Headhunters Job Search Tips and Interview Advice

Forget About What’s in It for You

What never to ask about during the first interview: salary or vacation policy.

—Tara McKernan, DHR International

Build Your Reputation

If nobody much has ever heard of you, we’re inclined to suspect there’s a good reason.

—Mark Jaffe, Wyatt & Jaffe

Be Proactive

At the end of the job interview, always ask about the next step in the process.

—Tara McKernan, DHR International

Use the Three Magic Words

“I don’t know.” Learn how to say it, when to say it, and why. Nothing could be a greater proof of your overall credibility.

—Mark Jaffe, Wyatt & Jaffe

Remember the Simplest Way to Impress

During an interview, pay attention, listen, make eye contact, and don’t fidget.

—Tara McKernan, DHR International

Stop Comparing Yourself

There will always be somebody who does it better, faster, more artfully, or for bigger profits. Does that mean you’re a loser? Define success on your own terms and live a fulfilled life.

—Mark Jaffe, Wyatt & Jaffe

Calculate Your Compensation

Remember that employers are not accountable for your financial responsibilities. Determine a reasonable salary requirement by investigating market trends in your field.

—Tara McKernan, DHR International

Lighten Up

Be respectful and sensitive to co-workers, but don’t take yourself so seriously. If you find it hard to laugh at yourself, it may be that others will wind up doing it for you.

—Mark Jaffe, Wyatt & Jaffe

Don’t Panic Over Tough Questions

Never say anything negative when asked such questions as, “What do you think of your last manager?” Answer in a way that demonstrates your respect for authority and ability to work for different types of management styles.

—Tara McKernan, DHR International

Dump the Young-Person Baggage

Are you defensive? Insecure? Always worried about how you look to others? Cut that out!

—Mark Jaffe, Wyatt & Jaffe

Ooze Confidence, Not Arrogance

Cocky is never O.K. During interviews, don’t use superlatives such as “great at” or “wonderful” when describing yourself.

—Tara McKernan, DHR International

Try This Little To-Do List

1. Let people underestimate your abilities. 2. Vastly exceed their expectations. 3. Get promoted and enjoy the last laugh.

—Mark Jaffe, Wyatt & Jaffe

Come on, Get Real

Please don’t waste your valuable time applying for jobs for which you fit none of the qualifications. This will only demoralize you when you get no response.

—Tara McKernan, DHR International

Help, Don’t Opine

Co-workers don’t value your input nearly so much as your cooperation. It’s all about how you make the other person feel about him- or herself.

—Mark Jaffe, Wyatt & Jaffe

Turn Rejection into Enlightenment

Didn’t make it past the initial phone screen? Don’t take it to heart; try to get feedback on why. Always strike a friendly, open, positive tone when probing for feedback.

—Tara McKernan, DHR International

Take the High Road

The simplest and most elegant way to stand above the crowd will always be through the virtue of your actions. It means taking individual responsibility, making good on promises, not exaggerating, always having your mouth and your heart in perfect agreement.

—Mark Jaffe, Wyatt & Jaffe

Prepare for the Big Interview Question

The most frequently asked question is, “Tell me about yourself.” The wrong answer is, “What do you want to know?” This tells the prospective employer you’re unprepared for the interview.

—Tara McKernan, DHR International

Watch Your Words—and Tone

Real life is like high school. Get ready to be judged on popularity. Recognize that how you say things is often more important than what you say. Above all, don’t tell people what’s “wrong” with them.

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Business Etiquette and Corporate Style Tips

Q: At work I sit next to a woman whose perfume is overwhelming. Should I say something, and how?

A: For people with allergies or sensitivity to particular scents, perfume can cause chronic sneezing, nausea, difficulty breathing, or migraine headaches. Many times the perfume wearer uses the scent so often she cannot recognize it—and ends up putting on even more. If you have a problem with a co-worker’s fragrance, address the problem immediately and with candor. Mention courteously that her fragrance is distracting you and ask her to skip wearing perfume in the office. Chances are she will oblige. If not, check with your human resources department. Many companies are now adding a "no perfume/cologne" clause to their dress code policies, and you may elect to lodge a complaint.

