New to Management?

Being new to management means you need to learn a new set of skills. This article looks at 10 of the first golden rules to master.

New to management?

Starting a career is an exciting time in anybody’s life and presents an array of different options to choose.

Which industry would suit your skills? Where would you like to work?  Large company or family business or self-employed?

Whatever you choose, at some point in time upon that journey you are likely to have the opportunity to manage people.

If you have mastered the previous role and now you need to manage other people to do that role, how hard can it be?  The answer is ‘very difficult!’

Managing people is the most satisfying whilst challenging role available.  This is because people are individuals, they are complex and they have a wide range of different motivators.

So if you have just been promoted to the opportunity of managing other people, what are the first 10 golden rules you need to master first?

Top 10 Golden rules

  1. Of your numerous tasks, never forget that the most important one is that of ‘motivator’. Your job is to motivate the staff you manage to perform to at least the standards required by the business.

 

  1. You are no longer ‘one of the team’. You are a link between your team and the management that you report into.  You therefore sit in the ‘gap’ between the two.  You owe both side confidentiality and need to build respect and trust with both sides.

 

  1. Have a ‘reference point’ for when you need help or to talk things through yourself. This might be a Mentor or a more experienced manager. Equally, it might be your boss or one of the very many development books that are available.  The ‘7 habits of highly effective people’ by Stephen Covey offers some brilliant insights into being effective for management.

 

  1. Professionally manage your time. The ‘to do’ list is no longer sufficient. A successful manager never has enough time!  You therefore need to learn how to prioritise that time.  Use the ‘Building blocks’ method of time management and follow S Covey’s ‘Put first things first’ guidance from his book.

 

  1. Don’t do your emails as you go along. These ‘distractions’ will dampen your focus to be effective and ‘live’ in the current moment.  Book diary slots each day, in between planned tasks to check and deal with them.

 

  1. Manage your communication to your staff from the perspective, what is right for them. What is the most effective method and how often?

 

  1. Recognise and praise the successes of your staff. Recognition is one of the greatest motivators.

 

  1. Deal with inappropriate staff behaviour swiftly and professionally. Pretending something has not happened is the same as approving it!

 

  1. Don’t criticise staff errors if they are genuine mistakes. Provide support and encouragement to get it right instead.

 

10. Ensure you have a clear division between your own work life and home life. What can you do to ensure you don’t take the work stresses home and ‘dump’ them on your family.

 

Lastly, enjoy the journey.  You can learn knowledge, learn new skills but experience can only come with time.  Recognise your own achievements and learn from your mistakes.

 

Here at Unlock Staff Potential, we are committed to supporting and training your new Managers to ensure they have the appropriate skills to help your business flourish. Contact us for a bespoke training quotation.