Their style isn't your style

I'm passionate about sharing actionable advice and mentoring to help you figure out any challenges you're facing in your career. I now write regularly about this on my blog, which you can subscribe to here.

I share personal experiences – with lessons from my career – as well as honest thoughts on unanswered questions.

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Like much of what I write, it starts with someone saying something that sticks in my brain.

As long as I remember to note it down pretty sharpish in my Notion planner, I will write about it at some point.

(That isn't sponsored content by the way, although that would be nice!)

This week's topic is no different...

A few of us had a recent office conversation about different management styles and peoples' experiences of the good and the bad.

And, more importantly, what we can learn from these experiences.

One person remarked how they were once told they didn't appear to be confident because they weren't very loud or expressive in meetings. Their reply was the brilliant response that sparked this article's title:

"My style isn't your style."

I love that reply.

It cuts directly to what's wrong with a lot of expectations around management styles and, to be honest, bad management – you can't force people to be different.

You don't need a personal revolution

We end up in management roles largely because we're good at what we do and are then trusted to be promoted.

For many of us, this means the sudden expectation to manage – including people who last week were in the same bracket as us.

Tricky.

However, just because you've been promoted and now have the additional responsibility of managing someone else's output, doesn't mean you need a personal revolution to completely change who you are.

However, you will have to start adapting what you do well into management and understanding your weaknesses in that same context.

That doesn't mean copying someone else but it does mean observing the styles of others and picking out skills that you admire or relate to.

Introverts won't suddenly become extroverted just because they're managing, and they don't need to be.

You're adapting what you see and learn from to you, not the other way around.

There's no one-size-fits-all approach

This is really the crux of this article's title.

We're all different, and so there's logically no way we can all manage in the same style.

What there is, however, is the ability to manage through authenticity, adaptability, and learning from the occasional mistake.

Different management styles bring unique perspectives to companies, balancing out environments that need different voices and viewpoints.

Workplaces where everyone is the same are neither enjoyable nor effective.

We should all be more respectful of different leadership styles, no matter how loud, expressive, or confident they might appear.

The quietly confident ones can be just as effective.

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I share actionable career advice and mentoring on my blog at daveendsor.com. It takes six seconds to subscribe and would mean a great deal to me.

Thanks!

Dave