Manchester United's Alex Ferguson Shares The Secrets Of His Success With Harvard Business School

alex fergusonIn what is possibly the most wide-reaching talk ever given by Sir Alex Ferguson, the Manchester United manager has told students at Harvard Business School in Boston the secrets of his success.

Ferguson, who was the subject of an academic study by professor Anita Elberse at the Harvard Business School, visited the school earlier this year to meet students to discuss the report.

The Scot later described the experience as "excellent, enjoyable, and comfortable" while also learnt a lot about himself.

“The whole atmosphere was professional,” Ferguson told the HarvardGazette . “It was clear that they had done their homework. They had properly read the case study and supplemented that with their own opinions and research. That gave me a certain assurance that I had made the right decision to go ahead with the case.

“The key element for me was Anita, and how she controlled the room. I am always talking about ‘control.’ She controlled that room. She was the boss. I thought that was very impressive, plus the fact that she has a certain humility about her; she’s quite down-to-earth.

“The process was excellent, enjoyable, and comfortable,” Ferguson added. “I never felt intimidated in any way, and I never felt reluctant to be anything other than completely open.

“The part of the discussion from which I learned the most about myself was when they were discussing the balance between ‘fear’ and ‘love’ in my approach to managing people. If you look at my history, there’s all this hype about hair dryers and anger and so on. But the students acknowledged another side to it, which is more apt in terms of how I have fostered relations with people and developed the team over the years.

"The reality is not always how the press portray it. I felt the students were quite accurate in terms of how they analyzed this aspect, questioning and recognizing this important dynamic of management.

THE BEST OF FERGUSON

Encouraging words

"I once heard a coach start with 'This must be the 1,000th team talk I've had with you,' and saw a player quickly responding with 'And I've slept through half of them!'

"So I like to tell different stories, and use my imagination.

"Generally, it is about our expectations, their belief in themselves, and their trust in each other.

"I remember going to see Andrea Bocelli, the opera singer. I had never been to a classical concert in my life.

"But I am watching this and thinking about the coordination and the teamwork, one starts and one stops, just fantastic. So I spoke to my players about the orchestra - how they are a perfect team."

Talking tactics

"Tactics can change depending on whom we are playing.

"I tend to concentrate on one or two players of my opponents - the ones that are the most influential.

"Who's the guy who is taking all the free-kicks? Who's the guy who's on the ball all the time? Who's the one urging everyone on? The rest of the time I concentrate on our own team.

"On Friday we take our players through a video analysis of our opponents: their strengths, their weaknesses, their set pieces, what their team is likely to be, and so on.

"Then on Saturday, we might give them another, shorter version - just a recap of the previous day."

Quick talking

"There are maybe eight minutes between you coming up through the tunnel and the referees calling you up on the pitch again, so it is vital to use the time well.

"Everything is easier when you are winning: you talk about concentrating, not getting complacent, and small things you can address.

"But when you are losing, you know that you are going to have to make an impact.

"The last few minutes of the first half I'm always thinking of what I'm going to say. I'm a little bit in a trance. I am concentrating.

"I don't believe in taking notes. I see other coaches do it, but I don't want to miss any part of the game.

"And I cannot imagine going into the dressing room, looking at my notes, and saying 'Oh in the 30th minute, that pass you took'. I don't think it's going to impress the players."

Anger management

"I've still got a wee bit of anger in me, thinking of how we threw the league away last season.

"It was another day in the history of Manchester United. That's all it was. It created the drama that only United can produce.

"Who would have thought that Blackburn, bottom of the league, would beat us 3-2 at Old Trafford? Or that Everton would draw with us when we were up 4-2 with seven minutes to go?

"My motivation to the players will be that we cant let City beat us twice in a row."

Old big ears

"It's difficult to marry the two competitions in one season.

"We are in a country where tribalism is rife. There is strong competition between regions and top clubs, with Arsenal, Chelsea, and Tottenham based in London, two clubs here in Manchester, and Liverpool.

