATE WITH TERRORISTS.»

Every employee who works with me knows that I will never enter into negotiations with people who want to make me a hostage of any situation. And everyone knows what can follow such an attempt … Which I strongly recommend that you achieve.

…And our company has become customer-oriented. Check it out if you don’t believe me.

9. Clients are everything

When a customer enters my store, forget me.

He is the king.

John Wanamaker

Yes, I will stop a flying file in the field with my teeth for the client!

P. M. Gorislavtsev

Our company is super customer oriented. My employees know that it is possible to interrupt any conversation, meeting and even a meeting of the company’s board if the issue concerns a client and if it is urgent.

Each fighter who works with clients in the field has the opportunity to call the manager of any link if he cannot be helped by lower managers and the issue is urgent.

Every back office employee who works for those same “fighters in the field” understands that he works in order to get another client for us, and that he must do his job well and quickly.

And the credit for this is exclusively to our founder, who in 2004 transferred the management of the company to manual mode and began to create a truly client-oriented organization.

In my life, I only twice encountered the determination of Pavel Mikhailovich to help clients, but I remembered both cases for the rest of my life, which I hasten to tell you about.

… It was in the early spring of 2005, when it was still getting dark on the streets, and tons of dirt and sand were already underfoot. If you remember, I was the head of the sales department at that time.

Work in the sales department is sometimes different from others. For example, the fact that you can stay in the office due to the fact that the employee is in negotiations and has not left the client for the fourth hour.

At this time, a real manager has no moral right to go home: it’s like betraying your employee, who is currently protecting the interests of your company and yours personally. The employee may need help from the office, so you need to wait until he leaves the client and calls you to tell you how the negotiations went.

That evening, that is exactly what happened. My fighter warned me that she had late negotiations with a very serious client and that she might be late with him. I assured that I would be there, wished me luck and waited for a call, looking through the client base.

The call came one minute before the end of the working day:

— Maxim, everything is fine, but we urgently need to redo the contract. Tomorrow at 8 am I have a meeting with the director and immediately pay the bill, but only if we have time to do the paperwork.

In an instant, I was in the corridor and was already running to our lawyer to ask him to stay for 30 minutes. The lawyer was caught at the door, apologized, quickly explained the situation and asked to stay.

— According to my employment contract, my working day is until 19:00. I am not going to stay for any reason, — I heard in response.

— Dude, help me. The deal may fail, the client may go to competitors. You also work for clients, just like me. And we live with you on the money that our clients pay us. I will not remain in your debt, help, — so I persuaded the lawyer.

– I work from 10 to 19. What questions do you have?

Don’t talk to me like a lawyer! Understand like a human being! Today you help me, tomorrow I will help you. Tomorrow at 8 am we should already be with the new contracts at the client.

These are not my problems, but yours.

— Can you come early tomorrow? Can you do it at 7 am? For us to be on time? I’ll take you to the canteen for a week at my own expense.

– I work from 10 to 19.

I confess, of course, I wanted to punch him in the face, primarily for the fact that he talked to me like the last bureaucrat. I would have explained normally: “wife, child, gym, date”, no, he got it wrong, the bastard: “from 10 to 19, from 10 to 19 …” But I had to restrain myself, because formally this lawyer was right.

My fighter arrived half an hour later, I sat with my head in my hands and thought what to do. Taking a stack of standard contracts, I went to the office where the administration and the top management of the company were located. There are no secretaries, no administrators, the sales director has left, and only in the depths is the door open where someone works. I went to the door. Pavel Mikhailovich Gorislavtsev was typing something on the keyboard there. He looked up, was surprised that someone else was in the office, and asked: “Batyrev, what do you want?”

I say:

— Yes, I thought that there was at least someone who would help remake the contract, sorry, Pavel Mikhailovich.

— You urgently, or what? Go here! I’m actually a certified auditor, I think I can handle it, — said P. M., and I went into the office.

And here I am, my employee and our CEO are rewriting the contract so that it meets the requirements of the developer, on the one hand, the wishes of the client, on the other, and our conditions, on the third. We did this for two hours. At the end, P. M. joyfully stamped the document, signed it with his own hand and handed it to us with a wish of good luck in tomorrow’s negotiations.

Before leaving the office, Pavel Mikhailovich asked me why I did not address this issue to a lawyer. I explained that he could not stay, and went home.

I rode the tram to my rented apartment in Strogino and admired the determination with which my director undertook to help ordinary employees on a matter relating to just one client. I must say that at that time we already had about four thousand customers. In the same tram, another tattoo appeared on my heart: «CUSTOMERS ARE OUR EVERYTHING.»

