4 situations that test a leader’s mettle — A perspective for new managers
“Tend to the people, and they will tend to the business.” — John Maxwell
The transition from an individual contributor to a manager or supervisor is a landmark event in an individual’s career. It is a gratifying occasion which quickly turns disconcerting for many like me who are not initiated into leadership. Many of us develop unproductive and poor habits that drain our energy, joy and peace. Being the boss doesn’t seem the coveted transition it was before and life becomes a drag, frustrating and hopeless.
Being a new manager is challenging, for you get sandwiched between higher management goals and the needs of your team. Unless you develop leadership skills, it is likely that you and your team will underperform and after a promising start to your career you might get stuck and feel overwhelmed.
A leader is a catalyst for an ecosystem of fellowship, empowerment, and inspiration. High productivity & growth are by-products.
If only, I knew this when I was a new manager, not only would my career have been on a different tangent, but also the quality of life of my former team mates would have been so much better.
Leadership is a construct and there many elements to becoming a successful leader, however from my own experiences and interactions with other leaders, the 4 situations mentioned below test the tenacity of a new manager. New managers need to develop their leadership muscle in these areas first.
- To DIY (Do it yourself) or to GID (Get it done):
“When the best leader’s work is done the people say, We did it ourselves.” — Lao Tzu
This is a perineal affliction for every new manager, but new managers need to realise that being a manager is not an uplifted version of being an individual contributor. A manager primarily is responsible for his team’s performance and that he will be judged, not how good he is, but how good is his team.
DIY is great at home, however in a team environment, unless all team members contribute, achieving goals is not sustainable. The manager needs to find ways to empower (train, direct & support) his team members and develop systems to sustain results. Managers should look at their roles primarily as facilitators for their teams to perform and deliver results.
2. To listen or to speak:
“What you do has far greater impact than what you say.” — Steven Covey
As a manager, one has to be a good communicator and it becomes second nature to constantly speak, whether it is to instruct, to praise, to present or to reprimand. But the great leaders understand that if they have to be better at decision making which is one of the prime aspects of this role, they need to be better listeners than speakers.
In his book Leaders eat last, Simon Sinek mentions the value of listening to your team and providing them with a safety zone to share their views. As a leader, you need to be ready to take opinions, inquire for clarifying understanding and always listen first and then speak. This facilitates team buy-in to decisions and helps make better decisions.
3. To reprimand or to empathise:
“Time spent understanding people is never wasted.” — Cate Huston
If results are not achieved, pressure builds on a manger and it is natural to give instant reprimanding to team members, but the great leaders understand that when desired performance is not achieved, firstly the process needs course correction and for that a deep brain storming is needed. So leaders help facilitate a dialogue with their team, empathise with their stories, yet challenge them to better their ideas and in the process, the team members realise their mistake, and work on a corrective plan where everyone is on-board.
The next step is to develop systems so that the situation doesn’t arise and mistakes are not repeated. Even after all this work, If a team member is repeating a mistake, great leaders reprimand but they use the sandwich technique of reprimanding. Most importantly, the reprimand is given only in private.
4. To be visible or to be invisible:
“Be stubbornly committed to your team, but flexible in your leadership style.” — Jo Miller
The debate which many leaders face is whether to be visible or invisible to your team i.e. direct or to delegate. Well, in both cases you will have to motivate your team members, but at a deeper level, each team member is different and the way he or she approaches an assignment varies.
Good leaders understand this fact and based on the experience of the team member in executing a particular task, the task is either completely delegated or the team member is directed to achieve the goal and gets on-job training. These two styles can be integrated as per the task and the team member’s confidence and skill level.
There is no rule of thumb to direct or delegate a task, however involving team members to know their perspective on a task before you delegate is the first step.
Trust is the bedrock on which productivity, results and growth are cultivated.
These 4 situations usually make or break a new leader, if new managers can improve their response in these situations, they become more acceptable and trust is built between him and his team.
Remember, this is a daily game that you play, and from the initial enthusiasm to the daily rigor, a manager needs to keep doing it every single day. It’s not going to be easy initially, but as you tread forward with great leadership values, you will transform your team into a band of brothers and develop new leaders who will reduce your burden and it will be worth the effort.