"That puts tremendous pressure on you to win your league. But the European Cup is the biggest trophy.

"Last season, when we went out in the group phase, I made a mistake. I was playing a lot of the young players.

"Although that had worked in the past we got careless in our games.

"It was a shock, because it was only the third time I've not qualified for the knockout stage. I decided I wouldn't be taking the risks I took in Europe last year."

Playing politics

"The Glazers decide. They have generally been very supportive and are very low-key.

"If I owned United and they won the league, I would be over the moon.

"I remember when I played with Rangers, when the directors were under the shower with their clothes on, dancing about.

"But the Glazers shook a few hands and had some photographs taken, that was it.

"Some English clubs have changed managers so many times that it creates power for the players in the dressing room.

"That is very dangerous. Football management in the end is all about the players. You think you are a better player than they are, and they think they are a better manager than you are."

Building blocks

"The first thought for 99 per cent of newly appointed managers is to make sure they win to survive. They bring experienced players in, often from their previous clubs.

"But I think it is important to build a structure for a football club - not just a football team.

"You need a foundation. And there is nothing better than seeing a young player make it to the first team.

"There are three categories: players from 30 and above, the players from roughly 23 to 30, and the younger ones coming in.

"The idea is that the younger players are developing and meeting the standards that the older ones have set before.

"For me the hardest thing is to let go of a player who has been a great guy.

"But all the evidence is on the football field. If you see the change, the deterioration, you have to start asking yourself what it is going to be like two years ahead."

Special ones

"Jose [Mourinho] is very intelligent, he has charisma, his players play for him, and he is a good looking guy.

"I think I have most of those things, too, apart from his good looks.

"He's got a confidence about himself, saying 'We'll win this' and 'I'm the Special One'.

"I could never come out and say we're going to win this game. It's maybe a wee bit of my Scottishness?

"[Pep] Guardiola is an impressive guy. He's brought about change in Barcelona, urging the team to always work hard to get the ball back within seconds after losing it.

"They are gifted but work hard. It was a fantastic achievement. He elevated the status of his players."

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How To Make A Toy For Girls: Take Gender-Neutral Toy, Add Fairies And Flowers, Make It Purple

As a child, did you ever have one of those magnetic fishing games where plastic fishes’ mouths snap open and shut and you try to snag them with a magnet? I had one, and I enjoyed that toy very much as a little girl. Let me emphasize the “as a little girl” part. One would think that this is a … [More]

Source: http://consumerist.com/2012/12/18/how-to-make-a-toy-for-girls-take-gender-neutral-toy-add-fairies-and-flowers-make-it-purple/

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Japan Is On Its Longest Streak Of Trade Deficits Since 1980

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Japanese exports fell 4.1 percent in November.

However, it wasn't as bad as the 5.5 percent drop expected by economists.

The export driven economy has been getting slammed thanks to political turmoil with China, which has caused China's taste for Japanese goods to collapse.

Exports to China tumbled 14.5 percent during the period.

Exports to the EU did worse, tanking 19.9 percent.

The trade deficit came in at 953.4 billion yen, which was the fifth straight month of deficits.  This is the longest streak of deficits since 1980, reports CNBC World.

Japan recently voted former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe into power on Sunday.  Abe, a conservative, ran on the platform of aggressive easy monetary policy in an effort to stimutate the struggling economy.

With the threat of inflation and currency debasement on the horizon, experts like Jeff Gundlach have recommended shorting the Japanese yen and buying Japanese stocks.

SEE ALSO: The New Jeff Gundlach Trade Is Going Wild, And It's Been Less Than A Week >

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Africa Is Such A Mess That Congress Is Asking Ben Affleck To Explain What's Going On

Affleck Congo

Things have gotten so bad in Africa that Ben Affleck is actually going to testify in front of Congress' Armed Services Committee, Jeremy Herb of The Hill reports.

Affleck, star of the movie "Argo" and "Good Will Hunting," is actually pretty knowledgeable about the region, the Congo specifically, because he started a nonprofit organization, the Eastern Congo Initiative, centered around relief efforts in the stricken country.