The next day, the client paid the bill, the contract completely satisfied him, and the lawyer P. M. fired. I don’t know with what wording, I don’t know how they talked and about what, but I know for sure that, most likely, our founder decided: such employees do not suit him.

The second story happened five years later, at a difficult time, in the spring of 2009.

One of the potential clients, after lengthy negotiations, had a desire to work with our company. But, unfortunately, there was a negative experience of working with our partners (whom I consider competitors). The client really needed the contract to have not a facsimile seal, but a living signature of the general director. Moreover, to make sure that the director would personally sign the contract, the head of the legal department of this company had to come to our office.

Pavel Mikhailovich then went on vacation and in the evening had to fly to distant warm countries.

I dialed his number, carefully described the situation, and asked if he could be at the office by two o’clock. “I have a plane at seven in the evening, but I will be by two,” answered P.M.

At two o’clock the door of my office swung open, and I was stunned. Pavel Mikhailovich was standing in the doorway — in a black suit, in a snow-white attire with bright cufflinks, in shoes brushed to a shine, with a neat haircut. To sign the contract, he took with him a pen with a golden nib.

By this time, our base was already about 6500 customers.

I dial the number of the head of the department, report that the director is in place, and hear a stutter:

“I-i-i-imagine, Maxim Valeryevich, the n-head of the legal department was urgently summoned to court, and the usual courier is coming to us. And he’s o-p-p-half an hour late.

It seems that at this moment I lost fifteen kilograms.

I told P.M. that the person was delayed and, most likely, not the one we were waiting for would arrive, and we discussed current issues for half an hour.

Half an hour later, a courier was brought into the office in the most terrible incarnation that couriers can ever have. You know, among them there are worthy people who do their job very well. But this… A man without age, hair long, unwashed, sweater stretched, nails dirty. Yes, and with a deep hangover.

I thought that Pavel Mikhailovich would swear at me at that very moment, but my director was transformed. Instantly he became a man of courtesy, a man of politeness, a man of diplomacy.

“Hello!”, “Where do you sign?”, “Let me show you my passport so that you can make sure it’s me,” and so on …

It looked very strange: the handsome P.M., dressed to the nines, with a golden pen in his hands, was trying to please the most miserable courier I had ever seen in my life.

After the courier was seen off, P.M. looked at his watch and hurriedly went to his office, apparently to take the car keys and rush home, pick up his family and quickly go to the airport.

I scurried after him along the corridor and said: “Pavel Mikhailovich, excuse me. Well, I thought that the head of the legal department would come, that he would not be late, but then this terrible man appeared.

Pavel Mikhailovich stopped, looked at me incomprehensibly, and said:

– Why do you say that? Don’t you understand that this person could be the brother of the CEO or the father of the boss who decides to pay our bill? This is a representative of our client. And our clients are everything!

The tattoo on my heart throbbed, and I, delighted, remained in the corridor — to watch the departing CEO.

CLIENTS ARE OUR EVERYTHING! And this is the only truth of any business.

What and you want.

10. And even in a tavern you are a manager!

Friday morning I’m already glad

That by the evening I will be brutally ugly,

Somewhere between five and seven

I will turn into a mischievous pig…

Semyon Slepakov. Anthem of the office worker

This topic deserves a separate tattoo, for sure! Especially taking into account the longstanding traditions of the new Russia to “celebrate Friday”. The behavior of a manager in a drinking establishment is a separate and very extensive topic, which in this chapter we will reveal in detail and succinctly.

So, the first moment.

After my young department won first place in the company for the first time in many years of work, I decided to celebrate this business. I asked all my guys if they were ready to go on Friday after work to the nearest cafe on the condition that everyone pays for himself, and I have a couple of bottles of strong drinks. There were no objections, and we went to wash the first place.

We sat well, raised toasts, planned the future, I voiced Napoleonic plans, and everyone seemed to be happy. We were endlessly brought alcohol and snacks, I lost count of how much we ordered in total. But an hour later, one of my employees politely said goodbye, said that he was in a hurry to go home, and somehow timidly put a couple of bills under his plate. Then another one, and another forty minutes later, and an hour later another one … I understood that since I was the initiator of the holiday, I had to be the last to leave. At ten o’clock in the evening we began to gather.

I asked the waiter to bring the bill and told the remaining colleagues: “Come on, whoever ate how much, we are going, I saw that the rest also left money, pass it here.” Up to this point, everything was fun and friendly. The noisy company collected the bills left by the departed comrades, my gaze settled on that ill-fated plate, the owner of which was the first to leave. I saw how 150 USD was taken from there. Everyone folded, and it turned out to be about 3500 USD.

