Craig Notes

Why does our boss insist we "go forward" to lands of "deliverables," stopping off on the "journey" to "drill down" into "best practice"? Management euphemisms have flooded the working landscape. With the new series of W1A on our screens and Thinking Allowed exploring the phrases we all love to loathe, we have gathered together the ultimate collection of cringe-worthy, toe-curling business buzzwords, guaranteed to have you spinning in your swivel chair.

1. Touch base

If your colleague asks you to “touch base” he isn’t, fortunately, asking for a foot massage. The term simply means make contact – either in the form of a call, email or face-to-face meeting. It originates from baseball, where runners have to touch the base for a run to be legal. Needless to say, the phrase can make even the most tactile of employees feel uncomfortable.

2. Close of play

A term to trick us into thinking the working day can be likened to a lengthy game of football or a scrabble tournament, “get it to me by COP” simply means finish that work by 5.00pm or there’ll be trouble.

3. Blue sky thinking

How can you generate new and original ideas, unfettered by conventional restraints and traditional preconceptions? Deploy blue sky thinking! Alternatively, you might be asked to “think outside the box”, although any company that expected you to sit inside one in the first place is probably facing an employment tribunal.

4. Decomplexify

Ironically, decomplexify simply complexifies the word for simplify. Simple!

5. Low hanging fruit

This is a metaphor for easily obtained gains or “quick wins”: the simplest tasks that produce fast results or profits, or targeting the easiest customers first. It is also, however, deeply flawed – apple or peach pickers in fact start at the top of the tree, where the fruit ripens first. So the next time you’re criticised for not harvesting enough low hanging fruit, simply pass your boss the number of a local orchard owner.

6. Punch a puppy

Deeply upsetting for dog lovers, the term refers to doing something detestable or unpleasant in the short term but that’s good for the business in the long run. Whoever came up with this one was probably more of a cat person.

7. Peel the onion

To uncover a problem, one layer at a time, in order to better understand what's causing it. A workplace euphemism that’s guaranteed to make your eyes water.

8. Drill down

Veering away from vegetable metaphors and on to DIY, this just means to examine something in detail: to “drill down” into the issue. Do not, under any circumstances, turn up to the weekly meeting with your power tools.

9. Run it up the flagpole

The full catchphrase, “let's run it up the flagpole and see if anyone salutes it", refers to testing the popularity of a new idea or proposal. It emerged from the advertising agencies of Madison Avenue in New York during the late 1950s and early 1960s. A alternative might be "let's throw it against the wall and see if it sticks” – perhaps originating from the theory that perfectly cooked spaghetti will stick to a wall. As does extremely overcooked pasta, for that matter.

10. Cascade

If someone asks you to “cascade that strategy down through the organisation” they probably mean send a company-wide email. Or tell people while you’re making tea.

11. Strategic staircase

A business plan shaped like a staircase. We’ll take the lift, thanks.

12. Rightsizing

Businesses have come up with some pretty creative ways to tell people they’re out of a job. To soften the blow and avoid using the dreaded “downsizing”, companies have informed employees they’re getting the boot due to “rightsizing” or “smartsizing”. You might find yourself “transitioned”, “graduated” or “realigned” – all of which are going to mean clearing your desk and handing over your swipe card.

Right, that’s enough 360 degree thinking. Better ping across that strategic staircase before COP, or you could find yourself the sudden victim of tactical corporate streamlining…

Courtesy of BBC.COM
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Twelve management jargon gems we all love to hate

When Jason Raftis was a sales manager at a car dealership in Florida, he decided to give a longtime friend a job in his department.

“Stick to strangers. They're way easier to manage and even easier to fire.” — Jason Raftis

He quickly realised his mistake. The friend started making a habit of detailing their college exploits in front of other employees — and that was only the start.

“[It] turned out to be a nightmare,” recalled Raftis, who is now a business services account executive. “Because of our friendship, he took it as a license to come and go as he pleased and took liberties that other employees would never take.”

Raftis eventually fired him. His advice: “Stick to strangers. They're way easier to manage and even easier to fire.”

Whether as a boss or subordinate, mixing friendship and work has many potential pitfalls. Before you hire a friend — and more importantly, before going to work for a friend, it’s crucial to weigh the pros and cons.

A poor hire can give you a bad reputation and reflect badly on your judgment, not to mention damage a friendship. In addition, personalities can change — and not always for the best — when people move from friend to colleague.

