As an individual contributor, we get so used to measuring our own achievement by doing work and checking off boxes. Our ability to manage that process and produce a continuous stream of work is what likely got us to management. We are rewarded for achievement! Then, the game changes. When you are managing a full team of people who are doing work, you might have a full time role leading a team, with only a small portion of work that you are required to do yourself. Today, I’d like to present three tips to succeeding in that transition between Individual Contributor and Manager.
First, is reframing your mindset around what success is. Our brain is wired to see actions and check off the boxes. Without a conscious look at how success is defined now that you are in leadership, your brain will automatically keep measuring you by what you do yourself. This can lead to inconsistencies with delegating work, trying to be the hero, and micromanaging or controlling others’ work. Instead, take the time to decide what your role is for the team and how you will measure your own performance. Step back and let them take the action in their own way, while staying clear on exactly where you fit in. Stay in heightened awareness of those moments when your mind tries to tell you that you are “obligated” to do the work when it belongs to someone else or that it needs to be you to ensure it’s done right. Leadership is all about getting work done through others and removing roadblocks so they can be the ones who achieve.
This leads to my second tip, which is setting up the systems and processes that you will use to manage the team. You want to create an environment where everyone on the team is very clear about what it takes to win and the role they play in it. You can do this by communicating a very clear purpose for the organization, ensuring everyone has defined roles and responsibilities, setting behavioral expectations based upon the team’s values and implementing consistent processes for accountability. Having these structures in place allows people to try new things, be wrong, and sometimes fail while removing all the drama and inconsistencies that exist without structure. Your conversations are free from talk like “He can be so disrespectful” or “He’s too inflexible” and instead, focus on the work needing to be done. “I expected Y, you did X, here is the gap between X and Y. How will you recover? What support do you need from me?”
My third tip is to have a clear process for communicating outward. Be clear on what your team’s priorities are, where they need support and where they are overdelivering. Don’t hide things from your own boss that didn’t go your way. Communicate them early along with your plan for overcoming whatever barriers remain. If the 1:1 processes above you aren’t as refined as yours, that doesn’t mean that you can’t be a model for how to manage effectively. Come to the meetings prepared with what you are focused on, what you achieved, and what support you need from others.
In summary, don’t leave this transition to chance. Take an intentional approach to managing your mind, setting your action plan, and creating results within your team.