Do the right work, not the easy work
Self Improvement
Management is tough - your old job may seem easy by comparison - but you can't solve your team's problems using your old toolkit.
Management is a skill in its own right, but no-one became a manager without doing something else first. It makes sense that first-time managers usually lead teams of people doing the same job that they used to do. Without knowing the work, how would you set the right objectives? How could you effectively train or coach them?
That said, knowing how to do the work of your team can also be dangerous. Management is hard. It’s very easy, especially when you and your team are under pressure, to stop managing and instead do your team’s work for them.
Resist this urge. Don’t jump in, even if you’re under pressure, even if you’re frustrated with your team. Doing your team’s work for them is a waste of your time and your organisation’s money. Coach your team to find the answers or develop their skills, and next time a similar challenge comes they’ll resolve it themselves. Your team’s capabilities will grow. Remember too that people often want to solve their own problems, even if they are frustrated. Going over their heads won’t win you respect.
Take action
In your personal development time
Do your job, not your team's
Are you doing the easy work, instead of the right work?
In your personal development time
Keep yourself on the straight and narrow
Bad habit of doing the wrong work? Worried you might slip?
In your one-to-ones
Help me, help you
Your team will surely know if you have the bad habit of doing their job for them. Ask them to help you stop, and tell them how.
In your one-to-ones
Stop yourself being sucked in
Team needs your help? Resist the urge to get your hands dirty.
With your boss
Create accountability
Ask your boss to hold you accountable. What behaviours or bad habits should they be calling you out on?