Essay

Avoiding panic in the recession

By Francois Du Bois

Since the end of last year, we've been in a period of global recession, and because of that, we are experiencing a terrible loss of confidence in ourselves and our conventional values.

All kinds of businesses have become unstable and we have to accept this reality and adapt to it as quickly as possible.

In times like these, people try to find new means to survive in business. It's quite normal for some professionals to consult business books about management.

But the problem here is that there are so many business books that are full of garbage. They don't deal with fundamentals or consider the long-term results of following their own advice. We should really be careful not to be trapped by these books.

For example, some books advise us to be very gentle to the freshmen in our companies because they are not used to getting scolded! These books say that once the new recruits are scolded, they might not listen to you, or just leave the company if things become worse. Unbelievable!

I am really afraid of the managers who believe in putting these kinds of tips into action. It is obvious that the working team will get worse in the long term. It is not constructive -- it is dangerous for the future of the team or the company.

Though it may be true that the younger generation today are less receptible to severe criticism compared with the elder generation, this is no excuse for cheap tricks.

I personally think that being gentle with people as the books advise is condescending and doesn't show that you believe in their potential. This kind of coddling may prevent the potential of each new recruit from being realized. This is not only sad, but prevents us as a society from getting out of this recession.

Getting out of the recession is rather a matter of getting rid of the panic in ourselves. If we panic, we start to lose direction, and are likely to sabotage all the things we have constructed up until this point. Cheap tricks from a cheap book are simply dangerous, not just for the employer, but the employee and company too.

In this kind of period, what is most important at last is not new techniques, new knowledge or new management styles, but your composure. And also your attitude to enjoy! The recession is testing us. So, are you ready for the test?

Shukan ST: May 29, 2009

(C) All rights reserved