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Everyone finds being a manager for the first time tough, everyone. Having the right set of skills is vital to your success. Through the tough times and the bad, managers must maintain productivity and morale, as well as lead by example themselves. The way you handle situations, your decision-making, and the values you demonstrate should be model behaviour. Here are key ways you can become a great manager and thrive in a position of authority.
Incentivise work
As a manager, you should give your employees a variety of challenges. You need to push your staff to do their best in every part of their job, then reward them for the work they do. It’s important you make sure your employees are being challenged. It’s one of the best ways to motivate your staff. If the work is not challenging, your employees won’t grow professionally and are more likely to begin looking for a new job. Incentivise your employees by sharing your picture of success. Make them understand the importance of gaining experience and how their role will benefit their career.
To succeed in your new responsibility, you need to be consistent with your decisions and style of management. If you keep changing how you make decisions or the way you work, your team might start to question your ability to lead. Being a manager isn’t about being rigid. You have to adapt and recognise where you need to be more flexible, but you need to be a consistent leader. Always take your time and think carefully before you make decisions, and make sure you treat everyone the same in the workplace.
Establish trust with your employees
Spend time with every employee to really get to know their goals and ambitions. Schedule regular one-on-one meetings to build a strong foundation of trust. Always give people updates, status reports, and explain the reasons for your decisions. You don’t want to put your staff in a position where they have to guess in the absence of good information. Show an interest in people’s activities and when asked a question, give a straight answer. As a manager, you need to establish a great relationship with all your employees for long-term trust.
Focus on goals rather than details
When you become a manager, it’s imperative you shift your focus to the bigger picture. You have to monitor your team’s performance and make sure your team is working towards achieving long-term goals. In non-managerial roles, your main concern is the finer details of assignments, concentrating on specific projects or information. But, managerial personnel are responsible for the entire team, so you won’t have time to keep track of every individual task. To perform at your best as a manager: prioritise goals, not details.
Delegate wisely
One of the most important parts of being a manager is delegating effectively. You can’t control everything, so you will need to delegate work to others. Listen and observe, then pick the best person to delegate the work to. Always give clear instructions and reward your employee for their accomplishments. Delegating is a wonderful way to increase productivity whilst developing trust amongst your team.
Becoming a manager for the first time is an excellent step forward in your career. It doesn’t have to be overwhelming if you take the time to learn the skills of a good manager. You need to learn how to interact and relate to your employees. Your number one job is to help people complete the task in an outstanding way.
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