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Being a manager is no easy task. You’re responsible for overlooking your team’s production, performance, and goals. And aside from managing your team, you’re also a leader who can get work done while inspiring others along the way, and hopefully, encourage them to follow you.
Taking over a managerial role can be daunting and overwhelming, even when you can outsource help if needed. Not everyone is born with excellent management skills, and it’s something that can be learned and improved. While there’s no “right” management style because each team has unique needs, we’ve listed some workplace management tips below to help you become an effective manager. Let’s dive into it!
1. Communicate clearly and effectively
How you talk and communicate your goals to your team can determine your success as an effective manager. You must aim for clarity and accuracy when giving instructions, conducting meetings, and relaying company updates to your team. This way, you avoid miscommunication and ensure that everyone is on the same page with you. This should be echoed in-person and across all communication channels (i.e., email, phone or video call, or chat).
2. Actively listen and ask questions
It’s not so hard to ask your employees, “What are your thoughts on this?” or “How do you feel about that?” If someone expresses their concern about the direction of your management style, hear them out instead of silencing them. Listening to every person under your supervision makes it easier to identify and resolve problems together.
3. Acknowledge achievements
People are hungry for recognition and appreciation. At one point or another, members of your team will seek some kind of commendation for their hard work. Not all managers or bosses understand this. If you adopt this approach genuinely, you’ll be able to provide that sense of job satisfaction to your employees. This can also help inspire them to work harder and possibly stay in the company longer.
4. Create a safe space for your team
When you build an inclusive workplace culture and psychologically safe environment, you give your employees a voice to air their concerns, ask questions, take calculated risks, and hone or unlock their best attributes. When you understand their needs, their work performance can improve for the better. This is also one way to make your employees happy working with you and your company!
5. Set achievable goals as a team
As a manager, you know you’ve done well when you get your team members to work together. Doing this means you’re not limiting your objectives to isolated goals. Instead, you encourage collaboration and a unified focus to march towards organizational goals. This gives them direction, a clear purpose, and reminds them of their value when working as a team.
6. Build on their strength
A lot of managers tend to spend too much time on the weaknesses of employees. Although that helps them improve their abilities, don’t get too hung up on it to the point that it wastes their best attributes. Pay equal attention to their core strengths as well, and put them to work. Not only will you see them put their best foot forward (and enjoy doing it), but you’ll also see a significant return on investment.
Summing it up
The key to managing people well is to understand them. Take note of these hacks to help hone your management skills. When your team wants to follow you, that’s when you know you’ve done a successful job (and do it well) at managing people. You must know that your success as a manager relies on the success of your team.
