A Shifting the Monkey Primer for #mdeschat

Key Ideas from Shifting the Monkey

Here are a few takeaways from Shifting the Monkey. While the book is not written specifically for educators, it has great value for anyone seeking to cultivate and reward organizational excellence.

There will always be workers who shirk their responsibilities
These shirkers constantly seek to shift their responsibilities, duties, and problems to others
The shifting of these “monkeys” creates stress on organizations
We give negative, poor performing employees, too much time and attention
Leaders can reward good, hardworking employees by shifting monkeys off their backs
Tier 3 leaders hold ineffective people accountable so that they behave themselves even when the boss isn’t looking
Effective leaders treat everyone well
Effective leaders don’t accept excuses from marginal employees, they don’t sympathize, and they don’t argue
Ineffective employees need to be handled on a one/one basis
Good leaders are constantly reflecting on what they’re doing and how things are going