—Kelly Machbitz, owner, Totalfashionmakeover.com, Clearwater, Fla.

Q: What’s the proper etiquette for exchanging business cards?

A: When receiving a business card, look at it for a few seconds, make a comment on the design or information (if appropriate), and place it reverently in your pocket or card case. When speaking with someone, jot down a note or two on the back of his or her card to jog your memory later. Have different pockets for incoming and outgoing business cards, so you don’t accidently hand out someone else’s card. Make sure your cards are clean, unbent, and unripped, as they are a reflection of you and your company.

—Carol Davidson, StyleWorks of Union Square

Q: When your table is ready and you’re still finishing your drink at the bar, should you carry it to the table or leave it?

A: By all means, feel free to take your unfinished drink with you to the table. If you are uncomfortable or have difficulty carrying your beverage, you can ask the bartender to have it brought to you—a common practice in most high-end restaurants. Bear in mind, in some establishments the bar and table waitstaff may not on be on the same register or might not be able to combine checks. If this is the case, you may be asked to close out your tab at the bar separately. In any event, don’t forget to tip 15 percent to 20 percent of the bar tab to your bartender for good service.

—Kelly Machbitz, owner, Totalfashionmakeover.com, Clearwater, Fla.

Q: When your table is ready and you’re still finishing your drink at the bar, should you carry it to the table or leave it?

A: By all means, feel free to take your unfinished drink with you to the table. If you are uncomfortable or have difficulty carrying your beverage, you can ask the bartender to have it brought to you—a common practice in most high-end restaurants. Bear in mind, in some establishments the bar and table waitstaff may not on be on the same register or might not be able to combine checks. If this is the case, you may be asked to close out your tab at the bar separately. In any event, don’t forget to tip 15 percent to 20 percent of the bar tab to your bartender for good service.

—Kelly Machbitz, owner, Totalfashionmakeover.com, Clearwater, Fla.

Q: How early should you arrive for an interview?

A: Although you should never be late under any circumstance, it’s a bad idea to arrive excessively early. Aim to get to an interview about 15 minutes prior to your meeting time. Showing up well before your allotted time slot can make the interviewer feel compelled to move his or her schedule around. Arriving 15 minutes early shows that you are punctual yet have respect for other people’s time and work.

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New Business Books

Winning the War for Talent in Emerging Markets
Why Women Are the Solution
By Sylvia Ann Hewlett and Ripa Rashid
288 pages, hardcover
Harvard Business Press, $35

Twitter for Good
Change the World One Tweet at a Time
By Claire Diaz-Ortiz
206 pages, hardcover
Jossey-Bass, $24.95

Enterprise Risk Management Best Practices
From Assessment to Ongoing Compliance
By Anne M. Marchetti
224 pages, hardcover
Wiley, $60

Retirement Heist
How Companies Plunder and Profit from the Nest Eggs of American Workers
By Ellen E. Schultz
256 pages, hardcover
Portfolio Penguin, $26.95

Salary Tutor
Learn the Salary Negotiation Techniques No One Ever Taught You
By Jim Hopkinson
144 pages, paperback
Business Plus, $13.99

Breaking the Fear Barrier
How Fear Destroys Companies from the Outside and What to Do About It
By Tom Rieger
151 pages, hardcover
Gallup Press,$24.95

Beyond the Lean Revolution
Achieving Successful and Sustainable Enterprise Transformation
By Deborah J. Nightingale and Jayakanth Srinivasan
256 pages, hardcover
Amacom, $34.95

The Big Enough Company
Creating a Business That Works for You
By Adelaide Lancaster and Amy Abrams
278 pages, hardcover
Portfolio Penguin,$25.95

