Mitch Hedberg had a great joke about how weird being promoted is. He said that even though he was a comedian, people always wanted him to write. That’s like going to a chef and asking Hey, can you farm? If you’ve been thrust in a management role because you were good at something that wasn’t management, you can probably relate. HBR’s Guide to Coaching Employees is a helpful, accessible read designed to help you understand how to manage people.
Some of the most helpful advice for me was the helpful reminder that not everyone is like me. We have different career goals, personalities, desires, styles, etc. Just because something would be helpful for me doesn’t mean it would (or SHOULD) be helpful for someone else. It seems like a lot of good managing/coaching is about listening and being proactive in understanding people you’re responsible for (aka “direct reports”, a term I had never heard of until reading this book). It’s funny how seldom it occurs to any of us to simply ask important questions. Lack of engagement from managers leads to lack of engagement from employees, which isn’t good for anyone involved (manager, employee, customers, organization).
Another important takeaway that I already implicitly knew, but had never heard articulated, was that managers are models. You treat your direct reports how you want them to treat customers and peers. You encourage not necessarily results, but efforts, especially those efforts pointed towards organizational goals.
My favorite question from the book that I’ve already used in a real-world setting is, “If you had my job, what are the first three things you’d do?” That really helped open my eyes to some uncomfortable blindspots in the organization.
If you’re new to leadership or otherwise want to do better, I would definitely recommend checking this book out if not purchasing it.
