What makes you a good Manager? For some management implies control, but for some its about good leadership. Few factors like charisma, personality, ability to multitask and consistent vision are few aspects that are naturally expected from managers. Managers play a great role, they can be a great source of motivation or frustration in the workspace. Many individuals career can be marred if they work for bad managers. Many employees even quit job because of bad managers and not because of position itself. Hence it becomes responsibility of the manager to be self contained and able, for they are responsible not only for their role, but responsible for employees career as well!
As a manager, carrying the overall vision of your team rests with you. Your top goal is to see that this vision is effectively delivered. This means balancing between your own personal work obligations, those people who are under you, and expectations of senior management. Managers are not born into leadership, but good leaders often make great managers because they understand their role better and build great people relationships.
This post gives you tips to be a good manager and to create cohesive team culture and deliver exceptional results.
Improve and You Will Be Improved
Typical manager mentality is that there is always someone below them trying to pry their position from them through some exceptional skill or talent. However, it should not be about competition. If you can improve your team members and their own capabilities, i.e., setting them up for success, they will return the favor and give you their best. Learning how to be a good manager starts with leading from the front and inspiring, teaching and preparing others for the big shoes too.
Effective Management is all about taking Responsibility
Many managers dont hold responsibility when the planning do not turn out as they hoped in terms of meeting deadlines or a project that did not go as per their plan. But for a good manager, whatever is the scenario it is crucial that you hold yourself to the same high standards that you hold other team members. If it was failed team effort, be the first to assume responsibility instead of passing the blame on others. This will make employees respect you and also stand up in future for you.
Listen and Communicate
There is a great saying – “Leaders who don’t listen will eventually be surrounded by people who have nothing to say.” Being a good manager requires you to strike balance between giving instructions and listening to feedback. Being in this position, does not mean you have monotony of knowledge, your employees bring vision to life while you need to provide overall direction to their vision. If you don’t listen, you may hamper the progress of vision.
Great Leaders are Personable
Being a manager means working under pressure, trying to balance between personal, company and team objectives. There is always the possibility of getting into incendiary situations especially where responsibility for team members lies with you, and there are deadlines to be met. Being personable, which is just another term for great interpersonal skills, makes it easier to accomplish tasks with help from other team members and improves the support mechanism during these high-pressure situations. It also helps you to interact with, manage and balance the different types of personalities in the office. Moreover, mind the importance of respect in the workplace.
Be a Good Problem Solver
Being a manager and a leader requires an affinity for solving problems and providing direction at the most crucial times. At an impasse, there is often a tendency by managers to pass on responsibility to employees, especially when things aren’t going as planned. Some go as far as hogging all the glory when positive results come back. Resolving problems requires that you be at the forefront of accountability, even when things are tough.
Know How to Spot Talent & Delegate Work Accordingly
There are three kinds of managers, those who try to do everything, those who do nothing, and those who delegate responsibly. The latter is always the most successful when it comes to employee managing with effective project delivery, and knowing how to beat time and tight workflow regimes. Being a great manager means reading someone’s talent early enough and harnessing their individual prowess.
Recognize Achievements
Recognizing achievements is very important as this motivates employees. Be careful in this aspect, you should not recognize the same person in the team over and over again. There might be one person who is exceptionally talented, this doesn’t mean other team members are not putting their best efforts. You should be fair enough and try to appreciate others as well as this further motivates them to do well.
Have frequent One on One Meetings
You might be very busy with meeting schedules and work load, but always make sure you schedule one on one meetings your team members. Understand their problems, aspirations and try to provide workable solutions. Give feedback in constructive ways , appreciate for their hard work and always stand by their ideas.
Thus a great Management is not about the position or being commanding, but its all the skills and responsibility that you delve upon. With a management position,comes a new responsibility, and it is important to keep yourself grounded if you are to manage your team successfully.
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