Harvard Business Review on Succeeding as an Entrepreneur
Expert Advice on Creating New Businesses and Markets
(A collection of Harvard Business Review articles)
202 pages, paperback
Harvard Business Press, $22

Clean Energy Nation
Freeing America from the Tyranny of Fossil Fuels
By Jerry McNerney and Martin Cheek
320 pages, hardcover
Amacom, $27.95

The Devil’s Derivatives
The Untold Story of the Slick Traders and Hapless Regulators
Who Almost Blew Up Wall Street…and Are Ready to Do It Again
By Nicholas Dunbar
320 pages, hardcover
Harvard Business Review Press, $27.95

Smart Business, Social Business
A Playbook for Social Media in Your Organization
By Michael Brito
238 pages, hardcover
Que Publishing, $24.99

Breaking the Fear Barrier
How Fear Destroys Companies from the Inside Out and What to Do About It
By Tom Rieger
220 pages, hardcover
Gallup Press, $24.95

The Innovator’s Manifesto
Deliberate Disruption for Transformational Growth
By Michael E. Raynor
220 pages, hardcover
Crown Business, $23

Nothing to Lose, Everything to Gain
How I Went from Gang Member to Multimillionaire Entrepreneur
By Ryan Blair with Don Yaeger
240 pages pages, hardcover
Portfolio Penguin, $25.95

Cracking the New Job Market
The 7 Rules for Getting Hired in Any Economy
By R. William Holland
256 pages, paperback
Amacom, $17.95

The Market Taker’s Edge
Insider Strategies from the Options Trading Floor
By Dan Passarelli
256 Pages, hardcover
McGraw-Hill Professional, $35

A Decade of Delusions
From Speculative Contagion to the Great Recession
By Frank Martin
425 pages, hardcover
John Wiley & Sons, Inc., $34.95

Growth or Bust!
Proven Turnaround Strategies to Grow Your Business
By Mark Faust
224 pages, paperback
Career Press, $15.99

Social Media Analytics
Effective Tools for Building, Intrepreting, and Using Metrics
By Marshall Sponder
320 Pages, hardcover
McGraw-Hill Professional, $35

What to Ask the Person in the Mirror
Critical Questions for Becoming a More Effective Leader and Reaching Your Potential
By Robert Steven Kaplan
224 pages, hardcover
Harvard Business Review Press, $26.95

Streamlined Process Improvement
By Dr. James Harrington
432 Pages, hardcover
McGraw-Hill Professional, $40

As We Speak
How to Make Your Point and Have It Stick
By Peter Meyers and Shann Nix
275 pages, hardcover
Atria Books, $25

Good Strategy, Bad Strategy
The Difference and Why It Matters
By Richard P. Rumelt
320 pages, hardcover
Crown Business, $28

Sacred Cows Make the Best Burgers (updated and revised)
Developing Change-Driving People and Organizations
By Robert Kriegel and David Brandt
315 pages, paperback
Grand Central Publishing, $16.99

Digital Impact
The Two Secrets to Online Marketing Success
By Vipin Mayar and Geoff Ramsey
256 pages, hardcover
Wiley, $24.95

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Senators Seek More Disclosure For Business Credit Cards

