Everyone of you met difficult coworkers during his professional life. Most of the time, they are some of the best and brightest employees.
To help managers understand the motivations and preferences of these individuals, Tom Duening and Jack Ivancevich wrote "Managing Einsteins: Leading High Tech Workers in the Digital Age" (McGraw-Hill, 2002).
They identified six types of Einsteins and present some techniques for dealing with them.
These six types are: Arrogant Einsteins, Know-It-All Einsteins, Impatient Einsteins, Eccentric Einsteins, Disorganized Einsteins and Withdrawn Einsteins.
As usual, I have a preference -- probably the one closest to myself. And it is the Impatient Einstein.
One of the more annoying traits commonly displayed by Einsteins is impatience. In its common form, Einstein impatience shows itself in darting eyes, tapping feet and short, staccato-like conversations. The extreme form of Impatient Einstein brings unique management challenges. Often, Impatient Einsteins are superstars of the team. They understand things quickly. They don't need to be told twice. They are extremely deferential and obedient. In many ways, Impatient Einsteins are star employees. The trouble is they are easily bored.
What should you do with Impatient Einsteins? Let them do their work.
Source: Tom Duening and Jack Ivancevich, Darwin Magazine, June 2002
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