The young man learns the final secret from the One Minute Manager’s team: One Minute Redirects. Originally called “One Minute Reprimands” in earlier editions, this technique has been refined to reflect its true purpose — not to punish, but to redirect behavior back on course while preserving the person’s dignity and self-worth. It is the most delicate of the three secrets and the one that completes the system.
Why Redirects Are Necessary
Even with clear goals and regular praisings, people will sometimes go off track. Mistakes happen. Performance dips. When they do, the manager must address the issue — quickly, directly, and compassionately. Ignoring poor performance is just as destructive as ignoring good performance. The One Minute Manager does neither.
“We are not just our behavior. We are the person managing our behavior.”
— Ken Blanchard & Spencer Johnson
The Cost of Avoidance
- When managers avoid difficult conversations, problems grow
- Small mistakes left unaddressed become entrenched bad habits
- Other team members notice the avoidance and lose respect for the manager
- The person making the mistake is denied the chance to improve
- Eventually, frustration builds and the manager overreacts — a far worse outcome
How One Minute Redirects Work
The One Minute Redirect has two distinct halves, and both are essential. The first half addresses the behavior. The second half reaffirms the person. Skipping either half undermines the entire technique.
The One Minute Redirect Process
First Half — The Redirect:
- Redirect as soon as possible after the mistake — do not store up grievances
- Confirm the facts first — make sure you understand what happened before responding
- Be specific about the mistake — describe exactly what went wrong, not in general terms
- Tell them how you feel about the mistake — share your honest emotional response (disappointment, frustration, concern)
- Pause for a moment of silence — let the seriousness of the feedback register
Second Half — The Reaffirmation:
- Reaffirm that you value the person — separate the behavior from the person
- Remind them that you think well of them — you are redirecting because you believe they are better than this mistake
- Tell them you have confidence in them — you believe in their ability to do better
- Make it clear that when the redirect is over, it is over — no grudges, no lingering resentment
The Two Halves Are Inseparable
- The first half without the second is just criticism — it tears people down
- The second half without the first is just niceness — it fails to correct the problem
- Together, they create an experience that is honest, respectful, and effective
- The person leaves the conversation knowing what to fix and feeling motivated to fix it
- The relationship is strengthened, not damaged
Redirect the Behavior, Not the Person
The most important distinction in the One Minute Redirect is between the behavior and the person. The manager never attacks the person’s character, intelligence, or worth. The manager addresses the specific behavior that needs to change and then immediately reaffirms the person’s value.
The Critical Distinction
Consider the difference between these two approaches:
Wrong: “You are careless and unreliable. This report is full of errors.”
Right: “There are several errors in this report, and that concerns me because I know you are capable of much better work. You are one of our best people, and I need this report to reflect the quality I know you can deliver.”
The first approach attacks the person. The second addresses the behavior and reaffirms the person. The first creates defensiveness. The second creates motivation.
“When you redirect people, you want to make it very clear that you are on their side. You are not attacking them as a person. You are addressing a specific behavior.”
— The One Minute Manager
Timing Is Everything
One Minute Redirects must happen close to the event. Saving feedback for a quarterly review or annual performance appraisal is a recipe for resentment. By the time the feedback arrives, the person has forgotten the details, cannot connect the feedback to the behavior, and feels ambushed. Immediate redirection is both more fair and more effective.
Why Immediate Matters
- The person can still recall exactly what happened and why
- The correction connects directly to the behavior in their memory
- It prevents the mistake from becoming a habit through repetition
- It shows the manager is paying attention — which itself is motivating
- Small, frequent redirections prevent the need for big, painful confrontations
The Redirect and Trust
One Minute Redirects, when done correctly, actually increase trust between manager and team member. The person learns that their manager will be honest with them — they will not hear about a problem for the first time at their annual review. They also learn that their manager genuinely cares about their growth, because the redirect always ends with reaffirmation.
Building Trust Through Honesty
- People trust managers who are consistently honest, even when it is uncomfortable
- A redirect that ends with reaffirmation says: “I care enough about you to tell you the truth”
- Over time, team members begin to welcome feedback because they know it comes from a good place
- The redirect-and-reaffirm pattern creates psychological safety — people feel safe to try, fail, and learn
- Trust compounds: each honest, respectful redirect builds more trust for the next one
Practice: Delivering Your First One Minute Redirect
- Identify a specific behavior (not a character trait) that needs to change
- Address it as soon as possible — do not wait for the “right moment”
- Describe the specific mistake: “When you [specific action], this is what happened…”
- Share how you feel: “This concerns me because…”
- Pause — let the weight of the feedback settle
- Reaffirm the person: “I’m sharing this because you are too talented for this kind of mistake”
- Express confidence: “I know you can do better, and I’m here to support you”
- Move on — do not revisit the issue once the redirect is complete
Reflection
Think about a time when someone corrected you in a way that made you want to improve rather than defend yourself. What did they do differently? Now think about a time when feedback made you shut down. What was the difference? The One Minute Redirect is designed to produce the first outcome every time — correction that energizes rather than deflates.
Key Takeaways
- One Minute Redirects address mistakes quickly, specifically, and compassionately
- The technique has two inseparable halves: redirect the behavior, then reaffirm the person
- Never attack the person’s character — always separate behavior from identity
- Timing matters: redirect as close to the event as possible
- End every redirect by expressing confidence in the person’s ability to improve
- When the redirect is over, it is over — no grudges, no lingering tension