First time manager challenges how to#

It’s a fine balance of reacting too fast to acting in the knowledge, driving change using authority to empowering the team using influence.Īs a new manager, the first 30 days are meant to shift from “me” to “we” perspective by observing, absorbing everything by listening, and asking really good questions. Building trust takes time and your first 30 days as a new manager is not the right time to “act on your plan”. While the intention may not be wrong, the timing is.Īs a new manager, you do not realize that without earning trust from your team, they will not be receptive to your ideas even if that’s the right thing to do. Instead of focusing on what’s working well, you intend to find faults by learning what’s not working. To establish credibility as a new manager, you want others to do what you think is right. Without asking really good questions to understand how the team currently operates, what works for them, what challenges they face, and taking time to establish trust, even a subtle hint of change can cause unsettling feelings and resentment towards what’s to come. Instead of being genuinely curious, actively listening, and learning about each team member, you are excited to share your own plan with the team. The feeling of control can lead to an assumption that you are acting in the best interest of your team while others may not see it that way. The belief to act early and make things right stems from the desire to be in control. I need to act early to establish credibility Some of these beliefs that can cause mistakes as a new manager are: 1. Our beliefs shape our experiences which in turn drive our actions in the workplace. One of the top priorities in the first 30 days should be to watch out for the 11 common new manager mistakes described below and use them as a means to learn and grow. While creating a 30 60 90 day plan for a new manager, the first 30 days are the most crucial as it sets the tone for the remaining 60 days. With the knowledge that mistakes are unavoidable, let’s go through the list of 11 most common mistakes that all new managers make. By failing well, I mean being able to experience painful failures that provide big learnings without failing badly enough to get knocked out of the game.

First time manager challenges how to#

I believe that the key to success lies in knowing how to both strive for a lot and fail well. In his book Principles, Ray Dalio talks about failures that’s so relevant to making mistakes They are bound to make mistakes, but self-discipline and eagerness to improve can help them learn from these mistakes and offset their vulnerabilities. What new managers need to know is that self-awareness is the first step to notice their own shortcomings. Their belief in the self-righteousness of their actions prevents them from seeing reality, accepting mistakes, and learning from it. They are oblivious of the impact of their own actions, how others perceive them, and live with a false sense of pride in the assumption that everything they do is right.

Why do first time managers fail?įirst-time managers fail when they do not accept the challenges of the new role with openness and curiosity. The excitement of the new job along with the commotion of its demands will cause you to make mistakes as a new manager. As a first time manager, it may seem that your world has turned upside down with a schedule that’s packed, stakeholders with unrealistic demands, and your own team members who look up to you with high hopes and expectations.

The first 30 days on the job may seem crazy with too many things that require your attention. The mindset to acknowledge mistakes and learn from them is essential to the growth and success of a new manager. The first few weeks are the most critical to earning trust and respect from people in the organization. As a new manager, mistakes are inevitable.