I don’t often write here about sports stories, but I like stories that have a good message, and this one does. If you’re not a Phillies or baseball fan, Jimmy Rollins is a superstar shortstop who won the Most Valuable Player award two years ago. Yet in yesterday’s game he failed to run hard to first base, thinking the ball he’d hit was going to be easily caught for an out. When the ball was dropped, he had squandered a chance to be on second base instead of first.

The story here is not baseball or sports — it’s about taking responsibility for your actions no matter who you are. It’s also about management — Charlie Manuel yanked Rollins out of the game as punishment, sending a clear message about accountability. And then it’s about how you act when you get chastised publicly.

He took his medicine. Jimmy Rollins took his benching yesterday like a man, like a teammate, maybe even like the leader he purports to be.

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Social etiquette requires you to make some small talk, inquire about your colleague’s interests, etc. In other words, in person (and on the phone) we should — rightly — interact with peers in a friendly, personal way, because that’s the right way to act. But that’s not terribly efficient, and if you can get the info you need, instead, through a 30-second instant message chat and then get back to work with a quick, “thx so much, ttyl” then I can see why it has been found to be less intrusive.

Employers seeking to decrease interruptions may want to have their workers use instant messaging software. Research shows that when IMs are used as a substitute for other, more disruptive forms of communication such as phone, email, and face-to-face conversations, they lead to more conversations on the computer, but briefer & more productive ones.

And it is respectful to IM someone to say, “got a minute?” because that gives them a much easier “out” if they really don’t want to be interrupted. Instead of feeling they are being rude by telling you on the phone, “hey, could you call back later?” they can accept your gracious inquiry by saying, “can you call me at 1?”

IM certainly does have a place in business. But there’s more work to be done to define just what that place is.

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How often do we take the time to do such things? I know I don’t do it as frequently as I should.

Yet, the ripple effect of that 30-second task will spread out in many ways. That boss has a moment of pride about her direct report. She shares that with the person I wrote about, and they share a moment of pride together that helps strengthen their relationship. The subject of my praise feels gratitude toward me for singling her out for praise to her boss.

My relationship with both of them gets a positive boost. Going forward as we work together I’ve got just that much stronger a bond with my colleagues, and I’m likely to get more of the cooperation that led to my praise.

It’s a virtuous cycle. And it’s so easy to start it in motion. 30 seconds. Try it!

Eventually, someone will come up with software that greatly eases the burden of managing a high volume of e-mail. But in the meantime, we perhaps should look to the past and see what tips we might draw from prolific letter writers in the pre-electronic era who handled ridiculously large volumes of correspondence without being crushed.

I found one of the suggestions quite amusing, yet at the same time so obvious: “a secretary.” I recall when every manager where I worked had an administrative assistant. And I watched as the number of those positions dwindled and more and more managers took on responsibility for their own correspondence. Now, here we are years later and maybe the most obvious solution really is to hire more secretaries.

This was the solution Thomas Edison used in pre-electronic times to handle a mismatch between 100,000-plus unsolicited letters and a single human addressee. Not all correspondents would receive a reply — a number were filed in what Edison called his “nut file.” But most did get a written letter from Edison’s office, prepared by men who were full-time secretaries.

I’d take a secretary in a heartbeat! But I don’t think that’s going to be forthcoming any time soon. But I have taken one step that has helped a bit. I turned off the “ding” notification for my work email, so I am not constantly interrupted by the arrival of another missive. That’s in line with this suggestion:

Today’s advice from time-management specialists, to keep our e-mail software off, except for twice-a-day checks, replicates the cadence of twice-a-day postal deliveries in Mencken’s time.

Sounds like a good idea. I think I’ll try it.
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A Costa Rican trek served as a metaphor for the difficulty many executives are having as they transition from niche marketers to big-business men.

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Sprint dumped 1000 customers who were calling 40 to 50 times more than other customers, specifically about issues that could not be resolved (e.g., billing disputes). Did the company do the right thing?

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When you can look at the end result and feel proud of it, knowing it’s darn good, that’s even better. I don’t know about you, but it’s moments and feelings like these that keep me going as much as anything else. Hey, don’t take away my paycheck, but if people think it’s the money that gets me to really push myself hard, then they just don’t understand me.

And I know I’m not alone. There’s plenty of research to back up all the anecdotal evidence I could provide (not that I am going to dig it up and cite it here, sorry — search for it and you’ll easily find it). Many people are more motivated by pride of ownership than by money. I’d go so far as to say that the best organizations I know are made up of people who work this way, and whose leaders are smart enough to support and foster this kind of attitude.

Give us a reason to care, show us you care by providing the support we need, and watch what happens. It’s amazing what people can and will do when they really want to. Sometimes the best leadership is to just stop getting in the way!

Slogans are useful when people understand them. But since they are so short and simple, different people may interpret differently how to act on them. Lots more has to happen besides printing the slogan on coffee mugs and sending them to all employees. A culture has to be built over time, and it’s hard work.

When a customer complains about how your company has treated them, how do you respond? Do you generate a series of internal emails among the players involved, in which it gets explained how the company didn’t really treat the customer badly? Or do you pick up the phone, call the customer, really listen to what he has to say, and do your very best to make things right?

I’m not saying you have to give every customer what he wants — just suggesting that every dissatisfied customer should be listened to and responded to genuinely and sincerely. If the complaint can be resolved to the customer’s satisfaction, that’s best, of course.

If you’re not already familiar with the “iceberg” concept regarding customer complaints, check this out, or go to TARP’s website. And research has also shown that when you are able to win back a customer who has complained, that customer will be more loyal than those who had no reason to complain at all. (Sorry, I don’t have at my fingertips the original research I read about this — will add it later if I can find it.)

For every encounter to truly count, then even the negative ones need to be made to count positively. That’s a part of company culture that only the best companies understand — if they don’t act on it, I suggest they don’t really understand it. Actions are the proof, not catchy slogans.

When one person leaves for sunnier shores, it’s something to applaud. “Good for you, and best of luck with your new opportunity!” That’s what I said to a direct report who took a new job recently, and I meant it. I’m struggling to replace her, but that’s the way the work world operates and I understand and support her advancing her career.

But, to use an overused term, where is the tipping point? When two people leave within a short period of time, do you assume it’s a coincidence? When three leave, perhaps it’s just a confluence of unrelated factors. So when do you start to question why you are still here when so many of the people you respect and admire have chosen to leave?

There’s no simple or universal answer, of course. But there’s no denying that large numbers of voluntary departures are a red flag that you’d better not ignore. The unflattering cliche about rats leaving a sinking ship comes to mind. A series of departures is a clear signal that it’s time to look up from day-to-day tasks and assess the sea-worthiness of your livelihood.

I’m an optimist. It keeps me going and it’s served me well throughout my life. But I also know optimism has blinded me to reality sometimes, when I wanted to see the best side of things and so ignored, to my peril, aspects that were not so good. So let’s say I am a skeptical optimist now. The glass is half-full, but I’m looking at it closely to make sure I know what’s in it.