Tuesday, December 4, 2007

It's Not Easy Being HOT...


...and by HOT I mean a Hands-On Teacher... (if you don't understand this post so far, I have not lost my mind...it's a MGT 3120 thing...)
It is a tough task to run a community of individuals where authority and respect have to be earned every day. Few people can do it well, consistently and successfully, because it demands an unusual combination of attributes. But these are characteristics you too will need as you take your rightful place among the management ranks of the future. I try everyday to hold on to these ideals, and they are what I also wish for you to find and maintain:

A belief in oneself is the only thing that gives an individual the self-confidence to step into the unknown and to persuade others to go with you where perhaps no one has taken them before. But this has to be combined with constant self-questioning, the humility to accept that one can be wrong on occasion, the acceptane that others also have ideas, and that listening is as important as talking.

A passion for the job provides the energy and focus that will drive your organization and you must always try to act as an example to others. But this also has to be combined with its opposite, an awareness of other worlds, because a sole focus on your own ideas can turn to blinders, and an inability to think beyond one's own box. Great leaders find time to read, to meet people beyond their own circle, to go to the theater or see films, to walk in other worlds.

The leader must have a respect and love of people, because in a community of individuals, those who find individuals a pain and a nuisance may be respected or feared, but they will not be willingly followed.

Yet this attribute, too, requires its opposite, a capacity for aloneness, because leaders have to be out front. It is not always possible to share one's worries with anyone else. Few will thank the leader when things go right, but many will blame the leader if things go wrong. Great leaders have to walk alone from time to time. They also have to live vicariously, deriving their satisfaction from the growth and successes of others and giving those others the recognition that they deserve.

Living with these paradoxes requires great strength of character. It also requires a belief in what one is doing. Although it may seem so now, money alone may not be enough to provide the motive to live with these contradictions. Even a love of power is insufficient, because power irons out the contradictions rather than holding them in balance. I believe great leaders are bred from great causes, but leaders at their best will also breed great causes. Until and unless business embraces a cause bigger and more beneficial to society than enrichment of self and shareholders, it will have few great and memorable leaders that will stand the test of time.
I wish you all the best as you carve your own way through this management maze. It has been a pleasure and honor to have met you all. Please come back and visit me...even if only through this blog in the future.
--prof K

64 comments:

Dva said...

Those words are so much sounder than Attila the Hun’s!
Also they each much should be present in generous amounts and can also apply to individuals not just those in management positions/ leaders. Starting, firstly, with a belief in yourself. This constructs your personal foundation as you enter/interactive with the world and makes every task/goal achievable knowing that YES u can. This can tie in with a person’s self-esteem (confidence) which has been encouraged in this class…with a stress being made on participation credit and a stated fact that class attendance isn’t the same as participation. Since at Baruch I can honestly say that even though it is written in the syllabus of most of my classes, this and one other class I am taking this semester are the only two that the professors actually seek to enforce it so passionately in order to get people to believe in themselves and what they have to say enough to speak up and be heard.
Passion for the job is a close second behind believing in yourself. I presently hate getting up to go to work. I stay on my bed and try to come up with possible excuses I can give and stay at home since I get no job satisfaction and find the work monotonous and at times down right boring with little to no amount of learning taking place. Which reminds me of one of our classes where it was stated for some a job is just a paycheck.
Finally respect and love for others. There is a saying in order to get respect you have to give it. I believe this is true not only for respect but for many other aspects of life…in order to GET you should first GIVE.

Athena

Kyle Lai said...

It is so true that being hot is not easy. In order to run a company in which you have the authority to make important decision and have a group of individual that are under your command, you need to be strong and tough. Being a leader, you need to be self-confidence and believe in yourself. However, it is important to listen to others opinions and ideas and willing to accept these ideas and make adjustment. A successful company does not come in only one individual but it comes as a team work. Also being a great leader you need to learn how to respect and love the people that you are working with. Only with respect and love toward your people that great team work will form. Being a leading, you need to face intense pressure. Since you are the authority figure, people will expect you to make right decision. As a result, if something goes wrong, the leader will be the one to blame since he/she is the one who make the final decision. I hope I can be the next great leader, just like how you described in your entry. I know it will take a lot of hard work and determination but I know I can be the next great leader just like you, Prof K. It has been a great pleasure to work with you throughout this semester, I have learned a lot from you. Thanks.

Deirdre said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Deirdre said...

Very well said Felix... Particularly touching to me is your statement about self-questioning, humility and listening to others. It’s easy to get caught up in your own mind, your own emotions, and your own needs. But when you can separate yourself from these things, you see a different reality – one of which is not colored by your own perception and desires. It is then you see and hear the subtle things: the coworker with the sad eyes who really needs a tender word, the impeccable boss whose wrinkled clothes suggest that maybe you should ask “Is everything all right?”, or the employee who has a resentful attitude might just need a “thank you.” When you see these things, and act on them with care, you make people feel noticed because it’s not about you anymore. Therefore, I do agree it is important to have a healthy distance from “self” so you can truly understand other human beings. I believe that is a very good quality in a leader and something worthy of aspiration.


Some people believe that a bigger heart just means a bigger target. I myself, struggle with this every day at my job. My trust has been abused on a great and fundamental level – sometimes I feel like I’m irreparably damaged. I get defensive and protective against those I feel who are opportunistic and suspicious, and I feel a great need to protect those who are vulnerable. Even so, I still believe in the goodness of others. You have to… Sure, there are just plain rotten people out there but I think most want to be good. You might be surprised what you find when you take this approach to life. Despite the darkest of circumstances, always reach down inside yourself and find your well of goodness toward humankind. What can they really do to you anyway? Take your job, take your money, take your stuff? Other people can’t take away your integrity or self-respect, only you can. A respect and love of people, I think that is another great quality in a leader.

As for my sentiments, those are already bare. Thank you.

Karup said...

Very interesting words from a wise man! So these are tips to help me become more "Kurpis-like" ? Haha, joke!

I agree much with your ideals, especially the need for a capacity for aloneness. After juggling the 3 last classes for my major and BPL all in one semester, I realized how it feels. Even though there has not been much of the blame game going on when things go wrong, there is this one group where I did so much to help create and pull together a presentation 4 hours before we went up and one member had done work that was so incomprehensible, even we -- the rest of the group -- couldn't make sense of it. I redid everything for her and made the presentation in due time, right before our stage time and all she could do was complain that I had not even done my own slides in time. Obviously she didn't know what making sacrifices meant. But I didn't make too much of a fuss about it, I made a note instead. So on that point, I think it is VERY true.