“What if the friend is uber-competitive and wants to best you, causing complications in existing business relationships?” said Dallas-based Nancy Keene, founder of The Perfect Fit, a leadership consultancy, in an email. “Not everyone can cross over.”

Make it official

Wanting to help a friend can set off a messy trail of unintended consequences, according to Keene. One way to keep the friendship intact, but help a friend get a job, is to defer to the human resources department. It’s common for companies and executive recruiters to ask for referrals from employees.

If it is a large organisation or a retained executive search firm, the friend will undergo the same level of scrutiny and evaluation as any other candidate. “If they don’t get through the screening/interviewing process, they won’t get the job. You’ve done a nice thing for a friend, but you are not the decider, and your friend can’t be unhappy with you if there is no hire,” said Keene. “Likewise, if the friend is hired and things go wrong… your hands will be clean.”

Of course, hiring a friend doesn’t always have devastating consequences. If you were colleagues before, left for different companies, and now are teammates again, it can be a great fit for both sides. You already know each other’s work ethic and that can be a positive.

“When a friend asks you to come work for him or her, it can indeed be a great feeling of recognition and support,” said Dr Lorraine Tilbury, founder of personal and professional development firm HorsePower International based in France’s Loire Valley, in an email.

Both sides of the equation

The pros and cons work both ways. If you’re the one being hired by a friend, be sure to examine the opportunity as objectively as possible, said Dr Andrea Bonior, clinical psychologist and author of The Friendship Fix, in an email.

“You need to evaluate whether it is a good job for you, independent of the fact that your friend works there,” she said. “There is a chance that you are biased because of wanting to be with your friend and might not be realistic about the job.”

For example, have you considered things like salary, the commute, advancement opportunities, whether it’s a challenging position?

“Sometimes, friends want to help you out and can end up offering you to do something for them that you don't feel is the best ‘fit’ for you,” said Tilbury. “Just as for any other potential employer, reflect on the pros and cons of the job offer.”

Get it in writing

How well do you know this friend? Do you trust him or her in business? What happens if it doesn't work out?

“These are all questions you should ask yourself before committing to working for [a friend],” said Anita Pickerden, a Birmingham, UK-based work life balance coach, in an email. No matter how well you think you know the person, you need to get all of the details of the job in writing before your start. “You may be very good friends now but if you fall out later then you want some proof of the original agreement,” she said.

Some conflict is bound to happen, according to Tilbury: “No matter how strong your friendship is between each other, disagreements will inevitably arise, so it's essential to talk about how they will be addressed.”

Doesn’t have to end badly

It is important to ask the same questions you would of any “boss to be,” said Rich Wellins, a senior vice president at Development Dimensions International, a US-based global human resources consulting firm, in an email. Before saying yes, ask yourself the following, suggested Wellins: Are you comfortable with a hierarchical relationship at work and an equal one outside of work? Are you willing to back your boss even if you disagree? Do you clearly understand what your goals and expectations are ahead of time?

“Your job matters almost more than your relationship with your friend-boss,” said Wellins. “I know many people who dislike their job but still like their boss. Who you work for is critical but not everything. People end up working for their friends every day... In most cases things just work out fine.”

Courtesy of bbc.com/capital

The real reason not to hire a friend

The man standing before the stadium-sized crowd held the attention of thousands, in part because of humorous, yet moving, speech about the power of hope. But also because he was standing there at all.

Nick Vujicic, the 32-year-old president of motivational speech marketer Attitude is Altitude, was born without arms or legs. Though he struggles with some practicalities of everyday living (brushing teeth, for example), he has become an in-demand inspirational speaker.

There is no medical explanation for Vujicic’s disability, an extremely rare congenital disorder known as tetra-amelia syndrome. He has a small foot on his left hip which helps him balance. He can type, pick things up between his toes and even kick a ball. The self-confessed adrenalin junkie regularly swims and has gone skydiving.

Confidence didn’t come naturally to Vujicic. Growing up in Melbourne, Australia, he struggled with depression and was bullied at school. When he was just 10 years old, he attempted suicide. Over time, Vujicic worked on adopting a positive attitude, and, at 17, an encounter with his high school janitor inspired him to go into public speaking. The charismatic Australian now travels the world addressing huge crowds, including business groups and schoolchildren. He has visited more than 50 countries and given thousands of talks.

