Avoiding the 5 Common Pitfalls of Managing Others - Part 1

Avoiding the 5 Common Pitfalls of Managing Others

The Managing for Impact Blog Series – Part 1 of 5

A Managing for Impact Participant Experience.

This blog series illustrates several best practices of being an effective people manager, as covered in our award-winning 5-part Managing for Impact development program.

Pitfall 1: Not Embracing the Manager Mindset

I was less than a year into my new manager role when I was offered an opportunity to attend Managing for Impact. The Director of my department began to worry that I was not shifting my mindset quickly enough to optimize my effectiveness in leading my team. That concern is what triggered her call to Loeb. At first, I was a bit upset at being asked to enter into a development program. I felt I was doing my job well. I was getting my work done on time and producing more than what was expected. So, the request to be “trained” seemed out of place. But I, nonetheless, agreed to attend the program.

My first “ah-ha” moment came when my facilitator asked me how I was prioritizing my work differently now that I was a manager. I had to think about that question for a few moments. “I’m not, really,” I replied. It was true. I had been such a highly productive employee and I wanted to continue that effort as a manager. “I’m still focused on getting my work done,” I added. Then the facilitator asked us to list out what we felt were our priorities. I jotted a few initial ideas down, such as preparing our weekly meeting agenda, a few proposals our team was working on, preparing a report for my Director, and putting the final touches on a presentation I was due to deliver the following week. The facilitator examined my list and then asked, “What about your employees? Where do they fall on this list?” I was a little embarrassed to be honest. Of course my employees are a priority but I saw her point. Why weren’t my employees near or at the top of my priority list?

Through my coaching conversations within the program, I realized that I had not fully made the mindset shift that is necessary to be an effective manager. I was under the impression that it was business as usual with the added responsibility that goes along with managing others, such as performance reviews and tracking PTO. I was wrong. When I was promoted into a manager role, the rules changed for me. What got me promoted wasn’t necessarily going to serve me well in my new role. Leading and developing others needed to be a top priority for me as a manager, even if it meant putting my own needs aside. Unlike being an individual contributor, as a manager I need to rely on appropriate time management and delegation to ensure my team has meaningful opportunities to develop, can receive feedback and coaching, and can gain the clarity they need to get their own work done. If I’m only focused on the “work,” the most important priorities can slip through the cracks. After all, it was precisely the manager mindset that inspired my own manager to invest in me.  I knew I could and needed to do better.

To learn more about the MFI capability journey, click here.

To watch a brief video about the MFI program, click here.