Four Senators today called for more disclosure on business credit card offers so cardholders will understand that business cards are not protected by the same laws as regular consumer cards that bar practices like retroactive interest rate hikes.
In a letter today to Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, the four Democrats asked the Fed to "take immediate steps to protect consumers" from mistakenly believing that the more than 10 million business credit card offers that go to households each month have similar contracts as other cards. The Senators are Charles Schumer of New York, Jack Reed of Rhode Island, Bill Nelson of Florida, and Robert Menendez of New Jersey.
In addition to seeking more disclosure, the Senators ask the Fed to make business credit card issuers require business tax ID numbers from applicants to prevent non-business owners from getting the cards. Fed spokeswoman Susan Stawick declined to comment on the letter.
The Pew Safe Credit Cards Project highlighted the separate treatment of small business credit cards in a report last month. It's not a new issue, however. As far back as 2008, the Fed made rules for consumer credit cards that did not apply to business cards, even though such cards are personally guaranteed and function similarly to personal cards. When Congress passed the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure (CARD) Act in 2009, small business cards were carved out of that as well. Business card users still got hit with penalties, such as "overlimit" fees they never opted into, that consumer cardholders were protected from.
Business-to-business transactions aren't generally covered by consumer protection laws because business owners are assumed to be sophisticated enough to do their due diligence before entering into an agreement. The Senators' letter, citing data from Pew, questions how many business card offers reach people who don't own businesses. In the last five years, they write, "Americans received over 2.6 billion business credit solicitations, comprising over 9 percent of all direct mail marketing of credit cards to U.S. households. Alarmingly, more than 6.7 million of these solicitations go to seniors every month."
Full text of the letter after the jump.
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Fixed Indexed Annuities and the Small Business Owner

Many business owners rely on the success of their business as their sole source of income and retirement savings. Normally, financial advisers recommend diversifying portfolios among stocks and bonds. The combination typically works fine, if managed appropriately and other factors, such as income, are stable. But that's easier said than done, and business owners face different risks than salaried workers.
Business owners should explore additional options to secure their retirement savings, such as fixed indexed annuities. Added to a business owner's portfolio, these can help protect personal income and cash flow. Small businesses benefit from fixed indexed annuities for three reasons:
1. It's Safe Money
Unlike other risk assets, fixed annuities are guaranteed not to lose money. Some fixed annuities increase in value each year, based in part on how the stock market performs, but still have a guaranteed minimum return, which is not a bad strategy given today's uncertain and volatile markets. And with all the uncertainty business owners face, it's nice to know that some of their money can be placed in a safe harbor from the current economic storm.
2. It's Guaranteed Income
Business owners don't have the benefit of pensions from an employer. Annuities can be structured to provide a guaranteed income for a business owner and spouse they will not outlive. Even after the owners sell or close the business, the checks will keep coming to their mailbox as long as they are around to pick them up.
3. Tax Benefits
Annuities let business owners defer tax on income that is not currently being used. The deferred income doesn't show up on their tax forms until they begin to use it. That can provide some beneficial cash-flow planning that every business owner needs.
Ryan Peterson
Certified financial planner and president
Wisdom & Wealth Solutions
Raleigh, N.C.
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Apotheker Sets Biggest HP Strategic Bet in Oracle Rivalry: Tech

August 19, 2011, 4:33 PM EDT

By Ari Levy and Aaron Ricadela

Aug. 19 (Bloomberg) -- Leo Apotheker’s sweeping overhaul of Hewlett-Packard Co. steps up rivalry with his longtime foe Oracle Corp.

Hearkening back to his two-decade career at SAP AG, Apotheker plans to spin off Hewlett Packard’s personal-computer business and dive deeper into business software with the $10.3 billion purchase of Autonomy Corp.

With the plans announced yesterday, Apotheker, 57, makes good on pledges to expand in cloud computing and aims to challenge Oracle and International Business Machines Corp. in more profitable products aimed at corporations. Business software delivered a 19 percent operating margin last quarter, more than triple the amount for the PC unit due to be jettisoned.

“There’s focus on storage, services, security and networking,” said Pat Becker Jr., a fund manager at Portland, Oregon-based Becker Capital Management, which holds Hewlett- Packard shares among $2.2 billion under management. “Apotheker’s lining up the company to succeed there, and PCs just don’t fit. The lessons he learned at SAP have kicked in.”

Hewlett-Packard, based in Palo Alto, California, dropped $5.91, or 20 percent, to $23.60 at 4 p.m. on the New York Stock Exchange, the biggest decline since 1987. The company also issued sales and profit forecasts for the current quarter that missed estimates.

