Do You Want To Become A Great Manager? Stop Micromanaging Your Team

It takes a lot of expertise and skill to be a good manager. But that’s just the beginning.

The journey from good to great is even harder. We all know that there is no secret recipe to becoming a great manager. However, the one thing that I’ve learned over the years, working as a manager, is that - to become a great manager, you need to stop being a manager; instead, you ought to lead them. 

You Cannot Build Great Teams By Controlling Them

The textbook definition of management says that it’s all about controlling people. However, modern-day workforces don’t work like that. To breed innovation and accountability, you need to set the teams free. As a leader, you ought to be there to guide your team at every step, but not to control them. 

Remember, three attributes make a great team - 

1. Transparency
2. Accountability 
3. Trust

And to teach these three attributes to your team, you need to give them the freedom to work independently. 

That’s how a team and its team members grow!

So, how do you achieve this?

Well, it’s pretty simple. 

Make Information Accessible

What is a team member expected to do? What role does he or she play in the bigger picture? Where is he or she supposed to go when she needs to access information? All these things are essential because they set the stepping stones for bringing transparency to the team.

Don’t Tell Your Workers How to do their Job

Assign work to your team members, but never tell them how to do their job. You have hired them based on their skills, let them use those skills. This is the first step to building accountability.

Open the Doors of Communication

Last but not least, make sure that your doors of communication are always open; not just for a professional talk, but conversations that can go beyond work. This is one of the most critical and human ways of building trust within the team. 

Build A Great Team To Be A Good Manager!

As it has been aptly put into words by Reed Hastings, the CEO of Netflix, “The best managers figure out how to get great outcomes by setting the appropriate context rather than trying to control their people.”

If you want to achieve greatness as a manager, stop controlling your team, follow the three simple steps mentioned above, and let them do the magic!

About the Author

Vartika Kashyap is the Chief Marketing Officer at ProofHub — leading project management software. From contributing to websites such as The Huffington Post, Business.com, Elearning, Dzone, and The Next Web to becoming LinkedIn Top Voices in 2017 and 2018, she has recognised amazing new ways to reach the audience. She weaves stories about productivity, team building, work culture, leadership, and common workplace events. She also loves to read and travel to new places.