"You'd better believe it is. I hardly ever see him."

"You mean you don't have much contact with him," pursued the young man, "outside your regular weekly meeting?"

"Essentially very little. Except of course, when I do something wrong," said Ms. Brown.

Shocked, the young man said, "You mean the only time you see the One Minute Manager is when you do something wrong?"

"Yes. Well, not quite," said Ms. Brown, "but almost."

"But I thought a key motto around here was catching people doing things right."

"It is," insisted Brown. "But you have to know some things about me."

"What?" asked the young man.

"I've been working here for quite a few years. I know this operation inside and out. As a result, the One Minute Manager doesn't have to spend much time with me, if any, on goal setting. In fact, I usually write out my goals and send them over to him."

"Is each goal on a separate sheet of paper?" asked the young man.

"You bet. No longer than 250 words and each one takes me or the One Minute Manager only a minute to read.

"Another thing about me that's important is that I just love my work. As a result, I do most of my own One Minute Praisings. In fact, I believe if you're not for yourself, who is? A friend of mine told me a motto I'll always remember: 'If you don't blow your own horn, someone else will use it as a spittoon.' "

The young man smiled. He liked her sense of humor. "Does your manager ever praise you?" he asked.

"Sometimes he does, but he doesn't have to do it very often because I beat him to the punch," answered Ms. Brown. "When I do something especially good, I might even ask the One Minute Manager for a praising."

"How would you ever have the nerve to do that?" asked the young man.

"It's easy. Just like making a bet where I either win or I break even. If he gives me the praising, I win."

"But if he doesn't?" the young man broke in.

"Then I break even," responded Ms. Brown. "I didn't have it before I asked."

The young man smiled as he took note of Ms. Brown's philosophy, and then continued.

"You said he spends time with you when you do something wrong. What do you mean?" asked the young man.

"If I make a significant mistake, that's when I invariably get a One Minute Reprimand," Ms. Brown said.

"A what?" the startled young man asked.

"A One Minute Reprimand," Ms. Brown repeated. "That's the third secret to becoming a One Minute Manager."

"How does it work?" wondered the young man out loud.

"It's simple," said Ms. Brown.

"I figured you'd say that," said the young man.

Ms. Brown joined his laugh and explained, "If you have been doing a job for some time and you know how to do it well, and you make a mistake, the One Minute Manager is quick to respond."

"What does he do?" asked the young man.

"As soon as he has learned about the mistake he comes to see me. First he confirms the facts. Then he might put his hand on my shoulder or maybe just come around to my side of the desk."

"Doesn't that bother you?" asked the young man.

"Sure, it does, because you know what's coming, especially since he doesn't have a smile on his face.

"He looks me straight in the eye," she continued, "and tells me precisely what I did wrong. Then he shares with me how he feels about it-he's angry, annoyed, frustrated or whatever he is feeling."

"How long does that take?" asked the young man.

"Only about 30 seconds but sometimes it seems forever to me," confided Ms. Brown.

The visitor couldn't help but remember the feelings he had when the One Minute Manager told him "in no uncertain terms" how annoyed he was with his indecision.

"And then what happens?" the young man asked as he moved to the edge of his chair.

"He lets what he said sink in with a few seconds of silence-boy, does it sink in!"

"Then what?" the young man asked.

"He looks me squarely in the eye and lets me know how competent he thinks I usually am. He makes sure I understand that the only reason he is angry with me is that he has so much respect for me. He says he knows this is so unlike me. He says how much he looks forward to seeing me some other time, as long as I understand that he does not welcome that same mistake again."

The young man broke in. "It must make you think twice."

"It certainly does," Ms. Brown nodded vigorously.

The young man knew what Ms. Brown was talking about. He was taking notes now as fast as he could. He sensed that it wasn't going to take this woman long to cover several important points.

"First of all," Ms. Brown said, "he usually gives me the reprimand as soon as I've done something wrong. Second, since he specifies exactly what I did wrong, I know he is 'on top of things' and that I'm not going to get away with sloppiness. Third, since he doesn't attack me as a person-only my behavior-it's easier for me not to become defensive. I don't try to rationalize away my mistake by fixing blame on him or somebody else. I know he is being fair. And fourth, he is consistent."

"Does that mean he will reprimand you for doing something wrong, even if things are going well for him elsewhere?"

"Yes," she answered.

"Does the whole process really take only a minute?" the young man asked.

"Usually," she said. "And when it's over, it's over. A One Minute Reprimand doesn't last long but I can guarantee you, you don't forget it-and you don't usually make the same mistake twice."

