Tao Te Ching and Wuwei Management

Chapter 66 4 "The saint is superior and the people are not important": Only by respecting subordinates can you win the respect of subordinates
Respect is mutual, and leaders should treat others with sincerity.

The sage is superior and the people are not important. ——"Tao Te Ching" Chapter 66
Governing the world with the way of doing nothing, the monarch will "govern with the arch". Although he is high above, the people will not feel the pressure and burden.Similarly, to manage the enterprise in the way of doing nothing, it is also necessary to make the employees feel comfortable and happy.This requires leaders to respect subordinates and provide employees with a humane working environment.Only when an employee feels respected will he respect the leader in turn, and the entire team can operate harmoniously and efficiently.

Respecting subordinates is a basic premise for leaders to communicate with subordinates.Everyone has their own dignity, even those who are considered useless in the workplace, have their own ideas and self-esteem.He may seem imbecile, but he has hidden expertise in a certain aspect; maybe he has no expertise, but he is more diligent and hardworking than others because of this.Therefore, leaders should not dislike subordinates because of their work ability or some problems in their way of life. A leader who deserves the respect and love of his subordinates should always keep the dignity of his subordinates in mind.

In terms of respecting employees, many practices of 3M are worth learning.In this world-renowned multinational company, a very famous principle prevails: no need to ask, no need to tell, and fully respect the privacy of employees.This principle is the rule of heaven, and any manager must abide by it.Managers encourage employees to do what they want without requiring detailed knowledge of the details of their work.It is precisely because of this relaxed management method that the innovation of 3M employees has been given full play.

At 3M, a technician can spend 15 percent of his time on projects of his choice.They will even try out ideas that are not approved by their supervisors.There was once a man named Richard?Drew's young employee, when he was experimenting with a project, was killed by former 3M CEO William?McKnight see, William?McKnight thinks this project is a waste of time and money, and out of responsibility for his work, he advises Richard to stop.But Richard ignored William's opinion at all, and even expressed dissatisfaction with other leaders about his interference in his work.It is precisely because of Richard's persistence that he brought a breakthrough product to 3M.This product has brought huge economic benefits to 3M.

This is what respecting employees pays off.

Konosuke Matsushita, a famous Japanese entrepreneur, is proud of achieving extraordinary results from ordinary people.Konosuke Matsushita never chooses talents from famous universities, but pays great attention to finding talents from the company's internal employees, using them according to their ability, paying attention to actual work ability and performance in use, and employing people regardless of their closeness.He directly promoted many young people to important jobs. For example, in 1986, Konosuke Matsushita promoted the little-known Toshihiko Yamashita as the general manager of Matsushita, and changed his son-in-law Masaharu Matsushita from the general manager to the general chairman.This personnel arrangement is very surprising, because Yamashita Toshihiko not only has no blood relationship with Matsushita Konosuke, but also is young.However, thanks to Matsushita’s help, Toshihiko Yamashita became the general manager, and according to the changes in the world market situation and the development trend of household appliances, he decisively changed the original company’s production system, expanding from a single manufacturing system of household appliances to the production of electronic technology products and other categories. The advanced production system has increased the company's sales year by year, creating a new development stage of Panasonic Electric Co., Ltd. - "Yamashita Era".

Management is closely related to people, which requires enterprise managers to respect and value employees, make every effort to promote the growth of employees, and help employees gain a sense of job satisfaction to the greatest extent.

Li Ka-shing, a famous Hong Kong entrepreneur, believes that talents are very important to a company, even more important than money.He recruits talented people, regardless of origin and background, as long as he has the ability, he treats them as honored guests.If a person wants to achieve a career, he must be assisted by capable talents.He once happily told reporters: "My achievements are the result of everyone's concerted efforts." The media described him as having 300 generals, of which 100 are foreigners and 200 are Hong Kong people in their prime.

In the mid-20s, the management of the Cheung Kong Industrial Group basically realized the replacement of the old and the new. Most of the heads of various departments were young men in their 80s and 30s, and Huo Jianning was the most conspicuous among them.Huo Jianning graduated from Hong Kong University, a prestigious university in Hong Kong, and then went to the United States for further studies. After studying and returning to Hong Kong in 40, he was recruited by Li Ka-shing.He is good at financial management and is responsible for the financial planning of the whole department of Changshi.Li Ka-shing appreciates his talent and learning. Huo Jianning personally planned or participated in the decision-making of Cheung Kong's major investment arrangements, stock issuance, bank loans, and bond exchanges. The media called him a "man full of money-making cells."

These projects often involve tens of billions of funds, which shows how much Li Ka-shing values ​​and trusts him. In 1985, Li Ka-shing appointed him as a director of Cheung Kong, and two years later promoted him to be the deputy general manager of the board.At this time, Huo Jianning was only 35 years old. It is really rare for such a young person to hold an important position in the largest group in Hong Kong.From another angle, we can see how much Li Ka-shing attaches importance to talents.

Respect for employees is engraved in the bone, not verbal.Leaders must understand that the self-esteem of subordinates should be protected.Not hurting the self-esteem of subordinates not only respects the personality, but also is of great benefit to the success of the company.Only when people have self-esteem can they seek to make progress, and only when they have self-motivation can they work hard.

Investigations and studies have shown that: Anyone with strong self-esteem, no matter what position they are in, will do their best and will not lag behind others.A wise leader not only protects the self-esteem of his subordinates, but also finds ways to strengthen the self-esteem of his subordinates.For example, pay attention to politeness, let them fully realize that they are equal to their superiors as a person; or use appropriate praise, so that they have a sense of honor, and so on.

(End of this chapter)