The author of memoir Love Without Limits now lives in California with his wife, Kanae, and their 2-year-old son. They are expecting another child later in 2015. Vujicic runs a non-profit ministry, Life Without Limbs, as well as Attitude is Altitude, which markets his motivational speeches and campaigns against bullying.

Please click on the arrow above to see Nick Vujicic speak with BBC Capital about his extraordinary life and his recipe for success in the corporate world.

http://www.bbc.com/capital/story/20150318-leading-without-limbs

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The man who leads with no limbs

Successful executives are adept at it. Slippery politicians thrive on it. But for most of us, fielding difficult questions during a big presentation is harder than it looks.

Taking evasive action when faced with a tricky question is an art form so we went to question-and-answer site Quora for some insight on tips for the craftiest way to dodge a question during a presentation?

Here’s what they had to say:

Acknowledging your interrogator can go a long way, says Vadim Zaytsev, a software language engineer. “I once attended a PhD defence where a scientific opponent asked a question [along] the lines of ‘what are going to do about X?’. The answer was absolutely brilliant because it started with ‘We mostly rely on the method published in your book’.

Saying that you are aware of the work of the person who asked the question and saying you agree it is related can help you dodge “very heavy accusations and/or redirect them to a broader community,” wrote Zaytsev.

Another hint: say the question will be addressed in subsequent slides. Still, “some rude listeners will actually come back at this by the end of the presentation and raise the question again, but most of them will be cut off, especially if the talk is long and there are others who want to ask something else,” Zaytsev wrote.

One common phrase Jon Mixon, a tool and die machinist, hears is, ‘that's a good question’. It is “a timeless dodge in the field of question avoidance,” he wrote. “This statement and the act of moving away from the original by creating a discussion about your perception of the question's ‘quality’” are key to redirecting the questioner’s attention.

Feigning a lack of attention also works. If you pretend you did not hear the question or that you weren’t paying attention, “this is usually a sufficient enough irritant to have the questioner either ask another person the question or to lose their composure enough to forget the question which they originally asked,” Mixon wrote. Another ploy: answering the question with a question, “stymies further questioning, or throws all but the most advanced interrogators off-track.”

Pretending you know the answer to a question can be devastating to your career, particularly in high-risk areas such as looking after astronauts, wrote Robert Frost an engineer and instructor at NASA. “They are putting their lives and careers in our hands when we train them,” he wrote. “They have to have 100% confidence that we can be trusted.”

Once when Frost was teaching a crew-member “he asked me a question. I didn't know the answer so I immediately said, 'I don't know’. We continued and he asked another question and again I said, ‘I don't know’,” Frost wrote. “For a brief moment, I felt panic that he was going to walk out of the room because he thought I was a moron that didn't know my subject.”

Instead, “he shook my hand and said, ‘Thank you. You don't know how many people are unwilling to say that to me’."

Frost advises presenters to always be honest: “You either know the answer or you don't. If you aren't sure, you risk providing negative training by giving bad information.”

Often during a presentation, computer software operations manager Doug Dingus gets “a correction” or someone will volunteer more detailed information. To that, he will say “’Nice catch!’ followed by some banter that helps me understand their background better and perhaps exchanging contact info for a follow-on later.”

To handle “hostile” questions, Dingus suggests: “‘Let's have a talk after this thing, I want to hear what you have to say’ or some variation on that where they know I'm going to hear them out. But in return I'm asking for some consideration to get through the event.” He adds this could “result in drinks somewhere to hear them out entirely”.

Politicians have an adept way at handling difficult questions, wrote Ed Caruthers a retired physicist.. In short, they “stay on point”.“All modern US politicians have learned some variant of, ‘What we really need to do about that problem is,’ and then deliver a standard talking point.” He adds: “It avoids the possibility that the candidate will have an original thought in public, since anything new is unpredictable and may cause problems.”

Courtesy: bbc.com/capital

Giving a talk? Here’s how to avoid the tricky questions

Samuel Amegavisa is getting nervous. In his last year of human biology studies at the University of Cape Coast in Ghana, it’s time to start thinking about job interviews.

“My situation is quite simple. I have never been interviewed before,” wrote 23-year-old Amegavisa in an email to BBC Capital. He had a basic question — one most of us probably don’t think much about. “Is there any recommended sitting position before and during your interview?”
While everyone knows it’s important to dress smartly for an interview, less obvious — and less known— is the importance of how you carry yourself. What hidden cues do you give when you walk through the doorway, shake hands or sit?
Three body language experts share their insights on what moves to make, and avoid, in an interview.

