Five Leading Words for Bosses

Become an even better manager by remembering, these words:

Standards. Be specific when you tell employees what you expect. Vague: "Get your reports in by the end of the week." Specific: "Bill, get your reports to me by noon every Friday."

Information. Inform employees of your goals and involve them in changes. Wrong: "The payroll system will change next week." Right: "We plan to change the payroll system, and we need your ideas on how to make it as easy as possible."

Availability. Include in your daily schedule time for regular staffmeetings and one-on-one feedbacksessions. When you feel you don't have the time, consider the dual payoff: fewer communication errors and higher productivity.

Imperfection. Tell employees when you don't know the answer or feel unsure about something. Payoff. They'll feel more comfortable about offering suggestions and ideas.

Trust. Delegate, and then trust employees to do what's right instead of trying to do it all yourself. If you don't, all the pressure-and the stress that goes with it-will be on you.