Affleck's appearance is primarily for the Armed Services Committee to get a better idea of the situation on the ground in the country, but it highlights the instability of the continent as a whole.

Libya has recently militarized its southern borders as an attempt to stem the tide of Al Qaeda's illegal arms trafficking. The arms, oddly enough, end up in Mali, which is just waiting to explode.

There's also Al Shabaab in Somalia, a target for American military covert operations, and a laundry list of countries on the brink or in the middle of civil war.

As we've reported in the past, fighters and weapons move freely around the region. U.S. efforts in Iraq may have pushed al Qaeda out, but the game has become one of geographic wack-a-mole, with major  al Qaeda players popping up in regions where there is little American presence.

"This has to be a priority," said Affleck during a recent appearance on ABC's The Week with George Stephanopoulos. Affleck went on to retell a story about how the only well-disciplined, moral military unit in the area was also the only one that was American trained.

One might think Affleck was calling for American intervention, until Rep. Adam Smith (D) of the Armed Service Committee did so himself.

"China is actively engaged in the area, actively engaged in a mercenary way, pay whoever they have pay to get the minerals out, if we could bring greater stability, there's a huge economic opportunity for us to take advantage of, for our benefit but also the benefit of the people there," he said.

Indeed China has become a big player throughout the continent, even hiring former Blackwater founder Erik Prince to provide diplomatic and security "consulting." 

The House Armed Services Committee says the purpose of its hearing is to achieve an idea of the “evolving security situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the implications for U.S. security.”

The implications seem clear though: couple economic opportunity with al Qaeda and China's growing influence, and a recipe for U.S. intervention seems almost inevitable.

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Watch Your Credit Card Statement: Refunds Arriving Soon From AmEx, Capital One, Discover

Getting money back from a credit card issuer doesn’t happen every day, so plenty of Discover, American Express and Capital One customers are in for a treat in the form of refunds hitting their accounts soon. Those three companies were ordered to pay up a total of $435 million to almost six million customers after the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau … [More]

Source: http://consumerist.com/2012/12/17/watch-your-credit-card-statement-refunds-arriving-soon-from-amex-capital-one-discover/

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Forget Christmas. This Kmart Has Already Moved On To Valentine?s Day

By now, you’re all familiar with Christmas Creep, the insidious inching of the holiday shopping season earlier and earlier into the year. But there’s a lesser-known holiday creep that is already showing up on the shelves of at least one retailer.

Consumerist reader Colleen spotted the above Valentine’s Day-themed section at her local Kmart in Ohio, with about 60 … [More]

Source: http://consumerist.com/2012/12/17/forget-christmas-this-kmart-has-already-moved-on-to-valentines-day/

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Now You Can Watch Game Of Thrones While Drinking Game Of Thrones Beer

Have you ever been drinking a beer while watching Game of Thrones on HBO, or while reading one of George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice & Fire novels and thought to yourself, “If only this brew I’m enjoying were also somehow named after something from this story I’m enjoying”? Well, then you’re in luck.

The folks at Cooperstown, NY, … [More]

Source: http://consumerist.com/2012/12/17/now-you-can-watch-game-of-thrones-while-drinking-game-of-thrones-beer/

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Investors, Resist Holiday Temptations!

There?s nothing like Christmas! The chill in the air, the lights, the songs, the smells of special holiday treats and memories of happy Christmases past all do their part to sweep us into the Christmas spirit.

As you soak up the traditions and togetherness, it?s also important to keep an eye to the future. Investors, we?re talking to you! Don?t be tempted to use your investing budget to spurge on shopping.

Stay Focused

It may sound harmless, but diverting your investing funds ?just this month? can have a huge impact years down the line at retirement. Let?s say you planned to invest $6,000 this year?that?s $500 per month. If you decide to skip investing this month and buy an iPad with your $500 instead, that will erase about $15,000 from your retirement fund 30 years from now. While that may not keep you from putting food on the table, it?s a significant chunk of change for an item you can probably do without.

