The Job is Easy, The People are Not‪!‬ Loredana Padurean

I used to believe that managing up was all about managing your boss(es)—which is an important skill, especially when dealing with an emotionally immature boss, who constantly needs validation or never shares any credit.

However, I have learnt that smart managing up is also about managing your stakeholders, about moving outside of your work silo, and about cooperating with people outside your department, or even in different organizations. It's a deliberate effort to increase cooperation and collaboration with those who have influence over your career, even when you don't particularly like how they operate.

In this episode, Dr. Sean O'Fergusson is teaching us that managing up is not "sucking up."

It’s about understanding the needs of all your stakeholders, their preferences, priorities, and goals. It's about looking ahead in the future and preparing for their needs; it’s about adapting to work in new environments and creating the best possible outcome for ourselves, our leaders, and our organizations.

Make sure to download the book:
“The Job Is Easy, People Are Not! 10 SMART Skills to become better people!
by Loredana Padurean

“Humility is such an important skill at Asia School of Business (ASB) that it is part of our admissions criteria! As professors, we have learnt that only humble people can learn. As our president and dean, Prof. Charles Fine says, “The world is full of smart and arrogant individuals; give me the smart and humble ones!”

Humility is not the belief that we are not talented or intelligent, but an awareness of the limitations of our knowledge, judgments, and understanding.

Humility leads to curiosity, to openness, to collaboration. Humble people ask great questions, are interested in new ideas, listen, learn new ways of doing things, and are willing and flexible to build mutually beneficial partnerships.

In this chapter, Prof. Renato Lima-de-Oliveira will speak on humility. He was my first choice when thinking about a spokesperson for humility. A Ph.D. graduate from MIT in political science, he demonstrated from day one a deep curiosity for learning and collaboration. When I asked him to speak about humility for this book, he said, “I don't think I’m worthy of this task; there are others who are so much better!” Case in point!”

The most predictable characteristic of modern management is the unpredictability of our challenges, and cognitive readiness is the super skill that helps us address unpredictability. This smart skill is part of advanced conscious processing (slow thinking) that enables leaders to confront whatever new and complex problems they might face.
The COVID pandemic challenged every single one of us and demanded more mental, emotional, physical, and financial preparation than anything we have seen recently. Companies that were able to adapt quickly, that were able to understand the complex system dynamics of not only their organizations, but of their industry and value chain, saw success.
To help us reflect on this skill, I asked MIT Sloan professor and ASB president and dean, Prof. Charles Fine, one of the most cognitively ready leaders I know, to share his views on how to develop this mental preparedness.

Make sure to download the book:
“The Job Is Easy, People Are Not! 10 SMART Skills to become better people!
by Loredana Padurean

Have you every heard of Nuchi? Nunchi… is the art of entering a room and being able to speed read what's happening, who's in the room, and the emotions or feelings of those in the room. This helps to understand what presence and energy you should bring to the room. It’s about being comfortable to take a step back to listen, so that you know when the right time is to step in.
In this episode, I interviewed ASB alumna Jin-Sohn on the power of listening. Make sure to download the book:
“The Job Is Easy, People Are Not! 10 SMART Skills to become better people!
by Loredana Padurean

“How often do you hear people talk about leadership, take leadership training programs, and read leadership books? It seems that management is all about leadership these days.
However, the reality is that most of us, including our leaders, practice more followership than leadership. I define followership as the willingness to follow not just a leader, but more than anything, a vision, a mission, an agreed upon plan.

Bosses are not necessarily good leaders;
subordinates are not necessarily effective followers.

Good followership is characterized by active participation in the pursuit of organizational goals. It is not a mindless practice, but it demands constant course correction to make sure that despite obstacles, disagreements, and conflicts of opinions, once a decision is made, the whole organization follows. I have seen too many times, especially during digital transformation processes, intentional efforts to destabilize an agreed plan, just because one doesn't believe in it or worse, doesn’t want it to succeed. Followership demands humility, adaptability, and a healthy dose of emotional maturity, as it challenges the egos of most.
In this chapter, I interview Dr. Hadija Mohd about her views on followership, a smart skill that she exhibits beautifully.
Make sure to download the book:
“The Job Is Easy, People Are Not! 10 SMART Skills to become better people!
by Loredana Padurean

Productive inclusion is a way to create a professional environment that makes everybody feel like they are equally treated and have equal access to resources and opportunities, with a focus on marginalized people, those coming from vulnerable families, disadvantageous economic conditions, refugees, minorities, etc. As managers, we need to create an inclusive environment and a system that recognizes and rewards people who bring in unique talents and perspectives.
In this episode, I interview ASB professor Yi-Ren Wang and discuss how everyone of us are all psychologists by nature. We are always trying to assign reasons for people’s behaviors. That’s similar to what psychologists do. But the difference is that psychologists spend significant time trying to understand behaviors with reliable evidence while the rest of us take shortcuts and make most of the time, the wrong assumptions. Make sure to download the book:
“The Job Is Easy, People Are Not! 10 SMART Skills to become better people!
by Loredana Padurean