Rose is one of our subscribers in Malaysia. Last March, she was faced with the dilemma whether or not to take a new job as a manager. In the end, Rose took the job. After giving proper notice, she started in June.

“Remember me? Today is my second day on the job as a new manager. Wow!! Exhilarating and tough. Scares the hell out of me. But anyway, management, especially when it involves strategy at the corporate level is really something new to me! Even with an MBA, it’s not easy!

“I have to think about expanding the business and yet I can’t just do it without considering the brand’s image in the market. I can’t afford to portray the new brand into the lower segment.

“Should I think about franchising or should I get a distributor to take the new product lines into other markets.

“Still, I have to take into account the under capacity of the production department, which is also under my care. How to motivate the production line when they are so new to me? I think I’m going to have high blood pressure soon.”

So Rose took the bold step and jumped into the thick of things. It is one thing to anticipate the challenge. It is another to feel the reality of being overwhelmed. And here you come face to face understanding this is not about management techniques, this is about courage.

It is now some months since these first days in June. I heard from Rose again last week. Her update on Wednesday. -TF