I was having a discussion the other day about the fact that I often times come across as hopelessly optimistic at work. Specifically the conversation centered around some recent work and project challenges my team was facing. Members of my team felt that despite the outlook I always seem to have a misplaced positive attitude. This lead to a great deal ribbing and a bunch of ‘the man’ jokes. Make no mistake, I offer no apologies and feel that it’s an important trait of any leader no matter the occupation. I think more should adopt the trait.
First, a little background on the title. I was speaking to my wife about the exchange and explained my take on my perceived constant optimism. After a long conversation she smiled and said you’re ‘anti-anti Pollyanna’. For those of you that are not familiar with the novel (I had to look it up too) the book is about a girl named Pollyanna who plays what is known as ‘The Glad Game’. Essentially she finds the good in everything.
So why am I the ‘anti-anti Pollyanna’? The first is that I have 100% confidence in my team to tackle any challenge. They are, in my world, the best at what they do. They are some of the most competent technologists I know or have ever known. It’s easy to have a positive outlook when you feel that your team can tackle just about any obstacle.
Secondly, as a manager, the people that work for you hang on to every word you say. This is not a self serving statement. People buy cars, homes, and plan for the future based on how they feel about job stability. Think about the recent interactions with your supervisor. Has anything they said made you double think your current job satisfaction or worry if there will be a pay check next week? I would be willing to bet you could think of half a dozen instances.
I think in terms of software development this is even more important. As Technology managers we have a tendency to think more about brining the current project on time and under budget than the ones we manage. People are the asset, not the project and not the software. As managers we invest significant amounts of energy, time and money to the development of great teams. Bad attitudes and bleak outlooks can significantly reduce your ROI on the talent pool you’re attempting to build.
Managing people is an awesome responsibility that I think some folks take lightly. Make no mistake, it’s what you are paid to do and just like everything else in your career you should strive to do it well.
So am I a Pollyanna? Yes. But I’m even more Anti-Anti Pollyanna.