Dear manager, it’s time to step up

04 oktober 2021

You’ll never hear us say that being a manager is easy. Because it isn’t.

As a manager, at any given moment, there are a thousand things crying for your attention.

There are deadlines to meet.
Email threads to reply to.
Meetings to attend.
Oh — and you’ve probably got a bunch of team members to inspire, too.

In fact, the life of a manager is filled with so much operational stuff that one could hardly fault you for dedicating the vast majority of your day to simply “getting things done”.

But what if the daily firefighting was just one aspect of your role?

What if “stepping up” as a manager required you to step “out”?

Imagine for a moment that every Friday afternoon you had a few hours to just think. Strategically.

To analyze some of the frustration you’ve come across this month, for example. Or detect a pattern behind the success of the last few products your company has launched. Or maybe just to set long-term goals.

Actively creating time and space for the “bigger picture” allows you to contribute more profoundly to your organization... and the people in it.

Because that Friday afternoon will allow you to improve things, structurally.
You’ll be able to nudge your team into a direction that is focused on long-term success — not just daily firefighting.

And even though the overwhelm of the job might remain, you’ll be better equipped to keep your eyes focused on the goal.

So, as much as managers might feel that they have too little time for this part of the job, strategical thinking is a crucial task that shouldn’t be neglected.

It deserves a recurring reminder in your agenda (and probably a dedicated post-it on your fridge, too!)

Some might say it makes the difference between being “just” a manager or being a leader instead.

So our advice this month? Step up your game by stepping “out”.

Your future self will thank you for it! ;)