Believing in oneself is the most important collection of thoughts one can have. Positive thoughts about yourself give you that extra boost you need to do the extraordinary. And it is when you have that little boost, do others see that and recognize that maybe they need one too. Positivity can be contagious, especially if you are in a team of open players. "If we can climb 1000 ft. higher than where we are now, why not? Let's find a fast way up!"

Nothing can help you get your groove on in your career, like a bowl full of passion. In many ways, passion can also be considered as Wheaties. It does give you that energy and focus your organization needs. Like my example about having positive self-beliefs, having superfluous love for doing what you do can spill over on to other employees that would consider the idea of having some liking in what they are doing, and even possibly making attempts for advancement, department, individual or even organizational.
As a people person my self, I can't stress how much respect and unconditional care make and break important relationships. Two places that require respect and love are in intimate relationships and work. As you respect and love your spouse/partner, you must do the same with your co-workers or subordinates. You want to make babies with your wife, likewise make progress and productive output with your associates. If you don't show them the care and respect they crave -- they NEED, you aren't going to get much in return. Of course they will work for their salary, but you can expect that you won't get much more than what the bare minimum requires, if you choose to lack in providing them with respect or care. Hey, making friends with co-workers never hurts. I do that where ever I go, unless I think they are just trying to use me, then I get vengeance. I am not tolerant of meanies either. Watch out!

All I can request is that you continue you posting on your blog Professor! For if you continue writing, I'll most likely continue reading, and responding. Who knows, maybe I'll write some more posts of my own? Rock on Señor Kurpis!

--- Karup M.

shuhuang said...

I agree with all those attributes you mentioned on your post professor, but they are very hard to accomplish in oneself. I am not sure about other people, but I know that it will be very hard for me have all of the characteristics and maintain them.

So far what I have of the five characteristics that you mentioned are a passion for the job, respect and love of people, and capacity for aloneness. As far as of now, I enjoy what I am doing at work. I know that my job will help my company go to the right direction with the help of my co-workers. I respect people around me because there are lots of things that I can learn from them as I cooperate and work with them from time to time. I also show my love to them by helping them complete their tasks. I am the kind of person who likes to be alone, too. There are lots of times that I try to keep things to myself and try to solve them by myself. I know sometimes that if I share my conflicts out, they will be sad too. I don't want to give burdens on people I love.

I am missing the belief in myself and in what one is doing. I don't tend to have high hopes in what I do will come out as I wished. Take, for example, tests in school. I have no confidence that I will score good on tests, so when it comes to handing them back I will be nervous and start sweating. And sometimes I don't trust what others do are correct. Maybe is because I like to work things alone, therefore, I don't trust others and I want things to be done my way.

But I will try my best to find them and maintain them. I think these characteristics are very important in a person's everyday life, not just for managers and leaders.

Rob Mauceri said...

I absolutely agree. In a society such as ours, I think its not easy being anybody, especially HOT. Someone is always out to criticize, point fingers, make fun, drop the blame, and honestly just make others feel like they are absolutely useless.

When I was reading the professor's blog, my younger brother was the first person I thought about. I am one of six kids, third in line, and second among the boys. My older brother and I always tried to push my younger brother to do the things we did, and just make him "man up." But most of the time it wasn't that easy.

Growing up, he would always cry and absolutely believed he couldn't do it. He thought he wasn't strong enough or capable of doing it on his own, but the worst part is, most of the time he didn't even try. And that's what pissed my brother and me off the most.

My older brother is now an officer in the Marines, I'm doing my thing, and my younger brother is studying marine transportation and law. Even though we only see each other on the holidays and such, we all know that the belief we have in ourselves and each other we developed growing up.

Before you can manage anything or anyone, you have to be able to manage yourself. Believing in yourself, and giving it your all may not be enough at times. But those are the times you need to just figure out on your own which direction to go, and why you believe that direction is right.

Not taking a step back to look and listen at where we went wrong is something we are all guilty of. A great manager knows, as the professor has said, that at times we need to listen to others talk instead of doing the talking.

eddie wu said...

I enjoy reading your post, Professor. I feel that I can learn a lot more from your post then reading others and writing my own. I am not trying to say others' post are not good enough, I want to say that you really put your time and write a good post.

Your post is like some wise books I read. The 8 things you believe are really good advice to me. They make a lot of sense to me. They are simple but very practical and helpful. Now I am going to apply them into my life. I just have one question, are these believes from you or you summarize them after you read some books or articles?

Actually, I agree almost everything you said in this post. I feel that I also have these kind of thoughts and ideas, but I am not good enough to write them down. For example, "A belief in oneself" and "Listening is as important as talking", I understand this from a very tough lesson. When I have doubt with myself, there's no way to win others. Because I like to talk a lot, I disclose all of my weakness to others. I also lose the opportunity to learn about others in order to get improved. Now, I love to listen than just talking...

Without passion, it's hard to do a job well. I have this experience. That's why I don't do anything else but trade stocks even everyone in my family doesn't like it.

I am a chinese. We have the culture to be polite to others. So, I feel that I do very good on this. However, I feel that I didn't know how to truly respect others and love of people until I joine the U.S. Navy. From the Navy, I learned what truly leaders are. They win others with less power.
I like this,"a capacity for aloneness". I am not a leader yet, but i learn this by trading stocks. When everyone is going to the hot stock, it's the time being wrong. If you do the opposive of the crowd, you will be critized. But, you are usually the one to reap the huge profits. Actually, I also believe what I am doing now. So, I will bear the loneness myself. I will consider others' opinion and complaints, but i will continue what my passion goes instead of joining the crowd...

Amy Su said...

I think these qualities do not only apply to managers or people in authorities. These are the qualities that should apply to everyone, managers and subordinates alike. Of course, managers and leaders are best and more effective to have these qualities. But I agree you it is not easy.
The word "self-confidence" is very easy to say it out load, but to have it is not as easy as it seems. Self-confidence doesn't develop overnight. It takes a long time and the environment in which one is under is very important. Being a leader or just a regular human-being, self-confidence is extremely important. It takes a lot of a person to step up to persuade others. Yet, it takes more for a person to accept rejection, which I really do have to work on.
The love for one's job, i think, it's important as well. I used to have a job that I hate so much. Going to work every morning was like an nightmare. Because of that, I usually just not interact with my colleagues too much because they remind me of the job. Also, I didn't feel like interacting anything that deals with the job. Thus, I think to be an effective employee/managers, it's really important for one to love their own work.
Respecting others is essential to everyone. I don't think a person who is a jerk can go every far in his/her life. As for leaders, to control people with fear and punishment don't win their loyalty. I remember reading something that says that if people like you, they are more likely to do things for you. I think that is very true in most cases.
The only thing that doesn't really apply to all individuals is the capacity for loneness. Leaders do need that because they can't always share their concern with the groups. They sometimes do have to work alone. Personally, I was an only child. I got used to be being alone when I was a kid, so basically I am okay being a "loner." I only like to share happy things with people and rarely share my worries simply because I don't like to do that. Overall I do think the leader has to be somewhat a loner.
True, a thank you for a job well done is not often heard, but complain for a not so good job is always around. So the leader has to take that in and accept it.
Belief in what one is doing is related to self-confidence. I am sure if a person has self-confidence, he/she'll believe that what he/she is doing is the right thing.
All these qualities are easier to say than to do. One day I would acquired all these qualities and be successful in my career.

