Five Signs That You are a Good Manager

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When I stepped into the corporate world after finishing my university degree, my ultimate goal was to find a stable job and to become a manager. I started my career as a humble staff and eventually worked my way up the corporate ladder. Now, I finally realized that being a manager is not really an easy job. Aside from my usual day to day paper works and stressful meetings, I am faced with the most difficult task of this position which is to manage my team of subordinates. Everyday, I have to continuously inspire and motivate my staff just to get things done. I must also establish a positive and professional approach when handling their day to day office concerns.

To help me survive this difficult task of managing my people, I summarized all the good qualities of my previous boss and try to adopt these qualities to my present job. So far, I gathered five (5) good management characteristics which are listed below:

1.      A good boss knows how to delegate responsibilities. Some managers are too hands-on when it comes to managing their staff. This kind of manager usually performs part of the job and leaves the problem to his subordinates for them to solve. A good way to delegate duties is to let your people complete their work and refrain from doing their jobs for them. Interfering with their jobs means you do not trust their work. As a manager, it is your responsibility to develop the skills of your people so they can become future managers like you.

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2.  A good boss knows how to support his subordinates. Employees are expected to encounter daily problems as they perform their work. It is the responsibility of their manager to help them get around in solving these problems. However, managers must teach their staff to solve their crisis especially if it is within their level. Do not let your staff make you the go-to-person even on petty things. Do not allow them to make you their nanny and require you to solve their booboos.

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3. A good manager gives credit to a job well done. Bad managers not only steal ideas from their staff but also demand credit for. It is a mistake for managers to feel threatened when his staff show superlative performance. In fact, credit will be given to the manager every time their staff perform effectively and efficiently. In short, a confident manager knows how to recognize performing staff and credits their outstanding work all the time.

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4. A good manager is not assertive. Traditional managers are very particular with authority. They feel they should dominate everyone who is below them. They think they are superior to their staff in terms of brain power. Ideally, a good manager should look at his staff as business partners because they are your soldiers that will help you accomplish your management goals. Therefore, you must listen to their suggestions (or even complaints) and agree with it if acceptable.

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5.  A good manager treats his staff equally. Treat your staff as if they are your own children. They have different personalities and different talents. Some of them are performers and some of them may be the black sheep of the team. You cannot hand-pick the performers and disregard the lazybones. Whatever the type of species they may have, your job as their manager is to utilized their skills and put their talents on the right perspective.

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As the saying goes, you cannot expect good performances from your subordinates if you are not a good manager. Try to assess your management style before you expect good works from your people. After all, your staff are your business partners, if they fail, you will likely stumble with them.