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How to Approach Challenges in Your Management Career
(This is a contributed post)
You’re undoubtedly going to run into a lot of challenge in your management career and that’s something that everyone has to accept. There are things that go wrong and mistakes that get made because it’s such a trick job to do well. And if you really want to succeed as a manager, you need to know how to approach those challenges and deal with them in productive manner.
Becoming a great manager is certainly not something that you can expect to happen overnight. You need to have those practical experiences, learn from those around you and find your feet in the role. All of that stuff takes time. Approaching the challenges that come with a career in management is something you can work on right way though, and we’re going to discuss that now.
Start by Finding the Real Problem That Needs to be Solved
Before you can confront challenges and find the right solutions to them, you need to find what the real problem actually is. That might be something that sounds really obvious but that’s not necessarily the case. There are many hidden factors and explanations, and part of your job as a manager is to get to the bottom of things and find exactly what’s at the root of the issue before taking action. That results in the best outcomes for everyone in the workplace.
Remember That You’re a Manager Now
Many people who become managers start out as colleagues of the people they’re now meant to be managing. From your new management perspective, this can be pretty difficult. You have to know where to draw the line and how to change your behaviour accordingly. You can’t simply carry on as before because this won’t yield the kinds of results you’re looking for as a manager. Things inevitably change and that’s the way it has to be. If you can’t handle that change, your approach to management will likely fail.
Come Up with Multiple Solutions
There’s not necessarily one way to solve a problem with your management issue. You should instead find multiple ways to solve the issue in front of you and consider them carefully. That way, at least you’ll have a backup plan if something goes wrong and your first idea fails to solve the problem in the way you wanted it to. It’s also good to adopt this mindset because it teaches you that there’s pretty much always more than one way around a problem.
Work to Find the Right Balance Between Your Work and Your Management Role
As a manager, you probably have your regular work to do alongside your role as the manager of your team. Finding the right balance between those two responsibilities is one of the toughest things about being a manager. It’s something that you’ll definitely get better at over time, but to begin with, you’ll have to find the balance that feels right, without neglecting either of your roles. You’ll eventually come to realise what the best balance is for you and your team.
Learn From the Experts
If you’re completely new to a management role, it makes sense to learn from people who have more experience than you. There are lots of companies and organisations that can help you with the various aspects of your career development. Don’t be afraid to learn from others because it’s never a sign of weakness for you to do so. In fact, the opposite is true. It shows that you’re looking to improve and grow as a manager and those are good traits to have,
Make Aims and Expectations Clear
As a manager, you want everyone to be on the same page and singing from the same hymn sheet. When that’s not the case, things can easily get quite messy and confused, which is not what your workplace needs. To ensure everyone is pulling in the same direction, you should make the aims of your team clear to everyone and ensure each member of the team understands the expectations you have. That way, they’ll be no confusion and no room for excuses later on.
Look for Ways to Leverage Your Team’s Creativity
Creativity is one of the most underrated factors when it comes to working as a manager. With a little in the way of creativity, you can push your team to new levels and encourage them to approach their work in new ways. In order to be creative, people need to feel free to experiment and have confidence in their abilities. Those are things you can help them with as their manager and you certainly should try to.
Take Advice From Other Managers When it Comes to Hiring
Hiring is something that many managers have to do and it’s one of those things that people can really struggle with in some instances. Rather than allowing yourself to struggle aimlessly with the task of hiring the right people, you should speak to other managers who have more experience in this kind of role and learn from them how best to approach the hiring process. There’s no silver bullet answer but with the help of people you trust, you’ll be able to approach it better.
Learn From Every Mistake
Finally, you should remember the important if learning from your mistakes. It’s something we all can do and you should continue doing. Don’t take the superior attitude some managers adopt because this just makes you look arrogant and, most importantly, you won’t learn from experiences and mistakes if you think you’re already doing everything right. Every single mistake, no matter how it pans out, can be learned from and that’s something you should embrace.
Finding success as a manager can be tough because there’s a lot to learn and get to grips with when you’re completely new to it. But you’ll learn over time and with the help of the tips outlined above, it won’t be long before you’re achieving all the things you want to achieve in your role as a manager.
