I don’t know any manager who doesn’t want to succeed. Everyone I know has this potential, motivation and commitment. And then one day, stress, which used to be a good thing, becomes heavy for them to manage. This stress triggers all kinds of blockages and behaviors (loss of self-confidence, changing attitude, cynicism, control, etc.).
How does a motivated manager become a stressed manager? (and stressful)
Here are the 3 management mistakes that lead to this unwanted chaos.
The reality of the manager
You are there through your actions. Your potential has been recognized, you have used it to create your company, your department or have this position. Rarely will you have studied personnel management. You have a natural talent and drive .
You do your best and you don’t understand why certain decisions generate behaviors that are far from your forecasts!
You’re probably making one of these three, or all three management mistakes below.
Mistake #1: Providing the how, even if you’re right
A personal example:
I will arrive at the direction of operations. With a lot of goodwill and help from the team, I had made a diagnosis of the situation. I had targeted priorities. I had recruited a key person. Then, seeing the volume of work my team does, I thought it would be a good idea to hire a consultant to help us in a particular area.
Ouch, the team’s reaction.
However, I had targeted where it hurt, the team agreed, I had worked hard to have a budget. The reason? I hadn’t left the HOW to the team. I had found the SOLUTION.
I experienced a difficult return to reality. I didn’t understand the reaction. I was convinced that the team was to welcome this initiative and thank me! Imagine my incomprehension when I received negative comments and a view of my team’s complete closure to the project!
I panicked. Too surprised. I didn’t follow up with the consultant.
The content was good, but the form not at all.
The impact of meddling in the “how”? Months behind on the subject.
I realized that I was the boss, that there were things that were not said to me. Finally, I realized that I was being treated “politely”. I wasn’t really part of the team. I had to change my posture.
Mistake #2: Not Being Yourself
At first glance, one might think that I myself was in good faith. Of course not. I was what I had learned from my pattern patterns. I lacked personal tools and experience.
So I took the following steps:
Has. Define your current posture as a manager (values, personality, way of interacting with others, strengths, areas of development, interests, skills.) B. Define your desired posture C. Establish an action plan from point A to point B
At that time, the ways I found were training and trial and error. I would have saved time and energy if I had been accompanied! My boss? Where was he? Busy and lacking tools.
What is the best way to learn? A little theory, a lot of practice, and above all integration taking into account OUR personality.
That’s what coaching offers. Less well known at the time and/or reserved for executives.
Mistake #3: Going too fast!
The management is not theoretical. Take Henry Mintzberg, in my opinion the greatest theoretician of management. He says that management is learned by practicing it. He constantly observes the managers.
So, take it step by step, putting everything into action, one step at a time. This is the principle of integrating a new habit. The brain needs one specific thing, for at least 21 days, to reprogram itself. It’s scientific!
This is also why when you quit smoking, go to the gym, eat well, etc, etc, you do not succeed in the long term. It’s too much. To succeed, it’s one step at a time. That’s all.
How can you put the tools and new ways of doing things into action, in your daily life, one step at a time?
You can also find this article on LinkedIn.