I think I'm a good professional. I think?

Today at lunch I attended a seminar that was part Management, part Leadership, part Time Management, part Change in the Workplace. In other words, it was a real smorgasboard of how to be a really superduper PROFESSIONAL.

(Which I am, of course.)

Snarkiness aside, the two things from this seminar that I found pertinent to my current professional state of affairs is 1) Am I good and motivating manager and 2)What are my values and do they translate into the place where I spend so much of my time?

Big questions, people. Big juicy questions.

I think I am a pretty good manager, if anything, based on the fact that I am well aware of what it's like to be poorly managed. Bad management is when you are all like eh about what you're doing because hey, your manager is just eh. Good management is when you're all like "hey, my boss is pretty frickin' smart and works hard, I want to aspire to that."

But since we all know professional development seminars are about just that, I'd say the areas that I could improve upon are delegation (most managers spend time doing things they could assign to subordinates--I am SO guilty of this. Rather than show someone how to do something, I'd rather do it myself), enthusiasm (uhhhh, yeah. But I am heavy-handed with the praise. THAT I do quite well), and running effective meetings (I hate meetings. My staff and I do quite well without a formal meeting. We just go into each others' offices whenever we need something). I also have a hard time walking the line between BOSS and cool CO-WORKER friend.

And to pontificate on part 2) from above, the speaker did a little presentation involving rocks and sand and the filling up of a cup to demonstrate how we prioritize the things that matter in work and in life. It begged the question: What are the personal values that I'm honoring here at the "Community School of Minds?"

Education, I guess, is a no brainer. I also value philanthropy, and people who believe in something enough to support it financially. I believe in powerful and honest written messages and maintaining strong lines of communication. I value productivity and efficiency and organization and resource-savings. I value good grammar and the proper use of apostrophes.

I DO put these things first, each and every day. So I must be doing something right. But are these the values that will ultimately lead to my success in my job? Well, I hope so.

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(This is kind of off the subject, but I just read that checking your email incessantly actually makes you dumber. Studies show that your IQ actually drops every time you hear that "DING" and click over to see what's come in. I must be a total "ding bat"--get it?!!-- because I check email like my life depends on it. Who needs IM, I say!?)

And on another note for another day, I have been feeling kind of dumbed down lately. Kevin will blame it on Laguna Beach. I blame it on my lack of theoretical discourse. And maybe all that wine.