A leader inspires others, and a manager manages others. Being a leader is different than being a manager. It's an opportunity to hone in on your leadership skills. An increase in salary often means a bump in your standard of living, increased savings for retirement, reducing debt, and the other perks that come with more money in your bank account. If your responsibilities are increasing, your salary should, too. The feeling you get in knowing that you were there to help them can be worth the added responsibility that comes with the title. Becoming a manager can be amazing to witness the members of your team evolve and grow. You get to help your team evolve and grow.

Being a manager can be very rewarding for the right person.įor the right person, managing a team can bring about great rewards and benefits, as I've outlined below. In fact, it's possible for a strong leader to manage a team successfully even if he or she does not completely understand or possess the technical aspects required of the team. Possessing strong technical skills is very different from possessing strong leadership skills, given that they are completely different skill sets. When someone is good at their job technically, it doesn't automatically imply that they will be good leaders or that they have manager skills. They earned their promotion because they did a great job at something that didn't involve managing people, not because they had great people-management skills.' 'I have always been confounded by the way people are promoted into positions where they are going to be responsible for staff as a reward for doing their tactical job. In a Ragan Communications post, Shel Holtz of Holtz Communications and Technology spoke to this concern. This happens, in part, because many companies don't have a ladder that will allow for career advancement and pay increases in technical positions similar to those of management level positions. I've seen it happen over and over again–employees are promoted into the role of manager because they are technically and tactically good at their jobs. Technical expertise and management require two different skill sets. I have accepted and declined offers for management positions based on alignment with my goals for my personal life outside of work, for example. I respect and acknowledge those who have enough self-awareness to realize this.Īlso, accepting and declining a management position has a lot to do with personal timing. As rewarding as it can be, being a manager comes with challenges and sacrifices that some don't want. You're not weird, and nothing is wrong with you. If you've been promoted to manager and realize it's not for you, it's also OK to choose to step down. Not everyone is meant to be a manager, and that's OK.įirst, I want to get this out in the open and clear the air for anyone who feels they should aspire to become a manager just because others encourage it, or they think it's the right thing to do because they're supposed to want it: it's OK to decide that being a manager is not for you. I accepted, and I had no idea at the time the numerous ways I would be tested, trained, stretched, rewarded, and then some over the next few months and years. As timing and opportunity would have it, however, I was quickly promoted to senior level, and then offered the position of HR Manager of Operations for a new company that was formed as a result of a divestiture. Later in my career, I landed another job as an HR Generalist with a great organization, and though I was open to promotions and had a good work ethic to succeed in the role I was in, I didn't have the drive to land a management role. Thus, I was reconsidering my desires to hold the title of manager. I also saw my more experienced co-workers working very long hours, and quickly realized the sacrifices senior leadership and executives made to get to where they were. On the other hand, I was working 50 to 70 hour weeks and had a ton of projects and day-to-day business activities I had to prioritize. I also had the opportunity to work with senior leaders early in my career and had amazing mentors. On one hand, I had an amazing opportunity to work for one of the largest companies in the world where I received great training and experience and had exposure to an international workgroup.

That was before I knew what climbing the ladder meant in the land of corporate actually, that was before I understood what the land of corporate meant, in general. I was an eager college graduate with goals and aspirations, including making it to management level one day. When I launched my career after graduate school, I knew I wanted to do the best I could to advance as quickly as I could. Here's what to consider if you're considering this role. Becoming a manager can be both challenging and rewarding.

First time manager advice