Y. T said...

Very wise words! I am very impressed! Every time I read your postings, I think that I am not doing a good job in writing my own postings, because yours are so well written and well thought.
I totally agree with you that is a tough task to run a group of people. Many people wouldn't run the way you did during the semester, and you gained my respect (and others students too) by having the characteristics you described. In the beginning of the semester, my original class was in the morning and I switched to the evening class, now I can say that I am very happy that I did that.
Indeed, this class has thought me so much. You not only hold on to your ideals, but you also encouraged us to believe in ourselves, especially in the class activities where we learned more than any other class at Baruch to work in group. As you said, it requires humility and self-confidence to persuade and to listen to others.
"Passion for the job", you are absolutely right about it. When we lack passion, we simply do it automatically either we are making a lot of money or not. "Respect and love of people" is very important when we are working with people that like and respect you. This would make the work much easier. In the past, I worked for an airline and working with different crew members every week, it was important that they respected me as a senior crew member in order to have a smooth flight.
I rarely thought about the "capacity of aloneness" of the leaders until you pointed out. I will remember from now on that being a leader involves much more than just being in an important position and a big pay check.
Lastly, this class was very enjoyable and I learned a lot. Thanks! I will certainly come back and visit your blog and continue to update mine.

Ddurham said...

It took me all semester to get what you were trying to ingrain in my brain. Its not that I wasn't paying attention, it just that somewhere along the line I lost insight into myself. For sixteen years I worked as a supervisor and it was rewarding when I was able to do something beneficial for someone else or was just an ear for someone who needed someone to talk to.
During the course of those 16 years I've watched co-workers who moved up the corporate ladder and watched how it transformed them to someone I don't even recognize anymore. The new breed of employees that are coming into the company have no respect for theirself or anyone else.
Everytime I left your class I would reflect on the lesson and pair it against what I encountered on a daily basis. I would ask myself what happened.
Somewhere in the last 16 years I lost my passion, I lost the belief in myself, I lost my respect and love for people, the only thing I did keep was my capacity for aloneness.
Reading your words reminded me why I became a supervisor in the first place. It renewed my passion for the job. It made me realize I didn't do it for the bosses, I did it for those who need someone in their corner to fight for them. It renewed my love and respect for the coworkers who I know deserve it. It also renewed my belief that I can make a difference for some if not for all.
You're right its not easy being HOT, and HOT you are.
I really enjoyed your class, but you can keep them test.
Thanks.

Tamara said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Dan Leung said...

I strongly agree that it is very hard to run a community of individuals where authority and respect have to be earned everyday. It is very hard. You have to have the respect and keep yourself high everyday. At the mean time, you have to communicate with them well without losing the respect. My dad is the boss in his business. He told me things like this over and over again in his business. He can be really mean to the people working for his company, but he chose not to. He told me that I can’t be too extreme about it, or it’s going to come back to you.
He told me that respect and love of people is very important in a company too. They feel that you are understandable, than they will return a favor next time. I think passion for your job is very important. It will help you a lot along your way in your career. If you don’t’ have the passion, your job will not last long. It will help you get really far in your career. I agree with the capacity for aloneness, when something bad happens, people around you will always disappear, and you are the only one who takes all the blames. Management is really hard, because you have to take good care of everything at the same time. It becomes a cycle at last.

iamdavidz said...

Alot of the pointers presented makes alot of sense. A leader should be able to connect to people and make them feel comfortable around them. However, they need to strike a balance in this area, because you do not want anyone to challenge your authority. And of course, many times, when you are the "King of the Hill", you stand alone.

For me, I really look up to leaders who can lead by example. The reason that this method is so effective is that people will be more willing to do something if they see their leader willing to go through the same process. This gives the group confidence and well as guidence.

And finally, nothing is more attractive in a leader than having the motive of being the best for their respective groups. When there is a goal to reach, that really motivates myself to work hard and do whats best for the group. Another thing that works into that is making the people around you feel like they should belong. I played for a couple of basketball teams and nothing motivates me more to get better at what I do than having the feeling that I can make a difference and understanding that we are on a mission.

Pierre said...

Leadership is an acquired art. An the characteristics needed to be a good leader are as you said. Attila could have learned from you and he probably would not have had half his followers hating him. You mention in a previous lesson with regards to Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs that it is shaped more like an hourglass than a pyramid. I believe that the charactistics of a great leader can be brought to fulfilment throuhg one who has been able to self-actualize and accept the fact tha he is a great leader but at the same time still has his obsticals to over come throughout his life. A great leader must never accept that he is truly self-actualized and must continue onwards to greatness.

JL said...

I truly believe and definitely will hold on to the ideals listed by Prof K. 'A belief in oneself' - in my opinion, if you yourself don't believe in you, who do you expect to believe and follow you?
'A passion for the job' - other than monetary gains, nothing will be stronger than the passion. It is the energy that derives from the passion that drives us to do the job. Without it, life will be meaningless by then...
'A leader must have a respect and love of people' - i truly believe in this. If you don't respect people, do you expect them to respect you? No leader will rise to the top without the help and respect from people below him/her. A great leader also needs to understand the needs and wants to those people under him/her.

b_o_r_i_n_b_l_o_g said...

When I saw the word HOT I could only remember what we last comment about you on the other day of the class!
Totally agree with you of your points, but it gave me the feeling that you have to sustain a lot of pressure to be a manager, as you mentioned 'a capacity for aloneness'.
And 'respect and love people'? I respect people, but love? There would be someone I hate in where I work. This will be too hard for me to overcome that.
The most important thing is a 'passion for the job'. From what I've been thinking through these days, there's no doubt about the passion for the job. I can imagine how hard it would be working on a job that you don't interested about, and you'll quite it very soon even the job pay you big money.

Desdy said...

Hola!
I totally agree with you professor if you do not have those qualities, you are not ready to be a manager. This is only because the level of pressure you have to hold and coup with the different personalities you have to work with; it is not an easy thing to do on a daily basis.

Marina Kaufman said...