Everyone knows it’s important to dress smartly for an interview. Less obvious is the importance of how you carry yourself.

Happy medium
The first contact between an interviewer and interviewee is almost always a handshake. First impressions often determine how the rest of the interview goes, so this can be one of the most important elements of getting it right, according to David Alssema, a body language expert and training facilitator with Paramount Training & Development in Perth, Australia.
“Rapport is built by similarities,” so shake hands the way the interviewer does, recommended Alssema in an email. “Matching the strength or greeting shows you want to be an equal. Overpowering a handshake can signal a dominant attitude towards the meeting.”

Zones of space
No matter our culture, we all have and are at least subconsciously aware of four zones of space around us. They are (from farthest to closest): Public, social, personal and intimate. It’s important to be keenly attuned to these during an interview, according to Nick Morgan, Boston-based speech coach and author of Power Cues: The Subtle Science of Leading Groups, Persuading Others, and Maximizing Your Personal Impact. “The only significant things that happen between people happen in personal and intimate space,” he wrote in an email. “Since intimate space is off limits [in an interview], you want to get into the personal space of the interviewer,” if you want the person to be inclined to decide in your favour.

Make your move
While the handshake brings us into the personal space that we want — it’s why we do it, according to Morgan — typical seating arrangements in an interview tend to move us away. “That makes it easier for the interviewer to pass on us — but harder for us to make an impression,” he said. “So look for ways to tactfully move into the personal space of the interviewer.” For example, you might move your chair slightly or sit on the same side of a round table.
Once you’re seated, consider other ways to close the distance. Lean forward, for example, just not too much. “Try to do this tactfully and subtly, not rapidly or awkwardly,” cautioned Morgan. It’s worth the effort.
“We increase trust and connection with people when we close the distance between us, even by small amounts,” he said.

Open for business
It’s very important to keep your body language “open,” according to Morgan. You’re likely to be nervous and you might find yourself unconsciously clutching your hands in front of you or folding your arms. “These feel safe and comfortable, but also distancing and disconnecting for the other party,” he said. In addition, “[folding your arms] shows that you are disinterested, and it also prevents you from leaning,” said Alssema.

The eyes have it
“Eye contact is important, and any less or any more than a reasonable amount may indicate other attitudes,” said Alssema. What’s just right? That might be hard to tell in some situations, but Alssema suggests mirroring the amount of time the interviewer gives you eye contact. If there is a panel of interviewers, it’s important to provide the right mix of time for each person. “Respond to each person individually with eye contact when answering questions,” he said. “Glancing around is a signal for boredom, so avoid it if possible.”
People often make the mistake of equating good eye contact with never looking away — but this would be a mistake, too, according to Atlanta, Georgia-based Patti Wood, a body language expert and author of SNAP Making the Most of First Impressions, Body Language, and Charisma.
“It is normal to look away from time to time as you speak, because you’re accessing information in your brain,” she wrote in an email. Just don’t let yourself drift off when the interviewer is speaking. “After giving an answer, remember to make eye contact and listen to the interviewer. Eye contact sends the message that you are serious and engaged,” Wood said.

Don’t forget to breathe — deeply
The moment people get nervous, the more quickly they start breathing. That can wreak havoc in an interview.
“When you take quick shallow breaths, you reduce your ability to think clearly,” said Wood. “This may keep you from answering questions quickly and succinctly.”
Instead, try to breathe deeply from low down in your belly. “[It is] one key to feeling clearheaded, energised, and confident,” she said. “Practice breathing more slowly, using your diaphragm, belly, rib cage and lower back in the process.” Of course, this isn’t something you’ll want to do in your actual interview. “But try it whenever you get anxious and certainly before your interview,” she said.

Courtesy of bbc/capital

Can your body language win you the job?

If a boss asks you to do something that is not in your job description once, you might feel you have no choice but to do it.

Inappropriate bosses are everywhere. — Janet Scarborough Civitelli

A one-off request, perhaps you do as a favour, not even giving it a second thought. But what if it becomes a pattern? One day, it’s an emergency dry cleaning drop-off, the next it’s picking up his kids at soccer or taking out the rubbish. At what point are such requests inappropriate?

