You’ve worked so hard and finally, you’ve seen the fruits of your labour. Maybe you’ve started your business or you’ve been promoted. And now you are the new manager in town. Being a manager means more responsibility. You are in charge of the entire organization and most importantly, your team.
As a new manager, you will definitely learn and put to practical use the necessary skills needed to be an effective manager as you progress. However, there will be traps all over the place. Some of these traps might be invisible but their effects will be felt.
When starting out, most managers’ objectives are to build strong relationships with their employees and to improve the performance of the organization. But after a while, they end up achieving the total opposite.
If you are a new manager, you are likely to make several mistakes without being aware. This article will discuss these mistakes so that you can avoid them and accomplish your objectives.
1. Listening and not watching
Communication can happen verbally or through body language. It is important to keep in mind that people will tell you anything verbally but their body language will never lie. New managers make the mistake of paying attention to what people are saying and not their body language.
For example, let’s say you’ve assigned your employee a task. You ask him or her about the progress and he or she says everything is okay. But he or she is sweaty and avoiding eye contact. Don’t ignore what you’ve seen. Follow up. Ask them a few questions related to the task. Provide support if necessary. Failing to follow up will lead to disaster.
2. Fake it till you make it
New managers are likely to fall into the trap of imitating their previous bosses or acting like they know everything. Your employees are likely to judge and even hate you if you boss them around without clearly knowing what you are doing. New managers are not likely to seek help because they think their employees might take advantage of the situation.
It’s important to seek help and clarification from online assignment help when you need it. In fact, your employees are likely to respect you because you are honest with them.
3. Micromanagement
Being the new manager in town means you have authority and power over everything in the organization. With such power, it’s easy to fall into the trap of micromanaging your employees.
Now, there is a difference between following up on tasks and micromanaging people. When you are following up, you want to assure your employees that you are there for them if they need help and they should continue working on the task. When you micromanage, you take control of the entire task. And your employees start to feel like they do not have enough air to breathe. Nobody likes to be micromanaged; even your dog.
If you micromanage your employees, they’ll either transfer, quit or work with a negative attitude. Avoid micromanaging people at all costs. When assigning tasks, take your time to share your goals and expectations with your employees.
Also, share some of the ways they can use to complete the task successfully. Assure them that you are always available to help. If you do this, you’ll create a strong bond with your employees and they will trust you.
4. Failing to make decisions
New managers might avoid making important decisions because they are new to the environment or organization. They want everything to be perfect and they end up making decisions when it’s too late or not making a decision at all.
How we make decisions becomes a habit. If you have the habit of postponing to make decisions, you’ll find yourself being managed by people who make decisions fast. The more you overthink about an issue, the higher the chances of making a wrong decision.
Trust your intuition. It can never go wrong. People who fail to listen to their intuition are the people who make the wrong decisions. As a leader, you are responsible for making decisions. If you make a poor decision, you’ll learn from it.
5. Trying to befriend everyone
New managers want to start off on the right foot. They don’t want their employees to turn against them in the near future. To reduce the chances of such happening, they become too soft and overly friendly. Avoid this trap.
Just accept the fact that some people will like you the way you are and others won’t. Plus, developing a close relationship with anyone takes time. Always do your work to the best of your abilities and no one will be against you.
Conclusion
As a new manager, you’ll make a lot of mistakes. And that’s great. Making mistakes and learning from them is an essential ingredient of success. Avoid repeating the same mistakes every time because this shows a lack of awareness.
Always remember that at the end of the day, your employees are just people like you. They have their ups and downs in life. Take your time to listen and understand them. If they do not agree with you on a certain subject, there is a good reason.
Always do your best. Clarify anything that your employees have not understood. Reach out to employees who are not performing well and understand what is going on. Keep in mind that the business is not furniture, computers and other equipment; the business is the people. Without your employees, who will you manage?
