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Text 1. T h e S i n g l e G r e a t e s t M i s t a k e a M a n a g e r

C a n M a k e

You don’t have to be a tyrant to get Americans to work together. You just have to give them a reason. That’s what managers are supposed to be able to provide. Motivation. Goal. Resources. Leadership. But not restrictions. Not being told what to do. Not rules. Americans hate rules.

Within three years of the time Pat Fallon, who runs an advertising agency, opened his shop. He has the same problem everyone in the business has: getting out a superior product. He does it by maximizing personal freedom and thus personal responsibility to an almost unheard of extent.

Fallon understands that in his business – and in yours, more than you realize – what people are looking for isn’t only money, it’s recognition, appreciation, and creative freedom. He gives them what they need. They give him what he needs: the best product in the industry.

No matter what business you’re in, to be successful, managers must create the kind of environment that makes their people the most productive. It isn’t enough to make them conscious of details if you destroy their sense of freedom and spontaneity in the process. You must understand them well enough to give them not what you want, but also what they need to make a maximum contribution.

Look at the people who walk out your door and leave you to become successful at their own business. Chances are they’re not doing it just for money. They need the room to express their own styles. Give them that room, and the recognition, and appreciation, and nine out of ten times they won’t leave. Take talented men or women one step short of a full partnership, make the employee president of his own Company rather than losing him.

So remember, you can get your employees to pay attention to detail if you develop a leadership style that delivers your message in a positive way, and if you demonstrate your confidence in your people by giving them freedom to do job you hired them to do.

Be like jockey Willie Shoemaker. He’s the best in the business because he has the lightest touch on the reins. They say the horse never knows he’s there – unless he’s needed.

Q u e s t i o n s :

1) What do Americans need to work together?

2) They hate rules, do they?

3) How did Pat Fallon achieve his aim?

4) What do people need besides the money?

Text 2. T h e F i n e A r t o f C o n v e r s a t i o n a n d

H o w t o M a s t e r I t

Four thousands years ago, school boys in Egypt were copying maxims on conversation from a book called “The Instruction of Ptah-Hotep”. It is spoken of as “the oldest book in the world”. So we know that long, long ago people realized the importance of conversation, and that studying the technique of conversation is nothing new.

Talking has been one of man’s chief occupations and one of his most significant activities. Conversation is the means by which we draw near to one another with sympathy and pleasure. A person’s character and tastes are revealed by his conversation.

The best talkers of all ages appear to have had a lively affection for, and a warm interest in their follow creatures; a curiosity about the world in general (not a petty curiosity about people’s affairs); some powers of observation and reflection; respect for their own opinions and tolerance for those of others; and tact, which comes from ready sympathy and quick thinking. And they talked for the fun of it, not to show their knowledge. A fund of information the talker needs, of course. But you can get interesting topics to talk about by watching ants, as well as by reading newspapers and books. Finding out a great deal about one thing is helpful, because a person usually talks well about the subject he knows. That is why having a hobby may make one a better talker.

To be an interesting talker, you also need the ability to see the humour in everyday incidents and to tell about them in a way that will amuse others. Amusing things take place around you constantly – in the street, the bus, the yard, the schoolroom; you have only to observe them to have amusing stories to tell. But remember that the champion joke teller is a pest. Jokes help to season conversation, but like any seasoning, they are not good for a steady diet.

Kindliness is the basis of the most pleasing humour. There you have the secret of a good conversationist’s success. He thinks about his hearer. He has a warm heart, as well as a clear head. Instead of parading himself, he tries to build a bridge of friendliness between himself and others.

Q u e s t i o n s :

1) How do we know that the art of conversation was important long ago?

2) Is it important now? Why?

3) In what way is information helpful?

4) What role does humour play in conversation?