The bill was brought for 12.

Salaries in Moscow were not that high then, and every thousand counted, so I sat with square eyes and looked at this account for about two minutes without raising my head. I felt like I could hear my heart beating.

And here the most unpleasant thing began: people realized that something was wrong, they took away the bill, everyone began to convulsively remember what they ate, how much they ate, take out mobile phones, open calculators there, recalculate, say “oh”, get more money, pay extra , then count how much the neighbor ate and why he “left 300 cu if he has one cutlet worth 290” … This, in general, is unpleasant, I tell you. The holiday was overshadowed. As a result, all the fighters collected 5000 and I gave 7500. I only had money left for the metro and the tram. And along with the last bill that I counted out, it seems that a tattoo was born on my red ears: “AND EVEN IN THE TANK YOU ARE THE MANAGER!”

The manager must organize the work and leisure of his employees, if he is nearby. This is the written truth. The leader must also organize the joint payment of the bill in the tavern, besides, there are good reasons for this.

1. When everyone pays for himself, this is normal. Let employees get used to the fact that since they have agreed on joint actions, they must comply. Moreover, payment disciplines people and makes them more careful about the choice of dishes next time.

2. It always seems to every person that he ate for a smaller amount than he imagines. Verified by experience. As for common dishes, such as, for example, all kinds of pickles, meat plates, champagne for women and a cake with a stripper inside, they are very reluctant to participate in this. Here at the same time and check your team.

3. It’s not shameful or ashamed. I think that there are managers who consider me a petty miser. I’m sure that when you negotiate the rules with subordinates on the shore, it’s much better than leaving your watch in a tavern on bail with the right to redeem the next day (the real story of my friend).

In the future, I always acted as follows. The first order — and immediately the bill. Everyone paid, then everyone sits, eats, drinks, rests … Would you like to order another portion of crabs stuffed with truffles, foie gras and a box of champagne? Please order! Throw money into the fund immediately! Such rules!

In this case, no one experiences any stress. No one tries to sneak away, no one needs to be persuaded, no need to close the holes for everyone, and most importantly — in this case, a person looks into his wallet before ordering something, since the money will need to be put on the table immediately, and not at the end of the evening.

If you don’t want to collect money from your people (for whatever reason), then don’t have any illusions that something will ever change. Always pay yourself.

Second moment.

You know, there are different people. Someone knows how to control himself, someone does not, someone can become physically ill after the second glass, and someone can sit until the morning. In any case, as long as you are their leader, you must behave like a manager. No conversations like: “I am your boss until six, and now I am a drinking buddy and friend” — cannot be. You are the commander. And the reputation that you have built over the years can be ruined overnight.

As long as your employees are around, you work. It doesn’t matter if you have a family-run company, a professional service company with a global brand, or an ordinary small business during a start-up period. You are a commander, and you are always looked upon as a commander. And, if you eat like a pig, pour vodka around your collar and dive into the salad with your nose, your performance will drop. Dot. I apologize for the gu.e.st.

No need to be a cool macho and force non-drinkers to drink. They have that right, whatever reason you have for drinking. On the contrary, these are your main assistants at such an event — only they, in which case, will help you recreate the picture of what is happening and adequately spend the end of the evening, if anything.

For example, they will help organize the delivery of people to their homes. Non-drinkers, just like you, should have a list of employees’ home addresses with them (just in case) so that they can be transported by taxi. Never send a drunk person alone on public transport. This is a crime against all the leaders of the world, because in this case you are not only not protecting your people from problems, but on the contrary, you are pushing them to very serious risks.

And, of course, take care of yourself. This is your task — to make sure that the employee gets home (on time for the plane, met the mother-in-law from the train, cooked borscht for dinner and did other planned things) after the drinking that you organize.

It’s your job to keep track of the event’s end time and roll it up neatly when the time is up.

This is your task — to make it easy to find the number of the taxi in which the person left.

Unfortunately, many managers forget that they are organizers, inspirers and controllers. Their roofs are blown off, they sing the loudest in karaoke, they drink the most, dance until they drop, they jump above all and even break their legs during drinking. It is not right. The leader shouldn’t behave like this. And you are the commander.

Moment three.

It seems to me that in our country there are two types of bosses: those who are respected by the relatives of employees, and those who are hated. If you want to fall into the second category, then be sure to arrange booze on payday.

After one of our employees, who was tipsy, was dragged into the metro with a wallet with a good bonus, the top management of the company imposed a ban on drinking on payday, up to personal control of nearby taverns.