Great post! A lot of things to think about. First, the qualities that you mention are hard enough to achieve, and some of people would never be able to do so(otherwise everyone would be a leader, which is controversy to a meaning of a word "leader"). Secondly, it becomes harder and harder every day, as our society evolves and becomes more competitive with time.

The hardest thing, in my opinion, is belief in oneself...Let me rephrase it. To believe i yourself is not hard, but to sustain the believe is hard, because it doesnt matter how great we are, we are humans, we make mistakes, we face failure from time to time. That failure breaks the belief, and it's misplaced by doubt. You have to be strong and know how to quiet your doubts and sustain a belief in yourself, not to let doubts bring you down.

Once you are stong enough to undertake an important task, you gotta decide what exactly you want to bring to the world. Because that is what I believe in: every leader is always striving for a better change, a change that will make him stand out of a crowd and make him a leader in other people's eyes.

And the most important thing that has to be mentioned is that once you are a leader you have to have a great strengh to stay on the top.People rely on you and you have a responsibility that you undertook. How do you do that? You read Machiavelli:) You always challenge yourself-set a goal a little bit higher that originally planned. This way you will always end up at least at the point where you wanted to get at first. By the way,Machiavelli has the whole science for becoming and, more important, staying a leader in his book "The Prince". Did you read it? If so, what do you think?

The topic, raised by you, is very interesting. You seem to put a lot of time and effort into blogging and encouraging students to do the same. I never saw myself as a blogger, but I think it was a great idea for students to get involved in blogging. It surely sparked my interest!

Definitely continue writing, I ll continue reading:) Thank you again for your work!!!Good luck!!! And I ll see you on the blog:)

Marina

Yu Huang said...

There are alot of things you said that are true but what stood out to me the most is when you wrote that only a few will thank the leader when something goes right and many will blame the leader when things go wrong. I feel that this statement is absolutely true because at the work, my manager is always blamed when something goes wrong but only a few people thanked her for all the things she had done for the organization. When I saw this on your post I thought about what my Physics teacher once said, "In America we always point the finger first instead of trying to solve the problem first."

Alexander the Great said...

I absolutely agree with all of the points made in the post. You do have to be all of those things in order to be successful. However, I wonder if this post has more to do with character traits attributed to being successful at one's career in general rather than simply as a manager. All of these traits apply to a successful salesperson, trader, enterpreneur... Anybody really who needs to show independence as well as positive leadership skills at a job.

Out of all of the traits described I'd say the two most interesting and not so obvious (i.e. cited in oh some many books and heard so many times) ones are capacity for aloneness and respect and love for people. It is truly a tough combination because you need to find a balance between being able to think independently and not shutting people out so that they feel left out. The only way you can do that is if you truly respect and love your employees and that can only happen if you appreciate the human kind in general. Now, you also have to make sure that you do not overexpose people to problems -trying to reach transparency - because you think it is just that your employees know everything. Not everybody can handle problems and this can lead to unnecessary pressures and problems.

EwciaPL said...

I believe that these ideals are very important to succeed in the world today. I think you did a great job in showing and doing it to the class. If you won’t believe in yourself how do you want others to believe in what you say? You sure have a great passion for what you do. We were able to see it throughout the semester. “Act as an example to others”, especially the younger ones. I see this in my case because I have a younger sister and I see how everyday she looks up to me. At first I didn’t notice this but my mom made me realize that whatever I do she will copy it. As an example, when I was younger I use to hate wearing glasses so I started wearing contact lenses which made my vision a lot worse. I was just embarrassed that other students will laugh at me that I look like a geek. But when I started college I decided to wear glasses again on everyday basis. I noticed that not long after my sister asked me if I could go with her to get a pair of glasses and now she wears them proudly like me. When I asked her the reason for the change she didn’t want to admit that because I started wearing them. But after all I’m her older sister so who else is she supposed to look up?

People should have respect for you but they shouldn’t fear you. If you’re a leader and a boss and you employees fear you, they will only do what you tell them because they are scared that they will be punished by you. Great leaders should be respected by all people because of what they do and how they do it. No one should fear them but follow them. It was a pleasure being in your class and I think you are a great teacher and continue doing the great work you do.

dramkissoon said...

You are totally on point with your wisdom. I believe in being a great leader you first have to believe in yourself before you can convince others to believe in you. I could not agree more, and as I read some of the comments, Pierre’s stood out to me, “great leader must never accept that he is truly self-actualized and must continue onwards to greatness.” Everyday brings new occurrences which a leader should be prepared for. It’s an ongoing process towards greatness. As though the world continues to turn so should our minds. We should not stop or limit ourselves to anything even though it may seem satisfactory. We should always be searching for the best interest in ourselves and more important others, because without other who are we really. It’s the people around that make us who we are.

luna said...

I believe these ideals may be used in everyday life and not only in management. A belief in oneself maybe the most important characteristic mentioned. Passion for the job is also important, its like a positive drive to do what you want to do and getting paid for it. Respect and love for people can be used universally, in order to be respected, you have to respect others as well. Aloneness, leaders do have to walk alone from time to time, and as we try to become leaders ourselves, we also must do this. A belief in what one is doing will probably be the success of a business. I couldn't agree with you more when you mentioned, "I believe great leaders are bred from great causes, but leaders at their best will also breed great causes."

sue said...

I really like this post, Professor. It gave me a chance to think about what the most important qualities I should hold on to in my career and my life.

Personally, I believe that everybody is a manager in a sense who tries to improve things get better and to help others motivated and thrived. Almost everyday we encounter situations that we should manage. They can result from relationships in our families, friends, and work places. All the attributes that you mentioned are hard to achieve, but I absolutely agree that they are important characteristics of a good manager.

From my perspective, the hardest part is that a good manager should have all of the above qualities as well as their opposite ones.
To be a good manager:
-we should have a belief in ourselves as well as the humility to listen to others
-we should have passion for the job as well as the respect for other areas
-we should have a respect and love of people as well as a capacity for aloneness
- we should have a belief in what we are doing

Your last post not only applies to the business field, but also in our daily lives. I learned a lot in your class, and it was a great pleasure to come to class every time. Thanks!

Mei Kong said...

Well, what a misleading picture and title…Funny.
I think that it’s always easy to be just a nice teacher or just a hard teacher. If you want to combine the two, it does require effort. It can be applied to a good leader as well. I agree that attitude is the first importance thing since one should believe in what he/she does before he/she has the confident and desire to persuade others to follow. On the other hand, if one appears uncertain of what he/she is doing, others won’t get what he/she want them to feel.
Passion for the job and love others are importance too. Only when one feel that others won’t harm them and try to help them will open their heart to listen and accept things that unknown to them.

fantastic plastic click said...

