为什么你不想要一个亲切的上司呢？

 　　Just because a boss is nice, doesn’t mean he or she is any good. A tough, demanding manager will push you to do your best work.

　　因为你的老板很友善，并不意味着他或者她就是很成功的。一个严厉的、有要求的管理者会促使你把你的工作做到最好。

　　“Just because you have a nice boss, doesn’t mean you have a good boss”

　　因为你有一个和善的老板并不意味着你有一个好的老板。

　　Everyone wants a nice boss. And if a nice boss is one who respects me and my work, challenges me to get better and wants to see me grow as both a professional and a leader, then I’m for it too.

　　每个人都想要一个友善而亲切的老板。但是如果一个老板，可以尊重我个人和我的工作，激励我变得更好并见证我成长为一个专业而有领导力的人，我也是完全没有意见的。

　　为什么你不想要一个亲切的上司呢？

　　But too many people look at a hard-charging boss and jump to the conclusion that he or she is a tyrant¹.

　　但是太多的人面对强硬的上司时，会直接的认为他（或她）就是一个独裁者。

　　Here’s what these people don’t get: just because you have a nice boss, doesn’t mean you have a good boss.

　　这就是很多人没有意识到的一点：友善的老板并不绝对是一个好老板。

　　“These immensely successful bosses don’t care much about being liked.”

　　非常成功的老板根本不在乎是否受人爱戴。

　　I’ve seen plenty of bosses who might talk the talk about demanding exceptional performance but, all too often, they just want employees to like them. What’s more, they want people to speak well of them, to be “friends” with them. This type of boss is afraid that if they set high performance targets and challenge their staff to meet and surpass them, their esteem² will slip. As a result, they ease up on their expectations, sometimes without realising it. Not surprisingly, performance falters³.

　　我见过许多老板，他们可能会讲到有关于卓越表现的要求的谈话，但他们通常也希望能得到员工的爱戴。同时，他们希望员工可以说他们的好话，和他们成为“朋友”。这类型的老板害怕的是，如果他们设定高要求的目标去挑战他们的员工，员工会超越他们，那么他们的威严就会下降。因此，这类型的老板往往会放宽期待值，有时甚至根本没有意识到这个问题。毫无疑问，员工们的表现是止步不前的。

　　Some of the best leaders I’ve seen, whether in research or coaching, come to work with a razor-sharp focus on results. These immensely successful bosses don’t care much about being liked. Their expectations are both staggering and non-negotiable — and their teams know it.

　　我见过的那些顶尖的领导者，不管是在研究还是指导上，都是非常尖锐的结果导向型。这些十分成功的老板根本不在乎是否被人爱戴。他们的要求和期望是十分惊人并不会退步的----他们的团队十分了解这一点。

　　Take, for example, US real estate guru Bill Sanders. “Everybody knew that Bill demanded results,” said Ronald Blankenship, former chairman and CEO of Verde Realty, a real estate investment trust and long-time associate of Sanders. “If you were going to work with him, you needed to be prepared to make that your primary focus.”

　　我们来看一个例子----有关美国房地产专家Bill Sanders。“所以人都知道Bill Sanders要求结果，”Ronald Blankenship这么说过，Ronald是豪园物业的前任主席和CEO，也是房地产投资信托基金和Sanders的长期助手，“如果你想和他（Sanders）一起工作，你需要集中好你全部的注意力。”

　　“How do you know if you’re falling prey⁴ to the Nice Boss Syndrome⁵?”

　　你怎么知道你是否已经沦为好老板综合症的患者了呢？

　　These great leaders are not afraid to lay down the law — they don’t hesitate for an instant. And paradoxically, their toughness, accompanied by their adherence⁶ to their unique and inspiring visions, often generates more esteem among their reports, not less.

　　一个伟大的领袖并不害怕制定规则----他们甚至都不带任何犹豫的就这么做了。自相矛盾的是，他们的严厉，伴随着他们所带来的独一无二并鼓舞人心的愿景，经常通过他们的报告带来更多而不是更少的尊重。

　　In fact, it generates something greater than mere⁷ esteem among most employees: A profound respect, loyalty⁸, even love.