“I’m lowering the Q4 guidance to be realistic about where we are and the challenges we are facing,” Apotheker said yesterday on a conference call. “I know our investors don’t like to be in this position and neither do I.”

Autonomy Purchase

The company agreed yesterday to buy Autonomy, the second- largest U.K. software maker, for $42.11 a share, or $10.3 billion. Autonomy offers programs for data analysis and its customers include Coca-Cola Co., Nestle SA and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The purchase is Hewlett-Packard’s largest since the $13.2 billion acquisition of Electronic Data Systems Corp. in 2008 and Apotheker’s biggest deal since becoming CEO. In February, he orchestrated the purchase of data-analysis company Vertica for an undisclosed price.

Autonomy, based in Cambridge, England, jumped 72 percent to 24.52 pounds in London. Before today, the stock had declined 5.1 percent this year.

Hewlett-Packard also said it’s discontinuing products that run WebOS software, which it acquired last year in the $1.2 billion purchase of Palm Inc. The operating system, which powers smartphones and tablet computers, fell short of “internal milestones and financial targets,” Hewlett-Packard said yesterday.

‘Repeatable Revenue’

With the shift, Hewlett-Packard “separates out a lower- return business from a higher-return business, and you’ll end up with one that is a better business long-term,” said Don Yacktman, founder of Yacktman Asset Management Co. in Austin, Texas, which oversees $11 billion and holds Hewlett-Packard shares. “Software is a more repeatable revenue stream.”

Apotheker, who hails from Germany and speaks five languages, rose through SAP’s sales and marketing operations, becoming sole CEO in 2009. He was ousted from Walldorf, Germany- based SAP, the top maker of business-management software, in February 2010.

His tenure as CEO was blemished by an attempted price increase during the recession that rankled consumers and by a clash with German unions on plans to cut jobs. He resigned after presiding over the company’s first revenue decline since 2003 as customers delayed software purchases.

He joined Hewlett-Packard in November after Mark Hurd departed as CEO amid a scandal over a personal relationship with a company contractor. Hurd now is a co-president at Oracle.

TouchPad Disappoints

As he assumed control of Hewlett-Packard, the company faced slowing revenue growth and increasing competition in cloud computing, the delivery of software and storage over the Internet. He vowed to buy more companies with software expertise, improve product quality and boost spending on research and development.

While Apotheker is following up on his software pledge, he’s backtracking on efforts to make the WebOS operating system a viable competitor to Apple Inc. and Google Inc.

WebOS has been suffering, Hewlett-Packard said yesterday. The business had an operating loss of $332 million in the fiscal third quarter on sales of $266 million, chief financial officer Cathie Lesjak said on a conference call. Losses would have widened if the business continued, she said.

“We have better ways to use that capital,” than trying to revive WebOS, Apotheker said in an interview yesterday. “Sales of HP TouchPads were not meeting my expectations.”

‘Sharpen the Focus’

In the PC business, competitors’ tablets have cut into sales and consumers are changing how they compute, Apotheker added. “We want to sharpen the focus of HP.”

Apotheker is exiting WebOS products just a month after the company named Palm’s former CEO Jon Rubinstein to head of product development and innovation for the personal systems group, which includes PCs, tablets and smartphones.

Apotheker said in March that all of the company’s PCs will feature WebOS, a shift away from machines that only run Microsoft Corp.’s Windows operating system.

“He’s decided he just can’t win that war,” said Maribel Lopez, founder of Lopez Research in San Francisco. “If he’s not going to be in devices on the PC side, it makes no sense to be in devices on the phone side.”