A belief in oneself..
Yeah, it is very important stem to maintain what you can be and present you.
Firstly, being hot always comes to an appearance but it is not as you experience life more and more.
What can make you look more confident and strong could be a feature at the first sight and it is also important. But it has to support by a personality and their professional, and so on.
It can be applied to when you look for your spouse too.
Everyone judge the people at the first sight can be how they look like before they don’t know who they are. Then that's it. They more look into their stability such as financial situation, their jobs or a potential ability to maintain marriage life.
I look at mirror every morning I come out from the house but that's just 5 minutes but I go to school and work and that takes more than half of a day.

Reagan said...

I have to say that this class is not at all what I expected, and yet it has been one of the most valid learning experiences that I've had at Baruch so far. When I think of Management, I think of the 3121 class I'm taking, in which they go over charts and monetary evaluations while I fight a battle to keep my head off of the desk and the sleepy drool to a minimum.

However, I consider this class as an opportunity to understand where I belong as a "manager," or "leader" among my peers and eventually in the work force. It has bolstered my previous beliefs that a good manager is one that encourages someone to bring their abilities and excitement to the work. You said that managing can be a thankless task, but I hope that your feedback from this class will be a confidence booster for you- you're a fantastic teacher... H.o.t. :) Reagan

Unknown said...

I agree with this post. These characteristics are key for those who want to be leaders, ceo's, and their own bosses. This is not an easy task to do, but it can be down. "A belief in oneself," is a scary thing for me. It is had for me to have confidence and talk to an unknown crowd, it makes me squirm. Although I have confidence issues, I still come and work with children everyday. Thisis because I have a passion for what I do. This helps me achieve my goals and handle myself in a way it appears that Im not scared at all. Weird isn't it. I know I am not the leader I want to be, but I am a work in progress. One extremely important point that was mad was that you have to be able to be alone. Its tough for someone to just stand out and be in one everyone listens to.... maybe one day.

Evangelyn said...

I agree that it takes a lot of strength and a certain character to become a leader. All these attributes are definitely required to become a successful leader. In my personal experience, I think many managers should have more respect and love for the people who answer to them. Managers will only succeed with the help of their subordinates. In reality, these are the people that managers have to depend on to get the job right. If something isn't done accordingly, the person who will seem incompetent is the manager because he/she was unsuccessful in leading his team.

Atika said...

. A leader sets the example to his subordinates. If the leader does not believe in himself, it is hard to get others to believe in what he does or says. Leaders should listen to what others have to say, as you professor said, listening is just as talking. It is a hard thing to be a leader. Leaders are always pointed at, blamed when small things go wrong, and rarely appreciated when good things happen. To be a successful leader one needs to lead with attentiveness, instead of control. Leaders need to learn how to respect and love others. This will help form a sense of team work. All the characteristics that you, professor, have mentioned in order to be a good leader are very important but are very hard to achieve all at once

Hiroe Yano said...

These words that you posted in this entry are not only applied to being a good management. these are also seemed significant in order to live through everyday life.
I do believe the most important element to do whatever in any where is to always faith in ourself as well as faith in people.
faith in oneself gives us courage to persist in doing what you believe although how hard it is, and it is like a sort of mind control that we have to believe in what we are doing and trying in the situation by having strong vision in mind. It is away easy said more than done. I sometimes lost in what part of myself I have to believe rather than just saying to myself "I can do it". I sometimes feel that there is nothing that I could believe in me to accomplish, and that self-doubt pull me off from fully achieving what I really hoped .
Passion is, as you said in entry, key element to inspire and motivates the people around in organization. People who do not have direct access to the passionate manager also can be effected and motivated even by the way how the manager approach to the challenges and how the one behave working on its job or tasks.
I was actually motivated by how you teach in class and how you tried to communicate with students in class. I could see that you tried to reach individuals, tried to bring everyone to have focus on what we do in class, and tried to make best out of each situation we have in class by compromising with us. I could feel that how serious you are in what you are doing at the same time how much you love, believe, and have passion in what you are doing, introducing the world of management.

Mike said...

Professor Kurpis,
You truly have been an inspiring leader/manager. Simply the effort put forth on your side with our class, has attributed to the high attendance and attention level of the class.
You commented on my post about our future goals, and due to that I have really reconsidered how I want to play out the rest of my life.
It's a good thing to be a 'HOT'.
Belief in oneself is definitely needed. If one doesn't believe in themselves, how will they ever have the confidence and power to manage others?
A passion is also needed. If you don't LOVE what you're doing, you will have no motivation to keep doing it.
A respect for people is hard for many people, including myself. Sometimes you really just want to strangle some of the people in this world, and that's fine. I feel it's how you actually deal with it that proves your respect and tolerance for others. likewise a capacity for aloneness is needed when you have to stand out in the crowd and be the only leader to make a bold statement.
Lastly, a belief in what one is doing is crucial. Similar to a belief in oneself and a passion for what you do, a belief in what you do is needed or there is no motivation to continue doing it. If Bono didn't believe in (RED) cause, he would not still be saving Africa one day at a time.

Thanks so much for your inspiring words and great techniques. You're getting a great rating from me on RateMyProfessor.com. Hell, I'll even give you the "hot" chili pepper!

CMT Corp said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
CMT Corp said...

Blend this with Attila and you have a manger that will rival anyone including jack Welch. As i stated in previously a manger must be a strong, ambitious, determined leader. Obviously the extreme of Attila would not work in today’s world But a manger having an inner Attila will do wonders. All of the attributes mentions are the polished socially acceptable version of Attila’s.

In today’s world a manger must show great confidence. Competition is coming from all angles. You have globalization, technology allowing competitors from other industries to enter yours (apple into movies-Pixar), workers respect a manger who they no can lead them through these turbulent times. Trust me a lack of confidence in oneself will not gain you employees respect. Confidence is the building block of success.

Jonathan said...

Those words are definitely words to live by. In terms of management, they ring completely true.

Managers would never be successful if they didn't believe in their decisions and take the risks that are associated with their decisions. Of course in order to take those risks they need to have the passion for the job. So those two points go together but are very true of what any manager needs in order to be successful.

Respecting your workers and your peers is an important aspect to management. Without them, you would not be able to achieve any of the goals you set out to do as a manager. There have been many a manager that disrespected their co-workers and doom came upon them...like Eisner.

Being able to take the full brunt of management issues is a sticking point. If the manager cannot take the heat, he really shouldn't be manager. Some managers crack under the pressure, but the successful ones strive alone until their goal is accomplished. This can be good or bad but hopefully for any aspiring manager, it's a good thing.

The belief in what one is doing, I believe, is more geared towards those that want to leave a lasting impression. Most managers are content to be successful and bring in the money. But the true management leaders strive for something more after their time is over.

