characteristics. Upbringing, education, training and, above all,
experience, develop you into the person you are.
We may not be able to change our personality, which,
according to Freud, is formed in the first few years of life. But we
can develop and adapt it by consciously learning from our own
experience and by observing and analysing other people’s
behaviour.
Techniques for achieving results, such as planning, organizing,
delegating, communicating, motivating and controlling, can be
learnt. These are dealt with later in this book. But these tech-
niques are only as effective as the person who uses them. They
must be applied in the right way and in the right circumstances.
And you still have to use your experience to select the right tech-
nique and your personality to make it work.
To become a person who makes things happen you therefore
have to develop skills and capacities by a process of under-
standing, observation, analysis and learning. The four actions
you should take are:
- Understand what makes achievers tick – the personality
characteristics they display in getting things done. - Observe what achievers do – how they operate, what tech-
niques they use. - Analyse your own behaviour (behaviour, not personality),
compare it with that of high achievers, and think how to
improve your effectiveness. - Learn as much as you can about the management techniques
available.
WHAT MAKES ACHIEVERS TICK?
David McClelland (1975) of Harvard University carried out
extensive research into what motivates managers. He inter-
viewed, observed and analysed numbers of managers at their
place of work and recorded findings before producing his theory.
And before you dismiss anything which comes under the
heading of theory, remember what Douglas McGregor (1960) of
the Massachusetts Institute of Technology said: ‘There is nothing
as practical as a good theory.’
McClelland (1975) identified three needs which he believes are
key factors in motivating managers. These are:
How to Make Things Happen 133