Michael Litvak: take care of the people with whom we communicate

How to behave in the team? How to manage the team? And what role plays each one of us? All of these questions specifically for answer in an interview with a famous psychotherapist and writer Mikhail Efimovich Litvak.





— Michael Efimovich, You are in their books say that the team is allocated three kinds of groups: educational and careerist, entertainment and alcohol-sexual. Tell us about each of them in more detail.

— The psychology of groups studying social psychology. We are "herd animals" or social being without each other can not live, it must be borne in mind, therefore, it is necessary to protect the people with whom we communicate, if we quarreled with them, it will be necessary to look for others, and it is unlikely that others will be better. If we once made a mistake, then, and next time make a mistake. Well, when we are among people, we need to understand what kind of society surrounds us.

Decided to allocate the following communities: the first is the mass of the people, there is not even the quantity,the mass of the people – it is a gathering of people where I don't know what rank the person is next to me, there is hard to start a conversation. For example, people on the street called the crowd, but it's not a crowd, and the mass of the people, you don't know what are their interests, what they need, the only thing you can ask is how to get to a particular street and all.

But the real crowd is more organized Association, the crowd is people who are United by emotional interests. For example, the stadium is a crowd in the store in the same crowd. Why? Because the audience is not intellectual work to do, and to buy something or to watch a football match. The crowd has its own structure. The crowd is already a leader. What leaders do we have?

Leaders are charismatic.A charismatic leader is a person whose authority and power rests on charisma and charm. He doesn't need to prove anything. Remember Lebedev, Yeltsin? It's charismatic leaders. They do not need to convince anyone, no logic necessary, just the leader must represent the interests of the crowd. Then his mob support and to oppose the leader of a pointless crush.

Do we know of social psychology? Does it concern us? Of course a concern.

Here's an example from my life where very useful knowledge of social psychology. Once on station there was a group of football fans that went to Krasnodar, well, they're all entertainers, roared, shouted, and those people who don't know social psychology, began to read the notation: "are not you ashamed? here are other people besides you!", well, stuff like that.

Of course, in response, they immediately ran into rudeness. Well, since I knew social psychology, I have identified the "leader", I asked why and where they were going, "leader" began to tell. And then it so happened that we are still in the same car was driving, so I skipped ahead and warned everyone that I am with them and I better not to touch.

And, by the way, when you manage large groups, one cannot be a leader all the time to manage, sometimes it is necessary to turn your team into the crowd. When? The corporate party! When dancing, the fun, there is no need to speak of percentages about who is better and who is worse works.

The third type of community group is a people, United by a real intellectual relationship.

If you are a Manager, remember that subordinates come to you, not to strengthen your team, and decide their own interests, so if you follow their interests, then they and the group can work. Therefore, the task of the leader is to help meet the interests of its listeners.

The group has a role. A role is a behavior that the group expects in the implementation process of personality social functions. For example, I the workshops play the role of a lecturer – you want me, I'll answer the questions to answer will be correct, if you would be interested, you will listen to the end, if you don't want, you leave.

Will now tell You about the group I was in management, at the faculty of improvement of doctors. We held courses. The doctors came to us for 1.5-4 months, and then went home. This is a Prime example of a closed group. She one day creates, and one day it blooms.

 

— Please provide more examples of closed and open groups.

School class, student group is closed, but the team of teachers is an open group. Closed group than good, all begin with zero and go to the goal. When you are great leaders, you will have to create a private group.

For example, once I asked one person for help. My goal was to build a house. He told me: "I'll find you the best Mason, the best painter, the best carpenter".

And my answer was: "Find the best, the other contact can not, because all the leaders, you will cover all the work. After all, it is important to be able to choose the team that they with each other could find common language".





Tell us about the informal groups.

Informal groups — this is where the person is acting voluntarily.

Talk about how I conducted the courses. Seeing the audience for the first time, I asked them: "Tell me, please, what are you doing here?". Well, I had someone from the audience says: "We came to get knowledge."