I like these points of management and will try to keep to a similar path. Hopefully one day I can take these to a high level of management.

It was an honor to be under your tutelage professor. Keep posting and I'll be sure to keep reading.

iglanna said...

Pr. kurpis i hav eot say thank you very much for the best class i had at Baruch. Besides the notes and slides and text book, i learned by your example what it meant to be a good manager. I have a personality of a dominating leader. But you class made me open my eyes and realize that i am doing it all wrong, i need to trust people more in their tasks and assignments. I need to work as a team player to get 100% performance. The most important part is that working with people is the best managment experience. No one person is the same and their is so much to learn form each otehr. Being dominating is good in some instances but not always, and thank you for making me reilize that throught your class. Success comes from human interactions, when you are liked and respected, when you hav e astrong team which will be ther for you that is the ultimate key.

Juan Duran said...

This class was a very different type of "management" class for me. It was so much more hands on, and a need for creativity was intensely needed. The quotes you stated in this blog put the framework for what we as students needed throughout this whole course.

A belief in oneself: Some students have a hard time communicating with others, or even speaking out in class, but you need to focus on your goal of learning what is really being taught, and give it a shot, even if you fail.

A passion for the job: You might be able to do well in this class by taking really good notes, cramming like crazy before a test, and responding here and their to get the points for participation, but the true learners in this course are those who took more than that from this creative mgmt class. an enthusiasm for the approaches on social interaction, and how to be able to manage your life in different aspects. Work,school, social....it works in all of them.
Respect and love of people: Good leaders always respect others opinions. It's a way to get a fresh outlook on things that you might not see. This respect flowed into our classroom and how we interacted with each other.
You also have to be willing to stand alone sometimes. This will definitely test your character, which is essential to great leaders.
I believe this class and the way it was taught will stay in my thoughts, and change the way i approach everything i do, especially my poker career. It's been useful throughout the semester, and im hoping i can take it with me and run. Thanks prof k, it was great to meet you too. Thanks for your ability to understand the different people you have in class. Im always on the move, so ill try to make a mobile version of this class and keep it in my head for years to come. Thanks again prof K.

Serena said...

A belief in oneself. It's seems like to me that this is the most important but also the hardest characteristics out of all. To have belief in oneself is the fundamental of everything. We need to have self-confidence in order to step out and be ready to face the world. Building self-confidence is not easy, and I believe many people struggles with it. Usually I am a pretty confident person, but I still come across time (especially around the end of the year) I question myself whether my decisions are right? Am I given the best I can in school, work or life in general? Am I behind in life? Have I become a better person after all the things I went through? I question myself. And once I started to question myself, the belief I always hold begun to fade, and I can't do anything right. Therefore, I think maintaining a belief in oneself is very important.
I also wanted to say that this is by far one of the most interesting class I've taken in Baruch. I enjoyed the class activities and also the blog assignment. I love the fact that we can combine class material with activities. Learning is not about memorizing everyone from the book, but knowing how to apply things you learn in class in real life. I had a wonderful time in MGT3120. Thank you Prof. K.

Stan Shvartsberg said...

I agree professor, it is hard to be so hands on. Thats why I feel it is best to delegate duties to subordinates. You can't be everywhere always, and you need to make sure that when you aren't there, someone that knows what they are doing is. And you are right, you have to be alone when you are leading the pack, but not only for that reason. I find that being the sort of boss of my company, I can never truly be friends with anyone that works for us. I can certainly be friendly, but not friends, I can not be more favorable to any one person because I find that it could one day hurt me and my company.

Paris said...

Being a Hands on Teacher can definately get tough, especially in a class like the one we had, where just so many of us are DIs!!!!! How do you get a rowdy group of students like us in control. Well you do it by giving us some control, like you did. You let participate in the class, channel all our constructiveness with you, rather than against us. This was quite a tactic to use, that is not often used with other teachers. Touche sir...Touche...

Publius said...

It is not easy. That is why the world knows many people that led somebody or somenthing is some point of history; but only few of them can truly be called "the leaders" As I mentioned in my other post people will always follow somebody who believes in them, who recognizes their right to freedom and the fact that all the people are individuals. People also admire knowledge that is another key factor in leading. But the most importnat thing is that leader that is "hot" has to have something what makes him/her acceptable for large group of people.

d. said...

Thank you.
These characteristics you've posted are very helpful. The 1st two (Belief in oneself and a passion for your job) are two things I've always felt are very important to reach success. The word Humility: I always hear this word at church and my family always use this word when referring to a grand person. "Humildad" This is very important characteristic to be in my family.
"Listening":I believe you can get very far just by listening.
"A capacity for aloneness" : wow never realize how important this is to be successful. (very interesting and true..)
Side Note: I think you're an amazing professor. I've learned so much beneficial information from this class to help me in the future. Best part of it was that is was fun. Thank you.

***Tania Bonetti*** said...

These are all very true in every leadership role. I think that any manager who shares all of these unique qualities will be the ideal manager.

I feel that the two most important ideals that are found here are a belief in oneself and a passion for the job. Most importantly is ones passion for the job. I think that the most important thing that you can find in any manager as well as any employee is the genuiness of what they really want to do. I love to see people who are just passionate about what they are doing, and I think that is something that we are all just trying to achieve in life. By having people who are passionate about what they are doing the motivation and energy will be soon to follow. One important aspect of being passionate about your job is being able to think outside the box. By doing this you can add new ideas and culture aspects that can make that management experience unique. This ties into believing in oneself. This is often hard, but its truly beautiful when someone has achieved it, what im talking about is self confidence to speak out your vision onto others and then truly believing that you can make everyone achieve a similar goal.

Taking risk are always a nessesity for change, but the managers are always held accountable, and I think its totaly true that they are always looked onto for advice, but then are always the first to get blamed when something happens. They have so much on thier plate, that these are risk that they have to take in order to be succesfull, if not then there would never be any change.

In the end, as much as many of you may think that money will solve all your problems and fufill all your needs,.. there will never be a greater fufillment if you are truly working in what you belive in. Being passionate in what you do will lead you to great success and feelings of achievement that could never be achieved otherwise. I think that the feeling of being passionate about what you do is a life long goal that we all have.

ksciarratta said...

I think that you are a great teacher. I studied teaching for three years and I think the most important thing is to have a passion for the job. When it came down to student teaching I decided to pursue another major even though I only had a semester left of school, student teaching. I thought that if I was not passionate anymore, which I wasn't, I can't take a good teacher away from the students. I was studying special education, elementary education, and spanish. These poor kids needed a good teacher and I was not able to do it. I didn't like it anymore and I though that I was cheating these wonderful kids out of their learning. I think that you are passionate about your job and you try to get through to us, as stuck up and snobby as we are, you still don't give in. Keep it up. You're one of those professors that students will remember in the long run and i'm sure you will receive thank you notes down the line from students past.