And even though you say you?ll do it ?just this month,? giving yourself permission to spend your investing money is a slippery slope. It can easily become a costly habit. If you skip investing every Christmas for 30 years, that could reduce your retirement fund by $135,000!

No one wants you to enjoy and be generous at Christmastime more than we do. You?ve worked hard to get to Baby Step 4, so you?ve earned the right to splurge a bit. Just be sure to budget your splurge and stay disciplined about investing. It?s a commitment you won?t be sorry you made!

Stay on Track With Expert Advice

Make the most of your investing dollars and work with an expert with the heart of a teacher. Dave?s investing Endorsed Local Providers (ELPs) are investing professionals who will keep you on track and give you the same great advice Dave would. Contact your ELP today!

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Source: http://www.daveramsey.com/article/investors-resist-holiday-temptations/lifeandmoney_investing

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GOLDMAN: People We Talk To Have Stopped Worrying About The Fiscal Cliff

david kostin

Uncertainty around the fiscal cliff continues to be at elevated levels as Washington has yet to hammer out a deal.

However, stocks are up and according to a new survey from Morgan Stanley, business confidence is rebounding.

Why?

The new consensus appears to be that an agreeable deal will eventually get done.  If not by the end of the year, it'll certainly get done early next year.

This idea has put portfolio managers at ease, writes Goldman Sachs' David Kostin:

New Year’s is just two weeks away – and with it the statutory tax hikes and spending cuts known as the fiscal cliff. The stock market appears to have adopted a surprisingly benign view that Congress and the White House will reach agreement to avert the full impact of the fiscal contraction. Many portfolio managers now explicitly assume a deal will be struck by year end (or possibly early January) that raises taxes on upper income Americans and curbs the growth rate of entitlement spending.

As reflected by the sinking VIX, the stock market appears to be full-blown complacent about the fiscal cliff.  hopefully they won't be disappointed.

SEE ALSO: Bloomberg BRIEF's Brilliant Summary Of The Fiscal Cliff >

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US Business Confidence Surges, Even As Fiscal Cliff Uncertainty Jumps

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The December reading of Morgan Stanley's proprietary Business Conditions Index* is out and the results are a bit counterintuitive, but overall they appear to be bullish.

The headline index surged 15 points to 51% in December, which makes up for much of the 20 point slide we've seen in the last two months.

The tumble in October and November had been attributed to elevated uncertainty caused by the fiscal cliff.

Interestingly, "reports of uncertainty created by the fiscal cliff jumped dramatically in December to another new high," according to Morgan Stanley's US economics team.

"Given that fiscal cliff uncertainty is up and hiring plans deteriorated, it’s unclear what drove the year’s largest increase in expectations."

As seen in the breakdown below, the manufacturing and services sub-indices both jumped.  The expectations sub-index also exploded higher.

Like the markets, which are also up despite policy uncertainty, it appears that businesses think all of this fiscal cliff hubbub is just fleeting noise in an otherwise favorable business backdrop.

For the most part, economists and strategists agree that overall economic and market conditions are favorable.  The only thing hanging over the market these days is the fiscal cliff.

Here's a breakdown of the index:

morgan stanley business conditions

*From Morgan Stanley:

What is the MSBCI?
The Morgan Stanley Business Conditions Index (MSBCI) is an economic barometer that is based on an internal monthly canvass of our industry analysts in North America Equity Research. Though brief, this survey covers a wide range of topics pertaining to the companies under our analysts’ coverage. Specifically, the MSBCI is comprised of a “headline” index that measures general analyst sentiment as well as component indicators that gauge financing, advance bookings, pricing, hiring, capital spending, and expectations. Since its inception in June 2002, the MSBCI has served as a valuable and effective instrument for anticipating directional moves in the U.S. economy (see “Introducing the Morgan Stanley U.S. Business Conditions Index,” July 11, 2003).

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