--With assistance from Jeffrey McCracken and Serena Saitto in New York, Dina Bass in Seattle and Jonathan Browning in London. Editors: Lisa Rapaport, Tom Giles

To contact the reporters on this story: Ari Levy in San Francisco at alevy5@bloomberg.net Aaron Ricadela in San Francisco at aricadela@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Tom Giles at tgiles5@bloomberg.net

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News Corp. Holds Talks With Investors on Governance Concerns

August 19, 2011, 6:01 PM EDT

By Ronald Grover and Alex Sherman

(Adds Calstrs plans in second paragraph, closing price.)

Aug. 19 (Bloomberg) -- News Corp. Chief Operating Officer Chase Carey, reacting to the scandal over phone hacking at the News of the World tabloid, is holding discussions with some large investors over governance and other concerns.

The California State Teachers’ Retirement System, which held 3.86 million News Corp. Class A shares as of June 30, plans to meet with top officials soon, said Ricardo Duran, a spokesman.

“Calstrs is involved in the engagement process, which includes sending letters, holding conference calls and meetings, with News Corp. management,” Duran said in an e-mail. “Because this is delicate, we cannot say anything further about our efforts.”

The outreach by News Corp., owner of Fox Broadcasting and the Wall Street Journal, reflects investor concern over succession plans for Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Rupert Murdoch, the use of capital and family control of the company in the wake of the scandal, two people with knowledge of the situation said.

Carey, Murdoch’s second-in-command who also holds the title of president, and David DeVoe, the company’s finance chief, are conducting the briefings, according to a fund manager who wouldn’t discuss the matter publicly and isn’t planning to take part.

Julie Henderson, a spokeswoman for New York-based News Corp., declined to comment.

Meeting Request

The California Public Employees’ Retirement System, which was aware of the discussions, won’t be participating, said Brad Pacheco, a Calpers spokesman. The pension fund for state workers owns 5 million Class A nonvoting and 1.38 million Class B voting shares, according to Bloomberg data.

Last month, after the Guardian newspaper in the U.K. reported News Corp.’s now-defunct News of the World tabloid had hacked the voicemail of a murdered schoolgirl, the company hired consultant Sard Verbinnen & Co. to survey investors.

Since then, executives including Murdoch and his son James, News Corp.’s deputy chief operating officer, have faced questions about the accuracy of testimony they gave to a British Parliamentary panel investigating the hacking and the company’s response to it.

Investors led by Glenview, Illinois-based Wespath Investment Management, representing stockholders with 1.31 million News Corp. shares, requested a meeting with lead independent board member Roderick Eddington in an Aug. 5 letter.

Anita Green, a spokeswoman for Wespath, declined to say this week whether the investors would be meeting with management of News Corp.

Succession, Acquisitions

In an earnings call on Aug. 10, News Corp. addressed some of the investors’ concerns, including who might succeed Murdoch as CEO. Murdoch controls the company through ownership of almost 40 percent of the voting stock.

“I hope that the job won’t be open in the near future,” Murdoch said. “Chase is my partner. If anything happened to me, I’m sure he’ll get it immediately if I went under a bus. But in the end, succession’s a matter for the board.”

Carey, in turn, addressed possible acquisitions, saying the company “will focus on modest investments, those in the tens or hundreds of millions, not billions.”

Because of the scandal, News Corp. was forced to abandon its 7.8-billion-pound ($12.8 billion) bid for the 61 percent of British Sky Broadcasting Group Plc it doesn’t own.

Share Drop

The British law firm Harbottle & Lewis released letters on Aug. 16 that said Rupert Murdoch, 80, gave “inaccurate and misleading” statements to Parliament explaining why News Corp. had hired the law firm in 2007 to examine one phone-hacking allegation. Two former News of the World executives said they told James Murdoch in 2008 the practice was widespread, contradicting the younger Murdoch’s testimony to the panel.

News Corp. fell 63 cents, or 3.9 percent, to $15.56 at 4 p.m. in Nasdaq Stock Market trading. The Class A shares have declined 14 percent since the Guardian reported on July 4 that News of the World accessed the voicemail of murdered teenager Milly Dowler.

