Congratulations! You did it!

You did it – You got a promotion and are a new manager. Now go get that big corner office…or your new bean bag in your collaborative, open-air office space!

Some of you may be thrilled by this new role, while others are stepping in for complicated reasons. Regardless, it’s time to get up and lead. It’s an odd feeling to realize that you will have people “reporting” to you, counting on you, asking you questions…all while you factor in what you are now responsible for. I mean honestly, I look at great CEOs, leaders and friends, and wonder, “how do you do it?” Let’s take a trip back in time (queue the early 2000’s pop music, maybe “Hey Ya” by Outkast) to my first managerial experience. I was asked to “own” a project and “oversee” 7 team members. Now, I had the knowledge and skills for this project, however the teams combined experience pushed more than 210 years. Most of them had more years of experience at this job than I did years on Earth. I had to lead them, I had to listen to them, I had to inspire them, and ultimately, I had to harness their experience and skills to successfully complete the project at hand. How did I do it? Well, I got to know them and recognized that each individual brought something of value to the table…and I stayed humble. Lesson 1 – KNOW YOUR PEOPLE. Drink the coffee; i.e. walk in their shoes. One of my first managers told me to “do what they do, hang out with them, find out what they like.” So, I took that literally. I took my coffee break with them every hour or so, talked about cars, and discussed their families and lives. Then, I supported them when it came time to get down to work and get dirty. I asked more questions that summer about the best types of fishing lures, and learned more about car parts than I thought was ever possible. It connected us, it made it real, and it built trust. It was also pretty cool, however don’t ask me about cars, they are still a myth and run on magic. Now, unfortunately, I couldn’t actually get dirty (union environment), but I was there every step of the way. To this day, I have trouble drinking coffee because I drank it so frequently, but that is a story for another time. As a new manager, be with your people. Lesson 2 – EVERYONE IS IMPORTANT. My grandfather once told me that there is no difference between the elevator doorman and the CEO. That has always stuck with me. My employees were people, with families and hobbies outside of work. Our admin knew everyone and if you needed to get a meeting with someone, you went to her. As for my manager, if you wanted to get a project done or an idea heard, you went to her and she made things happen. I had close ties to employees on the shop floor and knew if I needed help with a project, they were my people. As you invest your time and respect in others, you learn what you can do to support them and how they can support you. Your network then becomes a valuable chain of people helping people no matter who they are. As a new manager, network and connect with everyone. Lesson Three – STAY HUMBLE. Humility is worth its weight in gold. Realize that most of your employees know what needs to be done, and how to do it; they just need some direction and support. For me, remaining open, listening to my team, and learning from them was a much greater strength to help push our project forward than me telling them what to do. Humility, most likely a future blog topic, is so important. YOU DO NOT NEED TO KNOW EVERYTHING! I could repeat this to anyone and everyone I have ever worked with. It is ok to say, “I’m not sure,” or “What do you think?” No one is going to look at you as incapable if you ask questions. They will look at you as a leader! You have to be okay with not knowing all of the answers, but you will need to utilize your resources to find them. As a new manager, ask questions to learn.

Three Ripples to take away! 1. Drink the coffee, listen to the story, and get to know your people on a personal level. 2. Respect everyone no matter their role. You’ll be surprised at how much closer the finish becomes. 3. Being a new manager is an honor. Take the opportunity to develop and learn from your team.