Unknown said...

I guess its not easy these days to be a great manager or leader in the work place. As you best described it, you definitely need those attributes in order make a positive impact on the people around you. If you can in someway master those attributes then you will be recognized as a great manager who has the trust of his people to lead them.

Whether your trying to be a great manager or leader you need to have a strong sense of self-confidence. You have to be able to expect the unexpected from your environment and you must know how to deal with them. Additionally, as leader you have to remember that listening is always more important than talking. You never want to have a great idea from one of your workers fall on deaf ears.

No matter what industry you work in, as a manager or leader you have to show a great passion for the job. As you best described, with that comes “the energy and focus that will drive your organization and you must always try to act as an example to others”. If you show no passion in the work place, others will probably take the same approach and will think of you as a poor leader. Moreover, of course being a leader comes with the territory of being congratulated or blamed on for your actions. Everyone knows that with “great power comes great responsibility”. As a leader, you must sometimes accept criticism and find ways to overcome it. That is what great leaders do.

ledivan said...

"I believe great leaders are bred from great causes, but leaders at their best will also breed great causes." I have a feeling this quote will make into the world wide web quotation database. If not me, someone will...

"A belief in oneself" is what I think constitutes a large chunk of the set of characteristics of a good leader. It is such a rarity to find an individual whose source of self-confidence comes from a belief in oneself, his knowledge and her capacity, and that which does not collapse into arrogance. The sight of a swaggering so-called 'leader' whose listening skills are worse than that of the deaf, is quite commonplace.

The "Capacity for aloneness" ideal grabbed my attention even before I read the post. And I absolutely agree. Leaders are pioneers. They are the leading light, the modernizer and the pacesetter. In order to be successful, leaders must walk one step ahead of the pack, constantly innovating and combating competition.

I see this everyday in the startup where I pragmatically spend my pre-school hours. There are two distinct leaders, whose ideas and methods, as outlandish and absurd they first seem, drive the company to new heights. They are able to perceive the big picture, as well as the horizon, and based on these they conceive and originate. I have not been able to figure out their secret, but I'm sure it involves a number of these ideals.

Dva said...
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Winston Chu said...

You are definitely one of the better teachers that I have encountered. I believe that you encompass all the traits that you have listed. I can only hope to become a good leader or teacher by your definition. I believe that I embody most of the things that you have listed. I definitely believe in myself, I have the passion, and the capacity for aloneness. I'm not too sure whether or not I currently have the patience to attain the respect and love of the people. Maybe it's something that comes with time and experience. I'm sure that you haven't always been so patient and understanding. It's just that when I'm at work, I move a mile a minute and am often a perfectionist. If only my professional mannerism would match my mannerism as a student. It's just that my personality traits are at a paradox with my professional traits. I'm naturally a lazy and easy going individual. It's just that when I enter the office, I become a totally different person.

felix1224 said...

i am very agree that being a leader is not easy, lots of thing need to me walk by ourself. and start from us. I believe that the most important element for being a leader is not emotional and knowlegable. because lots of thing will drive people crazy if we not emotional by being a leader.

b3iv5on said...

By far your best entry ... so far(hopefully). There's not much to say over here, except that the most difficult thing to do is maintain self-belief, especially when you face
criticisms.

All in all a good post, and yes rest assured you will be looked upon for advise.

Lucky said...

Very well said, it is true that few people can do it well, consistently and successfully without believing in one self. I believe that a leader must have the passion for the role and for people. A hot should have respect for self and others but most importantly strength of character.

izzy said...

Wow! That was amazing, I wish every single person in the world that have any sort of position and/or power will think like that. I'll siriously print this and try to remember that I have to remain the same now as when (hopefully) I'll have more power in the future. We all know that as we get more power and money we might change not for the good, so it's important to remember these set of self-mindsets when we are going through these changes. I also want to thank you for a great semster. I learned a lot from you in all kinds of different aspects. Thank you!

Mariya said...

lamo! I was like what is this post about?!? Well i absolutely agree with everything that you have written. It's like the guidelines in one blog entry. I do think that respect towards others is something that should come on the top of the list for anyone, any job, and any person. Treat others as you want to be treated. I think that being a leader is a complicated thing, because you do not want to intimidate others too much, and you dont want them taking advantage of your kindness, or not obeying you. My friend's dad owns a trucking company. He recently, ( i think has lost his mind) and has been giving his drivers blank checks. He says to write whatever amount you feel aproriate. But, I guess that's his way of keeping his employees happy and respecting him. But I wonder if that is pushing it too much. I learned a lot from out class activities and your blog. And I am more than sure this is something I will use in the future. Thank you for all your enlightment!

Andrey said...

I agree with some points on your blog and disagree with others. It is in a way difficult to be on top. To be that leader that everyone looks up to and goes to for answers. I can also see that when something in the entire group goes wrong only the leader is often to blame. I belief in oneself is deffinily importaint because if you not 100% on top your game, and your not 100% confident that you are right, you will have a very hard time makeing people respect and trust you. I also agree with the fact that you need to LOVE your job or else it will be close to imposible to even make it as top managment and be a leader, talking from corporate experiece you rarely go home at 5, you leave 6:30 if your lucky...and thats entry level, the higher up you go the more time you spend at work... Our top level managers are in meetings from 9-5 and only after 5 do they sit down and start working I know that most of them leave around 10 11 pm... So, if you dont absolutly LOVE your job you will be very very misserable.

The part that I disagree about is the alone time. I think that its always better to work with other then do it alone I go by the rule to heads are better then one. I can see where you are coming from with that but I still think That as a team you will alwyas be able to achive more. Another thing that I disagree about is that I think its much harder to GET to the top then to BE at the top. I can iamgine that being #1 is very stressful and hard, I still think that working your way up there you do a lot more work.

Thats my 2 cents! :)

Bola Kazeem said...

Hi Professor,

I agree with all this characteristics you have listed. It is very important that one believe in one self in other for one to be able to lead people. Sometimes in my past, I use to have a low self-esteem of myself. I believe I cannot lead people. I use to be shy communicating with people. Then, I later realized that people get interested in my comments. Since then I begin to gain back my self esteem. In addition, too much believe in oneself is not also good. People who tends to believe in their self usually fail, because they believe they can do it all without team discussion, or without any important figure interfering.
Furthermore, another most important thing that attracted me most is the characteristics that one should respect and love people. I believe that the people we disrespect are the people who talk down on us. They are the people who put us down and make mockery of us. Therefore, it is very important for one to respect people in other to be respected. Respect is something that one earns not something that one deserves.
However, as a manager or a leader, a passion for ones job is very important because team members or workers must see you as a role model. A manager must convey a good example for others. A manager who does not really care about the success of the organization would find it very difficult to motivate is workers.

