36 crucial lessons I learned as a first-time manager
You are now in the third or fourth year of your career journey. You did really well at your role as an individual contributor and you want to get more. The company valued your contribution, so they promote you to become a team leader. You are super excited and super optimistic that you will be doing great.
But things don’t go as smooth as you’d expect. You don’t feel as energetic as before when you handle your own work and you are the superstar. Your stress level is higher and the relationship with people that used to be your teammates slowly changes. You start doubting yourself and you feel like you’re not achieving anything in this role.
This is the feeling I had when I first started leading the content marketing team at iPrice Group. When I was in a senior content marketing executive role, I could say that I did pretty well. We produced great content, obtained publication and organic links from top publishers, both local and international.
When they promoted me to become a team leader, I thought I was doing well.
I was 100 percent wrong.
The team dynamic was not good, people were leaving the team, I didn’t know what to do and felt very frustrated.
By the end of last year, I talked with my direct manager, who was the CMO, and the COO of the company. I told them that maybe I should just stop being a team leader and go back to being an individual contributor. But both told me that the managerial skill set was one of the most complicated ones, which even senior people struggled with. So, they encouraged me to stay, and I did.
Here, I want to share everything I’ve learned as a first-time manager. Everything I write here is based on my direct interaction with my team members, discussions with fellow managers at iPrice, reading books, watching videos and listening to a podcast. As a bonus, at the end of the article, I’ll share all the great resources about leadership and management.
1. Not everyone wants and should be a manager
A managerial role is like being a parent: It comes with a huge responsibility. So not everyone is ready to handle the responsibility and not everyone should go for it. Remember that a good individual contributor doesn’t necessarily make a good manager, as the latter position requires a totally different skill set.
2. Have empathy for people you lead
To be a great manager, you need to genuinely care about the growth of your people. If you don’t have this, your journey will be quite challenging.
3. Your success is measured by the growth of your team members
A great leader is the one who can really grow and develop the people that work with them. It’s not about you anymore, it’s about your team members.
4. A manager’s day is like a roller coaster
One day you will feel like this is the best job in the world, but the next day, you will feel like you are doing a terrible job. That’s totally normal. If you feel down, go home, have your dinner and get some good sleep.
5. You don’t need to understand every topic
As a leader, you don’t need to understand every detail about all the topics. If you don’t know, you ask for help. This is also the reason you hire new people to your team.
Read more: 36 crucial lessons I learned as a first-time manager
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Andrew Prasatya works at iPrice.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post.
Originally published at https://www.thejakartapost.com.
