American actress Charlotte Rae died on Sunday. Rae, who was 92, was best known for her role as housekeeper-turned-boarding school housemother Edna Garrett in the popular 1980s sitcoms "Diff'rent Strokes" and "The Facts of Life." Rae leaves behind a lot more than an entertaining body of work, however. She also leaves behind a litany of valuable lessons for leaders, who can learn a great deal from Rae and her famous character, according to Inc.com contributor Suzanne Lucas.
"If you were a kid in the 80s, you undoubtedly watched 'The Facts of Life,'" Lucas says. "While I don't know a great deal about [Rae's] personal life, her character was someone worth knowing. Rae was the creative force … for 'The Facts of Life,' so we can imagine that Mrs. Garrett shared some of Rae's own personality traits -- or at least her ideals. And if we could have managers like Mrs. Garrett, we'd all be better off."
One thing that leaders can learn from Mrs. Garrett is the importance of being a fair and equitable manager.
"Being a housemother in a ritzy boarding school sounds like a nightmare job to me. But, she handled it perfectly," Lucas says of Mrs. Garrett. "When the girls did bad things there were consequences. While helicopter parenting wasn't really a thing in 1979, if [there were helicopter parents] they would have complained about their daughters being forced to work in the kitchen to pay a bill for their own stupid actions. Mrs. Garrett would have said no way, no how. You made this mess and you'll pay it off. She didn't ignore bad behavior or coddle people just because they were rising stars. She handed out consequences that were fair and tough. Just like a great manager would."
Perhaps the most important thing about Mrs. Garrett that managers should mimic, however, is her heart.
"The four girls worked for Mrs. Garrett because they had stolen and crashed the school's van (and later, because they damaged a floor), which could have set the relationship up as adversarial. But, she genuinely cared about these people," Lucas concludes. "Good managers care -- they don't invade personal lives like a housemother would, but they care. That means they understand when you're going through something difficult and give you space. They help develop you so you can move on to the next thing. They expect you to learn and grow and help you to do so. Charlotte Rae … created a character who was an excellent model not only for teenage girls but for managers as well."
More Tips:
https://www.inc.com/suzanne-lucas/why-world-would-be-a-better-place-all-managers-were-a-little-bit-like-mrs-garrett.html
Questions, Comments, Suggestions?
Contact Successful Meetings Editor in Chief Vincent Alonzo with your "How To" ideas.