Making the Leap – The First of Four Opportunities for New Managers
New managers must redefine success and adapt their mindsets accordingly to achieve it.
Depending on the research – and there is plenty – between 40% and 60% of new managers fail within the first 12-18 months of being promoted to that role. This phenomenon is a primary driver of my passion as a coach, and so I offer a four-part series of articles to address some of the key opportunities for organizations and new(er) leaders and managers. We often see good leaders bloom out of good managers, but rarely do good managers naturally evolve from good individual contributors. Different skills are involved – skills that most aren’t born with, and unfortunately few get to learn in a structured, formal setting. Experience becomes the teacher, often at the long-term expense of better outcomes for all involved. Helping people manage others effectively creates a surplus of leadership potential and accelerates everyone’s success. In my work with emerging managers and leaders, we tackle four major opportunities to get into the zone of management effectiveness sooner rather than later. This article examines #1: Redefining Success One of my business and leadership gurus, Professor Scott Galloway, likes to remind us that, “greatness is in the agency of others.” Most of us are conditioned in the opposite mindset for much of our early careers. As individual contributors, we are recognized and rewarded for our output, and we don’t realize how ego-centric that system makes us. Then we get a promotion to management and feel on the hook for not only our contribution, but the output of others as well. We condition them to focus on meeting their own goals, and the self-centered cycle continues. This typical cycle keeps our field of vision narrow and pointed inward, creating a myopic, competitive environment that loses sight of the bigger goals and values that tie an organization together. As a result, we take control when our people fail, make excuses for them to save face, or worse – blame them, when things don’t go well. All the signs on this road point to unfortunate outcomes: career stall, team turnover, burnout, or worse. Here lies our first opportunity for new managers to make a shift. If you want to recalibrate someone’s mindset and behavior, start with incentives. A manager’s success should be almost entirely dependent on the success of those they manage. By linking goals and success measures in this way, we take the first step in shifting the mindset of managers to be of service to others rather than themselves. This approach sparks new conversations across the organization and helps build trusting relationships up and down the hierarchy. Make no mistake, this will feel disruptive and uncomfortable to most. Organizations that do this successfully have supporting structures in place: · Senior leadership is prepared and able to support new managers as they struggle through this new paradigm. · New managers are given very clear incentive structures and accompanying encouragement for specific activities and efforts rather than just hard and fast results. · Investments are made in tailored learning and development so newer managers can learn to leverage their strengths in their new role, overcome limiting beliefs and imposter syndrome, and adapt to their new reality with grace. Isn’t it interesting how popular it is to draw the distinctions between “manager” and “leader?” Yet rarely do we emphasize the chasms between individual contributor and manager. The move from individual contributor to manager is a bigger shift and more critical intersection than most realize, and so often we short-change the structure and support we give to these new managers. Recognizing and seizing on the opportunity to support newer managers and leaders at this critical stage pays dividends over time and can be a differentiator for organizations, leading to better employee engagement, reduced turnover, and stronger results. It’s time to look ahead and invest more in preparing tomorrow’s stewards of these businesses we hold dear today. Want to learn more about the opportunities to support new managers and shore up the next generation of leadership in your organization? Ask Joe about Making the Leap, a new coaching progression now available. Joe Miller is the Founder of Awareness to Action Coaching where he empowers others with coaching and content for current and future leaders. You can see more of Joe’s content on LinkedIn or schedule time with him directly here: www.calendly.com/coachjoemiller . Reach Joe directly at 678-464-0544 or joe@a2acoach.com .