Bloomberg competes with News Corp. units in providing financial news and information.

--With assistance from James Nash in Sacramento and Anthony Palazzo in Los Angeles. Editors: Rob Golum, Anthony Palazzo

To contact the reporters on this story: Ronald Grover in Los Angeles at rgrover5@bloomberg.net; Alex Sherman in New York at asherman6@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Anthony Palazzo at apalazzo@bloomberg.net; Peter Elstrom at pelstrom@bloomberg.net

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Banks Approving More Business Loans, Survey Indicates

Banks rarely make public how many loan applications they deny. A new survey by researchers at Pepperdine University suggests that lenders are approving slightly more business loans than they did in the last year. The majority of loan requests are still rejected. Bankers reported denying 60 percent of business loan applications, down from 67 percent from Pepperdine's previous two surveys released six months and one year ago. (The 60 percent loan rejection rate was the median of 72 banks that responded to questions in March.)
Most business loans were rejected because of concerns about borrowers' earnings, cash flow, or collateral. Three quarters of banks responding agreed with the statement that they felt more pressure from regulators to avoid making bad loans. Of those, about 61 percent agreed that pressure from regulators caused them to deny loans they would have otherwise approved. It's not clear what time period this refers to, however, and Pepperdine hasn't asked the question in the past.
The survey also indicated that loan demand is increasing. A net 53 percent of banks reported more businesses seeking funding than six months earlier. It's hard to draw any firm conclusions from these responses. If banks are seeing increased loan demand, and they're approving more applications, that should eventually lead to expanding business credit. Federal data suggests the total amount of business loans outstanding is still shrinking, at least among loans under $1 million.
Pepperdine's news release is here and the report is available for download here.
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Seven Reasons Your Reports Don't Trust You

By Dennis and Michelle Reina

When employees don’t trust leadership, organizations pay the price in low engagement, high turnover, and lost creativity and innovation.

Still, according to a recent survey by BlessingWhite, slightly more than half (52 percent) of employees say that they trust their company’s top leaders.

After studying issues of trust in the workplace for some 20 years, we are certain of one thing: Most leaders think a breach of trust must be severe or even scandalous—consider Rupert Murdoch and News Corp.—to take a costly toll on the business. To those leaders we say: “Think again.”

According to our research, little breaches of trust over time are a big deal. Ultimately, employees pull back, withholding their full energy and talent. Leadership, too often oblivious, wonders why. For both individuals and organizations, it’s like death by a thousand paper cuts.

So what are the not-so-little reasons your people might not trust you? Here are seven common ones—and how to steer clear of committing these everyday sins.

1. You withhold trust in others. Trust is a two-way street. If you want people to trust you, you need to trust them. For starters, avoid micromanaging. Instead, give employees the latitude to put their full talents to work. When you let go and trust in people’s competence, they feel confident and committed. They want to give their best. Conversely, when you hold the reins too tight, they recoil, feeling devalued and distrusted. Just as trust begets trust, distrust begets distrust.

2. You ask much, yet fail to acknowledge effort. Odds are that you’re asking workers to do more with less these days. You also need them to take the initiative and tackle, in the words of authors Jim Collins and Jerry Porras, “big, hairy, audacious goals.” Yet when employees step up and deliver, how do you respond? Do you take a moment to personally acknowledge effort and reiterate why their work really matters to the business? Or do you just say “Thanks” in a perfunctory e-mail and move on to the next request? For people to trust you, they need to know that you care about them. A little acknowledgment can go a long way.

3. You behave badly. At a client site recently, we witnessed a tirade from a global marketing executive—a leader notorious for his nasty temper. Later, his team members confided that they had come to expect such fist-pounding and profanity. No one felt safe from being singled out and screamed at in front of everyone. “We’ve all been humiliated by him,” said one vice-president. If you want your own team to trust and respect you, be aware of your behavior. Instead of berating people for missing a target, for instance, bring calm, clarity, and concern to the real issues by asking how and why things got off track. Understand what the group needs from you in the future.