Who said that? Ambitious (academic-careerist group). Well, Yes, of course, you came here for knowledge, not everyone is the goal. I can lead a group, if you create a goal that will unite all of you. There are doctors who know everything is great. But they just need to "paper". And they came just for her. "No," said, "we knowledge", "Well, I reply, knowledge will give you "paper" will not give."

Who will remain? Right, no one will be left. And then a certain number of people start with attention and respect to look at me. So people understand, not to show off, as a teacher.

So I already figured out the cultural and entertainment group. This group will carry out all the orders. But then I say the following phrase: "We will try to organize our workflow so that "paper" you will get only in case, if you acquire knowledge".

And then there's some group of people showed attention is alcohol-sexual. This is an informal group. When they are is bad.

From my point of view, man must be ambitious. It needs to do its job. We are all born careerists, from the moment of our conception, when we were a sperm, we all had to take first place, and any deviation from this path should not be.

By the way, and the leaders belong to different groups. And the team they are different. Well, the careerists, there's this group process, everything is going forward, the team is growing, there is never a shortage of staff, when freed of the position for replacing new people come.

 

— Please tell us about the roles in the team.

— In the team there is always a leader, let's call him "Sher Khan, the tiger", he is "the Jackal-tobacco", the henchman, who moves among the team, snooping around. And, by the way, it's not scary when it is, it can be used. It is possible to pass on misinformation.

There are more "giraffes" is among the young. People learn in institutions, and even in prestige, get a good education, and they think that when they come to work, where a little behind the times research, their suggestions are very much needed.

Here they begin to make giraffe. Well, sometimes they are even fired. By the way, note that when you remove the Director and appoint a new lead the person from the side, as in the team everyone has a role to play.

So, if you want, ultimately, to lead this team, you need to play the role of "dark horse". Dark horse is not taking any initiatives, working "from" and "to" and clearly all performs, and the initiative is punishable.

For example, if head refers to a cultural group, it is the one who takes the initiative, the person undesirable. So wait, when you become a leader, then you will manage to make all your accumulated suggestions. But, if you still want to implement, it is necessary to make this suggestion came as if from the head, there are special techniques.

For example, to use the phrase: "And remember, You said..." and to the objection: "Did I say that?", reply: "of Course! Well you forget such brilliant things!", well, etc.

But it should be understood that all future achievements are a merit of the head, and all failures are your failures.

There is still in the team "scapegoat". Here the head of someone chooses, and every day it conceals and leaves the rest alone. By the way, the role of the scapegoat is not bad. To him all being mean, and he gradually becomes a good worker.

 

— Michael Efimovich, please tell us why You recommend to get a job on their own, and not an acquaintance?

— Well, You want to a good head to get? A good boss does not like when he someone impose. He wants to recruit their staff. The more you know, meeting today and tomorrow it is not.

Here even the example of a student's life. There are those who an acquaintance is studying in the prestigious universities are the ones who, as they say, his hump assessment is produced.

With my classmates we every five years. I well remember the 50th anniversary. Met 50 people, all healthy, happy, all posts, all is not a disaster, and none of them to pull do not move.

So, basically, while you move the mountain by yourself, you are gaining momentum, and if you exalt, at the top there the winds blow and you just blow away. Those students whose parents were raised unfairly, they were blown away when the parents went from office. So, sooner or later, your diligence is rewarded, well, maybe a little later than the rest.

Here's more many people say, "I work hard". But hard doesn't mean good. It is necessary and hard, and work well. Then you definitely recognize.

 

— And tell us what to do and what in any case can not be done to the man who came to a new team?

Well, first, when you come to a new team, you have to know what your responsibilities. And execute them as best as possible. No more, no less. If you get good at it, you will begin to seek the help and Council near you is formed, is formed an informal group, where you will be the leader. But in any case it is impossible to attack head on corn, it will be bad.

 

Author: Michael Litvak

Text/Photo: Elena Mitiaeva

 

P. S. And remember, only by changing their consumption — together we change the world! ©

Source: litvak.me/