The problem with these favours, sadly, is that often they aren’t isolated. “If a boss does this, it is likely [he or she] will violate professional boundaries in other ways as well, so this probably isn't the only challenge you'll have in this job,” wrote Janet Scarborough Civitelli, an Austin, Texas-based workplace psychologist and career coach, in an email.

Putting it into context

How do you decide whether something is OK?

“Context is everything,” said Philadelphia-based talent management consultant Mary Schaefer in an email. “It depends on your relationship and the pattern of behaviour so far. First, do you want to do it? Second, does it appear your boss has no other choice than to ask you? Third, what are the probable consequences for you if you don't?”

Where to draw the line

Don’t think this is a problem of just certain companies. It’s an issue at both large and small firms, according to Scarborough Civitelli. “Inappropriate bosses are everywhere,” she said.

It’s crucial to establish boundaries and draw the line early on. Scarborough Civitelli suggested saying something along the lines of: "I want to be helpful, but I think we may have different expectations...Can we please discuss it so that we can get in sync about what my job entails?"

The more you can keep the conversation friendly and unemotional, the better it should go. “Either you'll arrive at a mutually agreeable decision or you will find out that this job requires something that makes you uncomfortable and then you'll have to weigh the pros and cons of seeking other employment,” Scarborough Civitelli said.

Offering up plan B

“You can draw the line wherever you want,” said Schaefer. “If you don't want to do [something], and you think you would lose your job if you say no, but you are not ready to leave, you have a decision to make. [You] might agree in the moment, follow through, and then strategise as to how to follow up so it doesn't happen again.”

If your supervisor is a reasonable person, you might offer to brainstorm alternatives or even help them make other arrangements, suggested Schaefer who is a firm advocate of discussing expectations — no matter how trivial or unusual they may seem — early on “while the relationship is amiable and stable, and there is no current hot topic.”

In many cases, bosses may not even realise that they have overstepped their boundaries. Dr Lorraine Tilbury, founder of personal and professional development firm HorsePower International based in France’s Loire Valley, said that one time her husband asked the woman who they had employed to clean their house to shine his shoes. The woman refused and explained to him that she was a cleaning lady, not a servant.

“He had no idea that she would react that way to his request,” said Tilbury. “But he understood and never asked her again to do it. Very often the requestor doesn't even realise that they've crossed a boundary until you tell them.”

Included in any discussion should be your job description. “If the boss is iffy about that, draw it out of them,” said Schaefer. “Ask questions like: What did the person in this role before me do? What did they do that you want to make sure is continued? And, what is one thing you would change about this job now that there is a new person in it?”

A paper trail

Would you shine shoes for your boss? (Manuel-F-O/Thinkstock)

But don’t stop there. Draft up a paragraph based on your discussion. Send it via email, and include a note: "Here is how I would summarise what I heard about what you expect of my role. If there is anything I didn't represent accurately or left out, please let me know,” said Schaefer.

By documenting it, you’ll have it to refer back to if you ever need it. “Reasonable humans hate to contradict themselves,” she said. Plus, said Schaefer, it can really reinforce your point. “When I was a human resources manager, it was amazing to me how often employees would not ‘hear’ feedback about performance until they ‘saw’ it on paper,” she said. “It’s something about how the brain works, and it works equally well when you are trying to get on the same page with your supervisor.”

Getting nowhere

If your boss continues to be unresponsive, it could be worth it to get a second opinion from someone you trust, suggested Schaefer. “You don't have to tell the whole story, but perhaps engage a boss you respected in the past who can give you guidance as when to escalate,” she said.

If your concerns continue to fall on deaf ears with your current boss and you keep getting outlandish requests, then going to your human resources department might be your next option. Just make sure to keep your documentation handy, said Schaefer.

Regional differences

In some countries, boundaries are not so cut and dry, especially with family-owned and smaller businesses. “[In Asia] sometimes going above and beyond what you were hired to do can be the norm,” said Steven Yeong, a recruiter coach at Hof Consulting in Singapore, in an email. “Often, the marketing or sales directors may have to pick up the boss’s kids from soccer practice,” he said. “It can quite hard for the subordinate to say ‘no’ to her superior even with lots of diplomacy and a soft-soft approach.”

In these cases, Yeong has seen many employees quit rather than approach their bosses.

