Last year I became a manager for the first time. I was confronted with an opportunity that sounded way too good to turn down, and in all honesty, it’s lived up to its expectations! There are a lot of learning curves that come with starting a new job. As someone who is all too familiar with starting a new job, I don’t think anything could prepare me for being a new manager.
In my years working as a professional I have come across some horrific managers. I’m not joking that I’ve probably had every kind of bad manager you could imagine. Yet, thinking back now I think of those experiences as ones that prepared me for my current role. They all taught me what not to do and how not to act in business.
I’m not perfect. Every day I’m learning more skills and lessons that are helping me grow into this role. I don’t think anyone can ever be the perfect manager but I’ve had 2 past leaders in my life that taught me and have been teaching me where I should spend my time and energy.
As I’m nearing the 1-year mark of being a new manager, I’ve laid out some of the lessons I’ve learned in the hopes that some of them will help you:
Don’t sweat the small stuff
I think this was the biggest one for me, especially given my personality. I like to think of myself as a bit of a perfectionist. There have been a few times where I have had to take the step back and look at the bigger picture. It’s easy to make a big deal about the small things but in the end, they get you nowhere.
This is the lesson that I’ve taken from horrible past managers. Having someone get angry at you for coming back a couple of minutes late for lunch is crazy. We’re human. Sometimes we need a couple of extra minutes to finish up a conversation or we maybe we wanted to try a new lunch spot that was just a bit too far away. Who cares. If the work is getting done, it’s getting done.
People have personal lives
Obviously, this is not a new lesson for me but one that is important to remember as a new manager. I once had a manager that told me I could only have 2 priorities in life. She had told me at the time my 3 priorities; Ben, work and going to the gym (a.k.a being healthy) were my 3 priorities and one of them needed to drop off. Sorry, what?! Needless to say, I didn’t stick around much longer after that conversation.
The thing about priorities is that you can juggle more than you think you can. I managed to plan a wedding, maintain a blog, have a social life, keep healthy AND excel at my job all at the same time.
As a manager, it’s important to always keep that in mind. You don’t work around the clock, and neither should everyone else. There’s no need for it. Let people have lives, it makes them better employees in the end.
Be hands-off
Look, you hired that person for a reason. There was something they possessed, a skill or a personality trait that had you thinking, I want this person to work for me. Let them do that. You’re all adults.
If you feel as if you need to hold someone’s hand and always be checking up on them, then quite frankly they shouldn’t be working for you.
Another manager I had a couple of years ago taught me this lesson in a roundabout way. She would make me send lists of everything I had done that day and everything I was hoping to achieve the next day. I felt like a child having to answer to a teacher.
It made me resent her and eventually working for her. I’m not saying don’t follow up with your employees because it’s extremely important to know what they’re working on and be helpful when needed but you don’t need to track what they’re doing on a day-to-day or hour-by-hour.
Communication is important
I have come in to a position where I’m managing remote workers. With 4 specialists, only two of them work in the office with me. This makes it quite difficult to form relationships and keep up with them on a daily basis. In this day and age, it’s quite easy to communicate, whether it’s over the phone or through messaging apps.
It’s a horrible thing for an employee to feel abandoned or on your own and knowing someone cares I think makes a difference. As a new manager, it’s important to ensure you’re making those extra efforts to reach out to your employees. Make sure they know you’re there, you want to get to know them and you want to work with them. It will go a long way.
Have those hard conversations
People make mistakes. That’s what makes us human. Sometimes in the workplace, a new manager has to be the one to stand up for their employees or unfortunately stand up to their employees. Being confrontational hasn’t always come easy to me so being forced to be that way in certain situations has been difficult. It gets easier, especially if you believe what you’re standing up for as a manager.
I’ve found having the facts correct and being well informed is important in these situations. It’s also important to remember that sometimes you can be wrong. Be willing to accept that and be humble in those moments.
All of that to say, being a new manager has been very rewarding. I love my job and the people I work with. I go in every day excited about what’s to come. There are new challenges but I’m eager to address and overcome them. What tips do you have for new managers?