　　事实上，在员工中会产生一些比敬意更好的情感：深刻的尊重，忠诚，甚至是爱。

　　Of course, being tough doesn’t mean being offensive. How do you know if you’re falling prey to the Nice Boss Syndrome? Consider these questions — and keep track of your yesses.

　　当然，严格不意味着有攻击性。你怎么知道自己是否已经患上好老板综合症了呢？考虑下面这几个问题----并记录下你有多少个回答是“是”。

　　During the past year, have you changed your expectations for someone more than once after he or she failed to perform or meet your standards?

　　在过去的一年，你有没有因为一个人没有达到你的要求就降低你对他的期望值不止一次了呢？

　　During the last year, have you failed to follow up and punish bad behaviour?

　　在过去的一年，你是否并没有跟踪了解不良表现并作出惩罚呢？

　　Do you sometimes grant employees bonuses or other special compensation even after they have failed to meet their goals — just because they “tried hard”?

　　你是否在员工没有达到他们的目标的时候仍然给他们一些奖赏或者补偿仅仅是因为他们“努力过了”？

　　Do you fail to set clear, meaningful goals for your team members? Clear goals are specific, measurable, attainable⁹, and come with a deadline; vague goals don’t.

　　你是否没有为你团队成员设定清晰有意义的目标呢？清晰的目标就是指模糊的目标不具有的，具体的，可衡量的，可达到的，并且有具体期限等特性的目标。

　　Do you tend to withhold¹⁰ negative feedback for fear of upsetting or alienating¹¹ someone?

　　你是否因为害怕打扰或疏远别人就忍住没有给出负面的反馈呢？

　　When you do deliver negative feedback, do you find yourself softening¹² it?

　　当你想要给出负面的评价时，你会让自己变得委婉吗？

　　Do your bosses or fellow managers perceive you as soft and overly accommodating?

　　你的老板和同事是否认为你是一个过分宽松和温和的人？

　　Do the people who work for you have a tendency to rest on their laurels¹³ when they do succeed (for instance, do they think that good work is enough, no striving for the next goal)?

　　你的员工是否在取得成绩后就想要安于现状？（比如，他们是否认为现在的工作已经足够好，不用再为下一个目标争取了？）

　　If you find yourself answering “yes” to three or more of these questions, you might be suffering from Nice Boss Syndrome. In that case, it’s time to change your ways. If you want to be respected, not just liked:

　　如果你发现自己回答了三个，或者更多的“是”，你可能已经患上了好老板综合症了。那么是时候改变你的方法了，如果你想受人尊敬，做到以下这样：

　　Keep an “expectations logbook”, laying out performance expectations for each of your staff, your ongoing¹⁴ daily observations about their performance, and any actions you’ve taken to enforce your expectations.

　　记录你的“期望日志”，为你的每位雇员设定期望值，记录你日常对他们的观察和执行你期望的行为。

　　For each of your reports, revisit the goals you’ve set. Are they ambitious or aggressive enough?  Are they clear and quantifiable? Don’t downgrade just because someone failed to meet a goal.

　　对于你的每份报告，都要回顾你设定的目标。是否足够积极远大呢？是否足够清晰并可量化呢？不要因为一些人达不到目标就把目标降级。

　　Is there a way to “gamify” performance expectations and make them public or transparent¹⁵ among your team? Doing so might foster healthy competition while making it harder for you to wiggle out if you need to hold people accountable.

　　在你的团队里是否有一种“游戏化”的方法去量化每个成员的表现并且使团队更公开透明？这样做会促使一种良性竞争在你想追究责任的时候，很难有人轻易逃脱（惩罚）。

　　Practice delivering negative feedback: Avoid emotion and stick to the facts; flag that negative feedback is coming so it’s not a surprise; focus on how to do it better next time rather than just critiquing the past.

　　练习给出负面反馈：避免过度情绪化并坚持事实，标记负面评论的到来不是一个惊喜；注重怎么在下一次做得更好而不是一直批评过去。

　　“Nice” bosses may feel good about themselves, but they don’t get world-class results. Demanding bosses do. And if you work for a nice boss, don’t get too self-satisfied. If you aren’t getting better at whatever you do for a living, and learning and growing in the process, you’re not just standing¹⁶ still, you’re really falling behind.

