Becoming a Great Manager Tips From The Manager’s Answer Book

It happens all too often. Someone is hired or promoted into a management role without being prepared for the people management responsibilities that accompanies the position.  They were a good engineer, sales professional, or financial guru—all the best technical skills. Often overlooked when these hiring decisions are made is the people side of management.  This can cause a new manager to struggle, and those struggles affect the whole team.

Manager’s Tips: Managing people is challenging. No matter if you’re a new or seasoned manager, you should always be working to sharpen your people management skills. That is exactly why we included a question in The Manager’s Answer Book on how to up your managerial game.

Here are a few of those suggestions:

• Take advantage of books, webinars, podcasts, YouTube videos, and so many more ideas from experts
• Get to know your employees so that you understand what motivates them
• Listen carefully to your staff
• Reward successes and learn from failures
• Be a positive role model—live your values
• Find a mentor and be a mentor

We also think it is important for managers to be able to show vulnerability. Many managers make the mistake of thinking they need to have all the answers. They feel that if they admit they don’t know everything, they won’t be respected. In fact, the opposite is true. Letting your employees see that you are human actually builds respect and loyalty.

For more information, check out page 114 of The Manager’s Answer Book.  Remember that management development begins with you, so take charge of your own development.

Tips for Collaborating

Collaborating can be fun and a way to find new approaches to your work. Barbara and I always joke that we’ve written several books together and we’re still talking to each other, sometimes several times a day. Here are some tips we came across recently for getting the most out of your collaboration experience. 

Be clear. Don’t assume others understand you or what you’re going to do next. Don’t assume they are mine readers. 

Carry your weight. Once you have a clearly defined next step, do it. You can’t control other people, so focus on one thing you can control—your own work.

Have an agenda. Aimless meetings or phone calls that don’t produce anything are problems.  An agenda with clear goals and discussion items keeps you the project on track and everyone accountable. 

Don’t be shy. Yes, be polite, but don’t accept ideas you think are inferior. Don’t hesitate to offer your own ideas.

Stay visible. Nothing is more frustrating than someone who doesn’t respond to emails or texts for days at a time. Be responsive.

Remind yourself that no idea is too small. Don’t sacrifice details for focus on big picture stuff. Sometimes going down a lengthy rabbit hole can yield pure gold. 

Prepare your arguments. When you’re collaborating, you’re a committee member. Take time to organize your thoughts. 

Embrace discomfort. Collaboration sometimes means ways of working that you’re uncomfortable with, but unless this involves illegal or unethical activities, make an effort to embrace it.

Speak up early. If you’re not happy or comfortable with something, don’t simmer for months and then blow everything up. Speak up right away. And if you lose the point, be diplomatic and graceful.

Be prepared to go on alone. Give the project your best, and approach the partnership honestly. But if your partners fail and drop away, have a plan for how you’ll get something out of it anyway—and know how you’re going to handle it if you are the one who has to drop out. 

Collaborating with someone might be an amazing experience that changes how you work, or miserable one—either way it’s going to teach you something.

Adapted from an article by Jeff Summers, All Together Now, in Writer’s Digest, November/December 2019.

Why Should I Delegate? Tips From The Manager’s Answer Book

We hear this question a lot in our consulting work with managers at all levels. Some people don’t want to delegate work because they don’t want to give up doing the things they love to do. Others say they don’t delegate because they can do the work faster or better (or faster AND better) than showing someone else how to do the task.

Manager’s Tips:  If any of these reasons apply to you, let’s consider why you should delegate.

1. Delegating routine tasks frees up your time to think, strategize, and manage your team.
2. Delegating work is a way to develop new skills in your staff.
3. Delegating work shows you trust your employees which goes a long way in establishing a positive work environment.

When you are comfortable delegating, think about who is the best person on your staff to take on a new challenge. Consider who has the potential to take on this task so that you ensure a successful outcome. You certainly don’t want to set people up to fail.

When you have that person in mind, provide all the help and resources they need. Set some milestones so that you check on their progress, and make yourself available for consultation. Don’t forget to reward their good performance.

For more information on how to be a good delegator, see page 54 of The Manager’s Answer Book.

Becoming a Great Boss

When we were writing The Manager’s Answer Book, we gathered a lot of great questions that managers were likely to ask.  We interviewed other successful managers, and we drew from our own business experiences.  Once the book was published, we were the ones being interviewed about the book.

To celebrate National Boss’s Day, which falls on October 16 this year, we wanted to share some of our insights, recognizing that individuals are often promoted with little preparation or training.  They’re not prepared for managing themselves or others in the new role. 

So we looked back on some of the questions we were asked.  If you want to be noticed and acknowledged as a great boss, what’s the most important thing to do?  Well, you’ve got to develop a personal brand.

Why is having a personal brand so important?

As a manager, all eyes are on you.  You have to show you are credible and competent to be successful.  Your brand is how you present yourself—how you communicate, act and interact with others. Interactions aren’t limited to your staff, which are, of course, important. They also include interactions with people both inside and outside the organization. As a manager, you are representing the organization, so you always want to be mindful of how your actions uphold the organization’s positive culture.  Lead by example—others will follow and behave similarly. 

What traits are important in building a positive personal brand, and how should a manager exhibit those traits?

Clearly, at the top of the list are ethics and integrity. This means being true to your values and principles and making decisions that don’t contradict them.  Seek out people with common values, and respect the people around you. Avoid being judgmental of others.  Trustworthiness is also at the top of the list.  Maintain confidences, exercise discretion, and avoid rumors and gossip.  Listen to your staff, and be as transparent as you possibly can. Be fair and consistent with your staff, and admit when you are wrong.  And finally, have courage—show the confidence and integrity when you see something is wrong or not moving in the right direction to say something. Confront wrongdoing, no matter where it’s occurring. In addition, courageous leaders not only speak out and take an opposing point of view, they may also advocate for ideas and positions that might not appear to be popular.

Being a manager is hard work.  Being a great boss is even harder. So, celebrate great bosses on October 16.  Do something festive. Decorate their offices. Take them to lunch. And if you want to give them a gift, we’d be honored if you gave them a copy of The Manager’s Answer Book.

Just Got Promoted. Now What? Tips From The Manager’s Answer Book

Getting a big promotion is something to be celebrated. You’ve worked hard and proven your value to your organization, and it’s paid off for you.

After you celebrate your success, take time to think about how you will approach your new responsibilities. If you now manage people who used to be your peers, consider how you will handle the fact that you’re no longer their co-worker; you’re now their manager.

If you’re now managing a different department, you still face the challenge of how to get to know your new team so that you can maximize their performance.

Getting promoted is great, and you likely have a lot of questions and concerns. Do you have a good support system to help you navigate the road ahead?

Manager’s Tips:  The Manager’s Answer Book can help by offering some suggestions for you to consider.  

• Find a mentor either inside or outside your organization who can be extremely helpful as you seek to lead your team successfully. Be sure to select mentors who are knowledgeable and trustworthy.

• Start or join a manager’s group either inside or outside your organization where you can share experiences and learn from each other.

• Take advantage of the amazing resources available to you in webinars, podcasts, books, and articles. Check out TedTalks and YouTube videos for additional learning experiences.

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For more information on this topic, see page 22 of The Manager’s Answer Book.  Congratulations on your promotion.