In any case, you must understand that every day your employee, returning home, will discuss you and his work with his loved ones. And he will receive either support from relatives, or endless discontent.

And the level of satisfaction of relatives with the workplace of your employee directly depends on the state of this person who returned home after drinking.

That is, in their eyes you will be either a normal leader or a normal drinking buddy. And it depends on this how long this person will work with you. Remember one more thing. There are not your holidays and not your days. They are in common with the relatives of your people. These are the days that come, whether you want it or not, whether you deserve it or not. Let’s say New Year, March 8, or an employee’s birthday. Or even Saturday (after a drunken Friday). There is no need to compete in this zone with those close to your subordinates. Make sure that your employees always look good on such days and behave with dignity.

At the same time, always celebrate those events that depend on your personal contribution and the contribution of your guys. For example, the first place in the industry at the end of the year or 100% fulfillment of the plan for the quarter. These are your days. They are more important, and by noting them, you show your attitude towards the results obtained and teach your people to rejoice at the successes achieved together.

Always celebrate the victories that are yours.

And a couple more moments.

1. If you care about your reputation, then try not to drink bottled beer on the street in the city surrounded by your employees: this does not improve the image of the manager. Out in the countryside is another matter.

2. Never enter into personal negotiations about salary, career growth and other similar issues at public drunks, even if you are attacked. After 50 grams, Russian people turn on frankness and courage at the same time. Say that you remember this question and are ready to return to it tomorrow. 80% of employees don’t show up the next day.

3. Do not play «mafia» in taverns. Many managers have taken to the fashion to make some managerial decisions and conclusions about people based on this superficial fashion game. Playing «mafia» says nothing about a person, this is not real life, my friends. Moreover, our employees are also not idiots and understand that you evaluate them, so they begin to play roles that are not their own, and as a result, only unnecessary slag remains in the brains.

Get drunk, honestly.

Just be careful, be careful, because you’re at work.

After all, EVEN IN A tavern, YOU ARE THE MANAGER.

11. Don’t work with mentally disabled people.

A little gray hen sat in a clearing next to her chicken coop and was very sad:

“I am poor, unfortunate. Roosters do not understand me, chickens offend me. The chicken coop is dark, deaf, empty, sad.

In general, she sat and suffered. At that moment, a huge white bird flew by. She heard the words of the chicken, landed next to her and said:

— Don’t worry, chicken. Do you want me to help you fly to a beautiful country where you will be happy?

“No,” said the gray hen. It’s impossible — chickens can’t fly.

— So what? replied the white bird. — I’ll teach you.

“No,” said the gray hen. “My wings are too small for that.

“Don’t worry,” said the white bird. “Do you want me to put you on my back and we will fly together?”

“No,” the gray hen sighed. — I will fly there, and I will have nowhere to live.

“Don’t worry,” the white bird reassured her. “I will help you make sure you have a home.

“No,” said the gray hen. What will I do alone? I will be sad.

“Don’t worry,” the white bird smiled. — I’ll help you find the cockerel.

“No,” said the gray hen. — What if this cockerel turns out to be evil and harmful?

“Don’t worry,” the white bird sighed. — I will teach you to live in such a way that only wonderful roosters meet in your life.

“No,” said the gray hen. — There are no such roosters in the world.

— FUCK YOU IN THE ASS! — the white bird yelled, spread its huge wings and flew away …

Modern folklore

In 2005, I, a young head of sales, received seven glorious fighters as subordinates. Almost all of them were good people who honestly worked and grew with me.

I don’t know why, but from the very beginning of my managerial work, I treated employees as my main capital. Despite all our quarrels, tantrums, disputes and misunderstandings, I constantly invested in them. Then I thought (and still think) that the main thing is the attitude to work: if a person loves his job, tries, is not a violator of labor discipline, but for some reason he fails, then it’s about me. So, I am a fig manager who is not able to use his resource. Therefore, you need to work to the bitter end, until you succeed, but in no case should you scatter people.

In neighboring departments, the situation was different. Heads of departments, having tried to work with a person for a couple of weeks and realizing that they needed to invest a lot in him, sent him on a free voyage. Our common boss, to my surprise, was very calm about this. He simply again wrote an application to the personnel service, they again brought people, they again tried to work with newcomers, they were dumped again and, like Magadan gold miners, they kept the best personnel for themselves, washing them out of the general mass of people who came to them.