4. You don’t admit your mistakes. To err is human. When you mess up, what do you do? Do you check your ego at the door and acknowledge your mistake? Do you say to your team: “I made a bad call on that one” or “in reflecting on it, my assessment wasn’t fair and I apologize?” In a New York Times interview, Siemens Chief Executive Officer Peter Löscher said: “I’m always telling people, ‘Look, I make a mistake every day, but hopefully I’m not making the same mistake twice.’” By admitting your own mistakes, you not only acknowledge your humanity but allow others to acknowledge theirs. As a result, communication opens up, mutual trust is built, and employees feel free to take creative risks that can move the business ahead.

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Managing the Office Pest

By Jeff Schmitt

He’s back.

Yeah, you know the type. You cringe when his name pops up on your phone or e-mail. You feign yellow fever when he sidles up to your cube. When he walks your way, you tense up and dart to the nearest exit. All the while, you think to yourself: What now?

With this guy, everything is a crisis. And it’s always last minute too. Months ago, you came to his rescue. Now he clings like a lovesick teenager. Every day, he’s back with some new drama. You’re peppered with question after question, sandwiched between monologues that never find their destination. And he is never afraid to interrupt.

Yes, this nuisance is draining your time and energy. He hovers and smothers, pulling you away from more pressing jobs. He steals your focus and trips up your rhythm, and you can’t get back on track afterward. You’re not the type to complain, but you’re tired of being dragged into this. Want to take back your time? Consider the following strategies.

1) Have him come with solutions. You know the drill. He bounces toward you like a ball of nerves. Chances are, he’s hoping you’ll do the work for him. Don’t make it easy for him. Instead, train him how to make it easy for you to help. Start by requiring him to come prepared when you meet. In particular, require him to gather facts and produce a solution and a plan for implementing it, along with potential obstacles and trade-offs involved. In short, your little leech can think it through before dropping in unannounced. You can correct and coach him once you’ve heard his plan.

2) Break it down. "Give a man a fish, and he’ll eat for a day. Teach him to fish, and he’ll eat for a lifetime." There’s a reason clichés, however stale, never die: They illustrate enduring lessons. Your mooch is coming to you for a reason. Maybe you have a talent for simplifying the complex or connecting the disparate. Chances are, your guy dawdles and complicates, unable to conceptualize or discriminate. Regardless, he believes you possess some supernatural gift he couldn’t possibly grasp. Maybe it’s time to take him behind the curtain. Show him how you approach issues. What do you question and evaluate? What steps do you take to determine what’s important and what’s not, and why? What are the warning signs, and when do you seek out others for guidance? Most important, ask him what he thinks. You’ll be surprised how much he actually knows when you nudge him.

3) Keep it about work. You know the routine. He turns up, looking to sponge up your strategies. But he’s not really seeking solutions. He has a different agenda; he’s looking for an opening to unload. Soon enough, it’ll start seeping out—the questioning, complaints, frustrations, and insecurities about everything from management to his midlife crisis. But this is work, not a rerun of Men of a Certain Age. Don’t get sucked into his world. When he strays and grows needy, reel him back to the issues at hand. You can be his friend outside the office. Inside, the biggest favor you can do is keeping him focused and productive.

4) Help him on your schedule. He expects you instantly to drop what you’re doing, knocking you further off schedule. Seems reasonable, right? Before you automatically say yes to him, ask yourself about value and priority. In particular, do his problems greatly affect clients and internal staff? Will they drive dollars or stave off a lawsuit? If not, ask him for a timeline for task completion and set an appointment at a time convenient to you. Don’t feel obliged: Direct him elsewhere for answers. If anything, allude to a quid pro quo to set an expectation that your time comes with a price. Regardless, you can always hope he says thanks by getting it right and not coming back.

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