You might be asking yourself this question every day: “Am I a good manager”? What does it take to be a successful Manager? Do I have what it takes to act like a leader while managing my people? If you’re a manager or want to become a manager, you probably ask yourself some of these questions. Aren’t you? 

As a manager, your career growth largely depends on your ability to manage employees and evaluate their performance. Nonetheless, if a manager can do their job satisfactorily, it doesn’t mean they’re management experts. 

So, what can you do differently to grow as a manager? To answer this, we decided to come up with this post that will explain 7 important things you need to do or practice in order to become great at managing people. Before we identify those things, let’s take a quick look at the basic attributes of a good manager: 

What is a Successful Manager 

With the rise of remote work, the role of managers has changed drastically over the last couple of years. However, there are certain fundamental qualities that a manager must have in order to be successful. Here are some of the must-have qualities or skills of a good manager: 

• Being transparent in their conduct 
• The drive to set goals 
• Excellent communication 
• Effective delegation 
• Empathy and sensitivity 
• Ability to support collaboration at every level 
• Ability to mitigate toxic behavior 
• Consistent performance 

But you can certainly think beyond these qualities and try to embrace an out-of-the-box management approach. While basic management skills are imperative, let’s see what else you can do to be a great manager.  

7 Key Things a Successful Manager Does Differently

If you’re looking to hire a good manager, you should consider the following elements and practices to spot a great manager. 

1. Stands Up for What’s Right 

Not every manager has the guts to stand up for what is right. How many managers or leaders do you believe make personal sacrifices to do the right thing even if that harms their own personal interests? 

People often hesitate to do the right thing because they think their job will be at stake. If you want to stand out as a manager and truly inspire your team, learn how to take a stand and never compromise your values. Do the right thing always even if it has the potential to jeopardize your career. 

2. A Successful Manager Uplifts People 

Great managers don’t hesitate to invest their time and energy to uplift their teams. For this, they put effort into understanding their employees, giving feedback, setting clear expectations, and having their team members’ backs. 

3. Gives Employees the Space They Need 

People who feel free to make their own decisions at work are more productive and happier. As a manager, you might want your employees to get things done the way you want them to. 

However, good managers empower their teams to make their own decisions, especially when they work with individual contributors. If you want to do things differently and efficiently, step away from the individualistic mindset and let your people make small decisions.  

4. Connects with Employees 

Here is another important thing managers do to build stronger teams: connecting with their employees to a certain extent. You should be working towards knowing your employees’ goals, ambitions, and skills, and then help them mitigate their difficulties. Here are some techniques to connect with your employees: 

• Let your employees speak and feel valued 
• Help them with their day-to-day tasks 
• Let your employees do new things 
• Lead by example 
• Embrace random connections

5. A Successful Manager Coaches to Engage 

A manager with coaching skills asks questions instead of providing answers. Instead of judging employees, they support them and facilitate their development. Since organizations are moving away from command-and-control practices, managers have to take a genuine interest in their people. Great business leaders often use their coaching skills to accelerate business growth. 

6. Reflects on Behavior 

Good leaders reflect on their behavior and hold themselves accountable. Business management is not about showing up in the office and going about your business tasks. You have to practice self-reflection and see your workers with feelings and thoughts. Therefore, evaluate your behavior to find out why you’re acting in a certain way. 

7. A Succesful Manager is a Leader Not a Boss  

Lastly, we will discuss the most important thing successful managers do differently: manage people like a leader instead of a boss. People no longer want to work with bosses: they want to work with leaders and influencers. Remember, 75% of employees leaving their jobs don’t quit their jobs; they quit their bosses. So, think of yourself as a leader instead of a boss. 

Final Thoughts

For employers, finding a great manager is like finding a needle in a haystack. This is probably the reason why Gallup found out that 82% of the time businesses fail to hire the right candidate for a managerial position. So, try to be the manager every company is looking for. Learn how to do things differently and inspire employees. 

Management is about persuading people to do things they do not want to do, while leadership is about inspiring people to do things they never thought they could. --Steve Jobs