In the end, their strategy turned out to be more advantageous. They were surrounded by educated, talented people, while I, apart from a strong team of like-minded people, had nothing to brag about. None of my fighters radiated light with their charisma, did not reflect bullets, and never even won an arbitration process. They were ordinary good people.

By the way, looking at the fact that new employees are brought to my colleagues just every two weeks, I accumulated resentment against my leader — why have I been working with one combat team for seven months, but my department has never had an interview?

I went to my boss and asked to organize a selection for me too. And the boss agreed. Then I thought that, having retained my main backbone, I would try to work, like my colleagues, “for washing out”.

An interview date was set, which I was looking forward to. When she came up, in the morning I came to work in a festive mood. Still would! For the first time in seven months, I will have the opportunity to choose a new person!

But something immediately went wrong. First, I learned that our HR specialist fell ill and I would have to conduct the interview myself. “It’s okay,” I thought, imagining in pink dreams how I would arrange a casting among educated, tanned young people, choosing the best of the best.

Then they called me and said that one person had come. On the way to the interview room, I was still hoping that this one applicant was a highly intelligent blonde with ample breasts, green eyes, a philological background and Margaret Thatcher’s acumen. When the door swung open, all my dreams collapsed to the size of the eye of a needle.

Maxim was sitting in the audience.

A small, shaggy, grimy, thin, hunched-over boy, who looked with interest at the place he had landed in. “Well, nothing,” I thought, “what if he is smart, like Perelman, or brave, like Rambo?” And I began to tell him about the vacancy that we offer.

Five minutes later, Maxim silently got up and went to the exit. «Where are you going?» I ask.

“I didn’t understand something in your ad. I’m looking for a job as a courier, but I don’t want to work in sales.»

Here it must be said that Maxim was not suitable for the job of a negotiator. He didn’t fit any of the criteria I knew. It didn’t suit us at all. But, being in a state of personnel shortage for seven months and imagining the face of my leader, who would say that I did not use my chance and did not hire anyone, I hooked on Maxim.

I began to persuade him, told him how cool his fate could change, what heights he could reach, how another life would begin for him … but Maxim stood his ground: “This is hard work. I want to be a courier.» Then I asked him to give me a chance to change his life and promised that I was personally responsible for his development.

Ten days later, after training, Maxim was hired.

And I started doing it. First I got him to start shaving, cutting his nails and walking around in a business suit. He didn’t look well, and his clients didn’t like him, he was unsociable and couldn’t talk properly, he was physically weak and tired quickly, but we practiced from morning to night. The only breaks happened only in those moments when he left for clients. It was not possible to sell, and Maxim constantly whined: “I said that this is not mine, I don’t want, I can’t, I won’t.” I firmly stood my ground and sincerely believed that a person can be changed, even if he himself does not want to change. Our life with Maxim passed in an incredible struggle. I fought for his future and for his success, sometimes reminding myself of a baseball team coach from Hollywood films, and Maxim fought with me.

I remember at that moment we had a wonderful promotional material for clients: «29 logical reasons why you should work with us.» We sat with Maxim until 23:00 at work, I walked around him, excitedly waving my arms and telling him how to work with this material correctly, how to position it correctly, how easy it would be to sell if we correctly integrated it into negotiations. It was dark in the office, many of our colleagues were already sleeping soundly, and we came up with more and more new scenarios for working with clients. I called Maxim the valiant Ivanhoe and the Knight of the Round Table, described his future sweet life among the best Moscow women, and even told how the cover of Forbes magazine with his photo would look like.

The next morning, a checkered sheet appeared on my desk, torn from a school notebook. It was painted in small crooked handwriting on both sides. And this text was decorated with a strong, neatly printed headline: “29 logical reasons why I don’t want to work.”

Maxim could not stand the violence against himself and his deep inner conviction that he wanted to be a courier. The whole two months of my life spent on it could have been thrown into the trash can.

Of course we broke up. He really got a job as a courier, I saw him then once — the man was glowing with happiness. And I am very grateful to Maxim for the fact that he met in my life and helped me understand one very important thing: you should never work with people if they themselves, and consciously, do not want to change and believe in themselves.

There is one very important point in the book «The Abramovich Principle». The laconic Roman Arkadievich, after several years of work in the London-Chukotka-London regime, refused the post of governor. He said that he could no longer work with people who did not want to believe in themselves, but only wanted to believe in Abramovich.

And to every manager who will face such situations, I recommend getting a tattoo: «DO NOT WORK WITH THE MORALLY DISABLED.» It is pointless.

One of the most important tattoos that adorns my heart.

Business trainings by Boris Polgeim in Sinton

• I’m a businessman?!
• Negotiations without defeat