Three tips for new Managers

Become comfortable coaching vs. playing

Managers can make a bigger impact on the sidelines vs. on the field. This concept is often hard to grasp, especially for new Managers. People typically get promoted to a Manager role because they consistently deliver successful results early in their careers. The initial reaction of most new Managers is to step back onto the playing field. However, it is critically important to take a step back and understand the bigger picture.

The one quote I hear from new Managers that makes me cringe is “It will just be easier if I do it vs. delegating”. No one wins. It is more beneficial to take the micro “L” (loss), fail in the situation and learn from it than to do things yourself. This concept becomes more and more important as Managers move up in organizations. Setting the mindset early enables a strong foundation to prepare to effectively manage even more people in the future.

Eat real-time feedback for breakfast, lunch, and dinner

Feedback is like vegetables. In the moment, you’d rather eat something else, but you know it’s what’s best for your health. Similarly, feedback is often hard to give in the moment, but leads to long term growth for your team. Feedback should not only focus on improvement areas, but also highlight strengths.

One of the best ways to grade Managers is to analyze the growth of the Analysts below them. Strong Managers consistently develop Analysts which requires active, real-time feedback. “Real-time” is very important. Keeping an on-going list and waiting for a review cycle is much less effective than providing continuous feedback. Imagine if the coach of a sports team waited until after the game was over to coach the players vs. coaching throughout the game. With in-game coaching, the team has time to adjust which could impact the ultimate result of the game.

Understand that you work for your team

Traditionally, as people move up in an organization, they have the mindset that more and more people report to them. The better mindset is to think that you report to your team. This mind-shift is key, especially for new Managers. The more a new Manager invests up-front in their team, the faster all parties can grow together. Consistently checking in, asking “how can I help”, and showing active interest goes a long way. Ego is toxic and sometimes gets in the way on this mind-shift. Rather, top Managers show empathy towards their team.