Author: Chloe Andersen - LTHJ Global Consultant
There are so many tips out there for new leaders. Just do a quick Google search, and you will find seemingly infinite lists of tips and tricks, mistakes to avoid, and potential pitfalls. It can be completely overwhelming.
You will need to think about a lot of things as a new manager, especially with the way your work will change. You’re no longer going to be successful based on your contributions alone. As the saying goes, what got you here won’t get you there. You need to learn how to inspire and motivate your team- and how to help them develop as individuals.
So, where do you even start? My recommendation, and what I don’t see enough of in new managers, is to start with you. The emotions that accompany becoming a new manager vary greatly. You are no longer being held accountable for just your work - and with that can come a lot of emotion. There can be excitement, fear, relief, anxiety, freedom…the list goes on. For highly ambitious individuals, letting go of the individual work can create real anxiety.
How do you support yourself? Start with understanding yourself. Susan David, PhD, recently published a book called “Emotional Agility”. I recommend this book to all of the new leaders I coach (and truthfully, everyone). In addition to reading Emotional Agility, I also recommend my clients complete some kind of personality and/or skills assessment. This is not because an assessment alone is the key to success, but because assessments are a shortcut to identifying where your strengths lie and where you may have some blind spots: more data to help you know where to start with your own development as a leader. The value in emotional self-awareness cannot be overstated. All of us, via nature and nurture, have developed emotional responses to various situations that impact where we need to start with our own development as a new leader. Are there skills every new leader needs to develop? Absolutely. But where you start and how you prioritize your growth as a leader should be guided by who you are. By understanding yourself and your values better, you can then look at the lists of tricks and tips and know where you want to start.
At LTHJ Global, we work with the Enneagram assessment and we start with you. If you’re interested in learning more, schedule a consultation today and learn how building your culture can make a huge difference in how you and your team experience work.