The New One Minute Manager book club questions

1. 1.

   How many of your direct reports could tell you right now, unprompted, what their top three goals are and what good performance on each one looks like?

2. 2.

   When did you last catch someone on your team doing something right and name it specifically? What stops you from doing that more often?

3. 3.

   Blanchard and Johnson replace 'reprimand' with 're-direct.' Does that word change matter? Does the framing of corrective feedback change how it lands?

4. 4.

   The book says most performance problems are goal problems. Think of a performance issue you're dealing with now. Is the goal actually clear to both parties?

5. 5.

   One Minute Goals fit on a single page. If you had to write down your three most important current goals in one sentence each, could you do it in two minutes?

6. 6.

   The parable format makes the techniques feel simple. What makes them hard to do consistently in real management situations?

7. 7.

   The updated version emphasizes self-leadership. In your current role, are you developing people's ability to manage themselves, or managing them in ways that create dependence?

8. 8.

   Think of a manager who gave you feedback that actually changed your behavior. What made it land differently from feedback that didn't stick?

9. 9.

   The Re-Direct sequence ends by affirming the relationship. Does that feel natural or contrived to you? What determines the difference?

10. 10.

    How often do you receive feedback from your own manager using anything like these techniques? What's the effect of that frequency and quality on your own performance?

11. 11.

    If your team rated you on how clearly you communicate goals, how specifically you acknowledge good work, and how constructively you address problems — what scores would you get?

How to run the discussion

• Pick six to eight, not all of them. An hour of real discussion covers fewer questions than anyone expects, and racing the list is what makes a book club feel like homework.
• Open with what people noticed, not what they concluded. Asking for a verdict first hardens opinions before anyone has heard each other.
• Let the disagreement run. The questions below that split a room are the ones worth the time; the ones everyone answers the same way can be skipped.
• Ask the quiet person a specific question. A direct, narrow question is far easier to answer than an open invitation to contribute.