　　“友好的”老板通常自我感觉良好，但他们往往做不出国际水平的成果。严厉的老板却可以。因此如果你为一个友好的老板工作，不要让自己过分自我满足，如果你不能在工作中做得更好，或者从过程中得到学习和成长，你不是在原地踏步，你已经在落后了。

　　In the modern business world – where competition can come from anyone and anywhere, anytime – just getting by is not a winning formula.

　　请记住：在现代的商业世界----竞争随时随地随处可见----得过且过绝不是成功的法则。

1 tyrant   

n.暴君，专制的君主，残暴的人

参考例句：

• The country was ruled by a despotic tyrant.该国处在一个专制暴君的统治之下。
• The tyrant was deaf to the entreaties of the slaves.暴君听不到奴隶们的哀鸣。

2 esteem   

n.尊敬，尊重；vt.尊重，敬重；把…看作

参考例句：

• I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
• The veteran worker ranks high in public love and esteem.那位老工人深受大伙的爱戴。

3 falters   

（嗓音）颤抖( falter的第三人称单数 )； 支吾其词； 蹒跚； 摇晃

参考例句：

• He never falters in his determination. 他的决心从不动摇。
• The plan never falters; the design never changes. It is all ordered. 大自然从不步履蹒跚，从不三心二意，一切都是有条不紊。

4 prey   

n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨

参考例句：

• Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
• The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。

5 syndrome   

n.综合病症；并存特性

参考例句：

• The Institute says that an unidentified virus is to blame for the syndrome. 该研究所表示,引起这种综合症的是一种尚未确认的病毒。
• Results indicated that 11 fetuses had Down syndrome. 结果表明有11个胎儿患有唐氏综合征。

6 adherence   

n.信奉，依附，坚持，固着

参考例句：

• He was well known for his adherence to the rules.他因遵循这些规定而出名。
• The teacher demanded adherence to the rules.老师要求学生们遵守纪律。

7 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

8 loyalty   

n.忠诚，忠心

参考例句：

• She told him the truth from a sense of loyalty.她告诉他真相是出于忠诚。
• His loyalty to his friends was never in doubt.他对朋友的一片忠心从来没受到怀疑。

9 attainable   

a.可达到的，可获得的

参考例句：

• They set the limits of performance attainable. 它们确定着可达到的运行限度。
• If objectives are to be meaningful to people, they must be clear, attainable, actionable, and verifiable. 如果目标对人们是具有意义的，则目标必须是清晰的，能达到的，可以行动的，以及可供检验的。

10 withhold   

v.拒绝，不给；使停止，阻挡

参考例句：

• It was unscrupulous of their lawyer to withhold evidence.他们的律师隐瞒证据是不道德的。
• I couldn't withhold giving some loose to my indignation.我忍不住要发泄一点我的愤怒。

11 alienating   

v.使疏远( alienate的现在分词 )；使不友好；转让；让渡（财产等）

参考例句：

• The phenomena of alienation are widespread. Sports are also alienating. 异化现象普遍存在，体育运动也不例外。 来自互联网
• How can you appeal to them without alienating the mainstream crowd? 你是怎么在不疏忽主流玩家的情况下吸引住他们呢？ 来自互联网

12 softening   

变软，软化

参考例句：

• Her eyes, softening, caressed his face. 她的眼光变得很温柔了。它们不住地爱抚他的脸。 来自汉英文学 - 家（1-26） - 家（1-26）
• He might think my brain was softening or something of the kind. 他也许会觉得我婆婆妈妈的，已经成了个软心肠的人了。

13 laurels   

n.桂冠，荣誉

参考例句：

• The path was lined with laurels.小路两旁都种有月桂树。
• He reaped the laurels in the finals.他在决赛中荣膺冠军。

14 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

15 transparent   

adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的

参考例句：

• The water is so transparent that we can see the fishes swimming.水清澈透明，可以看到鱼儿游来游去。
• The window glass is transparent.窗玻璃是透明的。

16 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。