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The Manager's Role - Coping with stress and emotion PDF Print E-mail
Written by Chris Hutcheson   
Article Index
The Manager's Role
What it means to be a manager
Developing interpersonal judgment
Understanding yourself
Coping with stress and emotion
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Page 5 of 5

 

Coping with stress and emotion

The move to management is like moving to a new town - you're going to have to become familiar with a whole new landscape. Not only are your responsibilities different as a manager, but you have to adopt a new personality - no longer one of the gang, your now a leader of the pack, and responsible for its well being, performance and survival. As you learn your new job you're going to have to be able to tolerate:

Role strain associated with the shift from being an individual performer to a manager. This can include:

  • Overload - in terms of the amount you have to learn and handle
  • Ambiguity - as far as the need to balance potentially conflicting priorities and interpersonal relationships are concerned
  • Conflict -making the right decisions, working with your employees, and helping them work with each other.
stress As you spend time in the role and gain experience, this will subside and you'll become comfortable and confident in your role.

Negativity - You'll find that when employees come to talk to you, it'll usually be about a problem or concern. You'll realize they're not all as motivated or competent as you were as an individual contributor. And you'll see, as you help them improve their skills and resolve problems independently, how they can become motivated and engaged.

Isolation - With different priorities and demands on your time, and the need to sometimes make unpopular decisions, you won't be "one of the gang" anymore. You'll have to develop a different relationship with your staff, and rely on your network of fellow managers more for support and guidance. And ultimately, you'll find the right mix of task direction and interpersonal support to build positive, if different, relationships with your employees.

The burden of leadership - the leadership role requires you to manage risks and be a role model. You'll notice that your behaviour and attitude define the climate in your workplace. You'll become involved with and have power over people's lives through the way you manage and support your employees. You'll need to hire and fire, reward and discipline. And at the outset, you'll wonder if there's life outside of work, and if you made the right choice. Then, from time to time, an employee, or your manager, or a customer will come up to you and thank you for your support, direction and encouragement, or for a job well done, and you'll be encouraged and energized. Your confidence and skill - and available time - will increase as you experience the support of your manager and staff.

Like any significant challenge, the transition to a management role involves significant effort and at times, frustration. Your payoff will be the ability to look at the people you develop and the results they achieve, and know that you played a leadership role in getting to that destination.
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Last Updated on Friday, 27 March 2009 11:34
 

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