Can a manager change a person's personality?

Question

Can manager change a person's personality?
What strategies do you think managers can use to effectively communicate with difficult personalities? How can a positive attitude combined with a challenging personality affect the way people work?

Answer 1

Changing anyone's personality is a tall order. You may be able to assist the person to change certain aspects of their behavior which affect their performance in the workplace. But they would have to be motivated to change.

Remember that you are their boss. So you can be helpful and encouraging, but don't try to be their bosom buddy. That just uncomfortably blurs the line between authority and friendship and can cause problems.

As the boss, if an employee's behavior or attitude interferes with morale or their performance, call them in for a discussion. Tell them exactly what you see as the problem(s) and why. Tell them what you and the company expect, and what they need to do. Don't argue with them--you are the boss. See if they want to make the needed changes, and if they do, tell them exactly what changes you will be watching for.

Document everything, so you can refer to your agreement later and concretely discuss their progress or lack thereof, and you have a record if needed. Schedule another appointment with them in a week or so to review their progress.

Answer 2

The Leader in You by John Maxwell is a really good management skills book. Most books I've read preach empathy as the best managerial skill. Find out how your employees feel about things and make them see how much you care no matter what they feel is important. Give them positive reinforcement often because most bosses only bring the problems to employees. And make sure an employee knows exactly what you expect of them and why.

Answer 3

Personality per se,no but attitude,yes.The most effective communication is the one when we can speak in the language(not literally) that a person can understand and associate with.For it be so,amongst other things, we have to understand the thought process of that person and adopt our approach accordingly.No matter how superior are the traits of a leader,he can only succeed when he has the capability to take his team along with him and once done,he can take them anywhere or nowhere to somewhere.Try it and see the results yourself.All the best.

Answer 4

It not a manager's job to change anyone; its their job to get along with them. Listen first; then think about your answer before you reply.