Eight Principles of Slow Management (alpha)

Posted on
5

As prompted by @brandonschauer, here is a alpha of the minimally viable principles of Slow Management. Looking for feedback with further detail to come in future posts:

**Updated with Edits thanks to @digitalacolyte**

  • Act with the expectation of positive intent
  • Credit is karma–don’t try to control it, but be sure to give it to those who deserve it
  • Talk less and do more–don’t over-explain to be smart
  • Cut down on sources of stimulation
  • Fatigue is the enemy so be fit enough to fight it
  • Develop outside interests and provocations
  • Be engaged and engage others
  • Be open and consistent in communication–to provide context for the future

Thoughts? Either comment or send to jason[at]slow-management[dot]org

Slow is Fast

Posted on
1

Sure, Slow Management is about maintaining sanity. It is also about speed. And no, this isn’t a contradiction.

Obviously, it is amazing what you can do when you focus on work and not the dizzing dance of distractions flying about like incontinent dung beetles. I won’t rant and rave about the impact of rampant multitasking–this article should do the trick.

Lean ways of working are understandably getting a lot of play. When you look at the principles, they are just good management.

  • Make sure people are focused on value-adding activities;
  • share learning and best practices;
  • make the right decisions and the right time;
  • engage and empower the team;
  • act with integrity; and
  • stitch it all together.
You can’t do any of the above if you are thinking about how to justify your worth with email volume and calling for status presentations. You can only do this if you engage with the people and problems at hand without the filter of your own perception. That takes effort, focus, concentration, and empathy.
That’s why in my day job, the Slow Management experiment is coupled with the mantra of You Ship or You Suck and a focus on the details of the design that would make Charles Eames proud.
If you slow down and focus on on the art of management, you can go faster with better quality. Sounds like a good deal.

Update on Email Experiments

Posted on
1

I’ve been running two experiments to create the space for greater focus and engagement:

I’m making an adjustment to the Daily email. Colleagues correctly complained that the 4pm email barrage when I finally synched my mail was just delayed dumping. It’s a good point. The idea is not to just hold off on sending email but actually cut back on email and engage in other ways.
Continue reading →

Re-entry Syndrome (Update)

Posted on
1

Quick update:

  • 11: Days out of work email contact
  • 95: Number of emails (including cc)
  • 89: Number of emails to me
  • 3: Number of emails that required closer reading
  • 45 minutes: Time to inbox zero

So far, so uneventful.