But in France, boundaries tend to be clearer with the introduction of the 35-hour work week a decade and a half ago. “[It] has obliged small business owners to ensure that their employees paid by the hour do focus primarily on their direct job responsibilities in order to avoid excessive overtime hours,” said Tilbury. It’s not that unusual requests don’t happen; it is just easier to turn them down.

Choosing the right path

It’s important to trust your instincts, said Tilbury. If something doesn’t feel right, then it probably isn’t. “Once you determine the boundary that needs to be re-instated, communicate constructively and as quickly as you can what your boundary is to the person involved,” she said. “Waiting to discuss it will increase your level of frustration and anger, and that can lead to an unconstructive explosion in the long run. That's why it's important to communicate it as quickly as you can.”

Courtesy BBC Capital

That’s not my job!

Race car drivers maintain laser-like focus. (Dan Istitene/Getty Images)

When Formula One driver Derek Bell stepped into a race car and switched on the ignition, life's distractions melted away.

Bell, who raced from 1968 to 1996 for teams including Ferrari and McLaren, would think of nothing for the next few hours but tire pressure, how much gas he had left, and how the car felt going into a turn. Nothing but the track.

“The experience of being totally committed, being totally into every detail of driving, it’s like a Zen experience,” recalled Bell, a native of Britain now living in Boca Raton, Florida. “You never get a chance to lose your concentration because driving takes every ounce of it.

The focus Bell experienced in his race car, of being so committed to the moment at hand, can equal success in business too. These days it’s called living in the moment or being mindful. And while mindfulness might sound like management speak, research shows having an intense focus on a particular task — rather than multitasking — can make you more productive and effective at work.

As a manager, it means creating ways to help your staff intensely focus on their work, said Michael Chaskalson, an author and mindfulness expert. “It’s about managing your attention and the attention of your staff to the present moment,” Chaskalson said.

Since living in the moment isn’t something that’s taught in most schools, Chaskalson recommends training programs on mindfulness, usually eight-week sessions that incorporate everything from meditation-based breathing techniques to neuroscience-based methods to improve focus and productivity. The companies that do this already include Apple, Deutsche Bank, General Mills and Google.

Working mindfully means giving up on the idea of multitasking, said Theresa Glomb, professor of organisational behaviour at the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management. That’s right: the idea of doing a bunch of things at once is a great recipe for doing a bunch of things poorly, with none of them getting the full attention they deserve. “This leaves managers in a constant state of distraction,” Glomb said.

Consider that open-door policy many managers today have strived to adopt. While it promotes creativity by allowing a manager to be more accessible, the downside is constant interruptions, making focusing on work difficult. Instead, Glomb suggested that managers create office hours, like university professors. If that doesn’t work, simply ask the employee to come back at a later time that suits you — and your work.

When it’s impossible to ignore an interruption, Glomb recommends keeping track of where you were. Quickly jot down three ideas about the task and what you were about to do next so you can seamlessly pick up again where you left off.

Living in the moment also means setting routines, Glomb said. Start your day by prioritising your work load. Big or difficult tasks should be handled first thing, when your attention is at its most acute. As for emails and less important meetings, save them for later in the day. And, before leaving work, make tomorrow’s “to do” list or open documents you need to work on the next morning.

“Mindfulness doesn’t need to be sitting on a cushion and meditating,” Glomb said. “Sometimes it’s just about pausing and reflecting and thinking about your next direction.”

Bell, the two-time World Sportscar Championship and five-time LeMans winner, remembers when thinking about his next move meant keeping himself alive. It was like that in France in 1995 during a rainy 24 Hours of LeMans, the endurance race with three drivers taking turns behind the wheel. Bell was about to head into the pits to switch drivers when his crew came on the radio. His replacement was too tired and couldn’t take over. Bell had to continue.

“The attention needed to drive in the rain all night long, it was intense,” recalled Bell, whose team finished third that year. “You either needed to have all your focus or you would be in trouble.”

That was easier for Bell, a seasoned veteran, than younger drivers. At first, drivers struggle with all the dials and knobs in a cockpit, constantly monitoring the gas, and always being worried about how the brakes feel.

“When you start, everything is compartmentalized, and you always have to go through a mental checklist,” Bell said. “All these things come naturally as you get older, and you start just doing things without thinking of it because you’ve honed that attention.”

Imagine then as a manager doing the same thing: every task in front of you gets nothing but your complete focus — and then your complete confidence as well.

courtesy of BBC_Capital.

The multitasking myth

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