MIHO said...

After I read your article, I thought “Hmmm, what is the first step to be a leader?” For many of us, this seems as important as what we need to be a great leader.

I think the first step of being a great leader is to decide to be a leader. Not everybody wants to be a leader, and there is nothing wrong with that. If you don’t want to be a leader, you can be a great supporter who is necessary and as important as leaders. I saw many managers who were told to be managers or just like their positions, however, they didn’t want to take any responsibilities nor could not make decisions. Working with that kind of managers is not just tough but, in fact, demotivating.

As you say, being a leader is hard and lonely. If you want to be a leader, I think, it is very important to decide this as soon as possible. After you decide to become a leader, you can prepare for being a leader. From my experience, your way of working will be changed after the decision; you will come to think why you need to do the task or project, what you need to do for a project, and why a manager makes the decision.
I believe this step is very important to be a great leader.

Irfan Mazhar said...

I completely agree with your statement that "It's not easy being Hands on teacher...". It requires alot of strength, a huge amount of beliefs, not just in ourselves but in others as well, and a vast amount of passion for what you do for you to be able to successfully accomplish your goals in the long run.
In management, a belief in oneself is the one of the most important skills you would ever learn. It is one's belief that keeps one moving towards accomplishing one's goal. It strengthens you from inside and increases the level of confidence and belief you have in your self. Like as a management teacher, you have to be able to say to yourself that I am capable of turning a student with no understanding of management to the point that he/she can teach some other student with no understanding to a better state. As a manager myself, I have to confess to myself everytime I enter my office that i would lead my group towards achieving our goals, in our case revenues and loyal customers.
Just believing in one's self is not sufficient for one to successfully accomplish his/her goal. You have to be able to focus and implement your understanding and successfully provide enthusism to keep the things flowing in the right direction. Along with that you need to know how much passionate and capable are your followers and colleague you are working with. Just having my way of doing things is not going to be a successful technique of getting things done everyday. It may be successful in the short run, but for you to successfully implement your understanding and accomplish goal in the long run, you have to be able to understand others and see where they fit in the circle, because if you fail to recognize them, by the time you reach very far ahead, the only thing you would have gained is yourself. For example, as a basketball player, even if you are capable and passionate for the game. you have to understand where others in your team. Because if you think of going alone, you will surely have great stats as an individual but as team you would be the least in the league. As they say, to win championships, you should be able to demonstrate that you are a better team not a better individual player.
Respect is what would earn you the most in the long run. If you respect what others do or say, people will eventually start respecting you have to say or do. they will be more willing to help you and follow you in accomplishing your goals.When I'm at work, many of my customers respect my skills, knowledge and skills, even though I'm way younger than them. They consider my opinions because I consider theirs. Similarly, as a teacher, you have to be able to respect other in the class because each member in the class has different background and viewpoints. Each has different levels of understanding. Teacher has to find his place somewhere in between where he is not offending anyone in the class.
In my viewpoint, the most important thing of all is capacity of aloness. As a manager or teacher, one has to be able to back up what one's decisions, even if other oppose you. In the long run, if you succeed you will rewarded, if you fail, you will be criticized. So one has to be prepared for what ever the outcome is. If you at a broader perspective, a leader in alone in the short run as well in the lond run. Nobody would blame the team, if you fail to accomplish you goal. It is the leader who is credited the most if something works out good.
If you create a package by mixing all these qualities into one, you will have way greater chances to succeed as opposed to the ones who stick with one of the variable. People today like a variety in things, so if you create this variation in your personality,more will like you and more will be willing to help you achieve your goals.

寻找 said...

i believe it is good for us to keep asking ourself " is it enough, money, power, and success". whenever you ask yourself this question, you will compare with others. You might find out someone has high status than you have or possessed a plenty of money to make their life are more smoother and luxurious than yours. It will stimulate you to work harder and strive to your goal. That is also a positive motive to encourage you becoming a successful person

eMiLy said...

I think it is not easy to be the "perfect" person but it is possible to become one as long as we know where we stand and set the right chracteristics as our goal to achieve.
It is true that we always need to have self confidence on whatever we are doing before we try to convince others to follow us. However, we cannot be over confident, sometimes we have to listen to other people because we don't realize our mistakes by ourselves but other people would see more clearly than we do.
Second, we should always show passion on what we're doing in order to achieve good results. We should always question ourselves about our motivation. What are our motivation to live and what we would wish to achieve throughout our life.

Ryzhikov said...

i dunno about hot but i think ur cute-lol

Ryzhikov said...

i actually disagree with all 5 statements because there comes a time i think in everyones life, who has ever faced a hardship, where we have no passion for what we are doing nor do we believe in it, but we have a goal to achieve. i can take my family as an example my father took any job he could find to put food on the table for my sister and i, and i cannot say that he was passionate about his minimum wage jobs but it was something he had to do and there was no other choice. i think that you need to establish a goal and do whatever it takes ethically ofcourse to achieve it, but like it you do not have to. you can have that fire in your belly by the outcome desired not the task at hand. people wake up everymorning and go to work where they have to be, like it or not if it pays the bills we do it, it is easy for all of us to say things like passion for the job because fortunately we live in the greatest nation ever where we will never face hardships like our immigrant ancestors. we have the opportunity here to choose whom we make of oursefs but we forget that some nations tell you your proffession and you do it. im not saying i disagree with your blog, however it is not always the case.

Paul Kim said...

I want to be HOT haha. I really feel what you are saying professor. I see that you try to give a %100 everyday and I thank you. I have issues in with believing myself... I don't know why. I think it is fear of embarisment and fear of failure. I also doing some deep thinking of where my future lies... I want to find career path that I have passion for.. I only wish I read the blog guidelines more carefully so I knew to drop by your page more often. I think it would of helped me during the semester but its never too late!

DORIS said...

People often have a misconception about leaders. To be a leader is an extremely difficult task. Without a belief in oneself, it is almost impossible for others to believe in you. People feed off of others confidence and sence insecurities. A leader must be passionate about what he/she does. When you are passionate about something, you are willing to go above and beyond. You must be respectful to everyones beliefs and willing to listen to views that may differ from your own. Often times, other views are innovating. Last but not least, the most important aspect of a good leader is the ability to be alone. As a leader you cannot be afraid to go against the norm. They must be willing to take responsibility, whether things go good or bad. They are the figurehead of the company and most times, all criticism is pointed at the leader.