"I think I know what you're talking about," the young man said. "I'm afraid I asked him ..."

"I hope," she interrupted, "you didn't ask him to repeat himself."

The young man was embarra.s.sed. "I did," he confessed.

"Then you know what it's like to be on the receiving end of a One Minute Reprimand," she said. "Although I expect, as a visitor, you got a rather mild one."

"I don't know if you'd call it mild," he said, "but I don't think I'll ask him to repeat himself very often. That was a mistake.

"I wonder," the visitor said out loud, "if the One Minute Manager ever makes a mistake. He seems almost too perfect."

Ms. Brown began to laugh. "Hardly," she said. "But he does have a good sense of humor. So when he does make a mistake, like forgetting to do the last half of the One Minute Reprimand, we point it out to him and kid him about it.

"After we've had time to recover from the Reprimand, that is. We might, for example, phone him later and tell him we know we were wrong. Then we might laugh and ask for the praising half of the Reprimand, because we're not feeling too good."

"And what does he do then?" the young man asked.

"He usually laughs and says he's sorry he forgot to remind me that I am an OK Person."

"You can laugh about praisings and reprimands?" the young man asked.

"Sure," Ms. Brown said. "You see, the One Minute Manager has taught us the value of being able to laugh at ourselves when we make a mistake. It helps us get on with our work."

"That's terrific," the young man enthused. "How did you learn to do that?"

"Simply," Ms. Brown answered, "by watching the boss do it himself."

"You mean your boss can laugh at himself when he makes a mistake?" the astonished young man asked.

"Well, not always," Ms. Brown admitted. "He's like most of us. Sometimes it's tough. But he often can. And when he does laugh at himself, it has a positive effect on everyone around him."

"He must be pretty secure," the young man suggested.

"He is," Ms. Brown answered.

The young man was impressed. He was beginning to see how valuable such a manager was to an organization.

"Why do you think the One Minute Manager's reprimands are so effective?" he asked.

"I'll let you ask the One Minute Manager," she said, as she rose from behind the desk and walked the young man to the door.

When he thanked her for her time, Ms. Brown smiled and said, "You know what the response to that is going to be." They both laughed. He was beginning to feel like an "insider" rather than a visitor, and that felt good.

As soon as he was in the hall, he realized how little time he'd spent with her and how much information she had given him.

He reflected on what she had said. It sounded so simple. He reviewed in his own mind what you should do when you catch an experienced person doing something wrong.

One Minute Reprimands: Summary

The One Minute Reprimand works well when you: 1. Tell people beforehand that you are going to let them know how they are doing and in no uncertain terms.

the first half of the reprimand: 2. Reprimand people immediately.

3. Tell people what they did wrong-be specific.

4. Tell people how you feel about what they did wrong-and in no uncertain terms.

5. Stop for a few seconds of uncomfortable silence to let them feel how you feel.

the second half of the reprimand: 6. Shake hands, or touch them in a way that lets them know you are honestly on their side.

7. Remind them how much you value them.

8. Reaffirm that you think well of them but not of their performance in this situation.

9. Realize that when the reprimand is over, it's over.

The young man may not have believed in the effectiveness of the One Minute Reprimand if he hadn't personally experienced its effect. There was no doubt that he felt uncomfortable. And he did not want to experience it again.

However, he knew that everyone made mistakes now and then, and that he might very well receive another reprimand some day. But he knew if it came from the One Minute Manager, that it would be fair; that it would be a comment on his behavior and not on his worth as a person.

As he headed toward the One Minute Manager's office, he kept thinking about the simplicity of One Minute Management.

All three of the secrets made sense-One Minute Goals, One Minute Praisings, and One Minute Reprimands. "But why do they work?" he wondered. "Why is the One Minute Manager the most productive manager in the company?"

The One Minute Manager Explains

WHEN he got to the One Minute Manager's, his secretary said, "You can go right in. He's been wondering when you'd be back to see him."

As the young man entered the office, he noticed again how clear and uncluttered it was. He was greeted by a warm smile from the One Minute Manager.

"Well, what did you find out in your travels?" he asked.

"A lot!" the young man said enthusiastically.

"Tell me what you learned," the manager encouraged.

"I found out why you call yourself a One Minute Manager. You set One Minute Goals with your people to make sure they know what they are being held accountable for and what good performance looks like. You then try to catch them doing something right so you can give them a One Minute Praising. And then, finally, if they have all the skills to do something right and they don't, you give them a One Minute Reprimand."