Making a Shift to Leadership…And Also Stepping Back

Dear Readers,

I first started writing “You’re Not the Boss of Me” four years ago, publishing my first post on January 6, 2009.  Over that time, it has been my intent to write current, timely posts that would give rise to deeper thought or practical action, sometimes both.  Now, I’m reaching a point where my ‘fresh ideas’ are, to me, becoming less fresh.  And so, I feel a sabbatical is in order, a time for me to step away and give myself a little time to recharge & regroup.

Between now and when I start writing new material here again, I will be republishing posts that appear to have resonated the most with you.  They carry with them the wish that you will find in them something new or a reminder of something old worth noting.

Thank you so much for your ongoing support. I hope you will continue to engage me, and each other, in conversation by way of your comments.

The first offering is about the subtle and sometimes not so subtle shifts we have to make when we first move to a management role.  It is a lesson we all learn sooner or later.  But sooner is better. Don’t you think?  Cheers

Gwyn

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             Making the Shift to Leadership

I think the biggest (and perhaps most difficult) shift a person has to make when s/he makes a move to leadership is the Relationship Shift. (Try saying that three times fast!).

In working as individuals we often develop relationships with our co-workers, many of whom may actually become our friends.  We tend to pick and choose the people with whom we become close.  We become involved in their lives.  They become involved in ours.  And the balance of power between us tends to remain reasonably level.

Promotion to a leadership role changes all that.  Whether you are promoted within your current work area or move to another area or even another job, know this:

Promotion to a leadership role demands the establishment of a professional distance between you and those who work under your supervision.

This does not mean that you must isolate yourself from the people who work with you, far from it.  It does mean though that the relationships you develop must transcend your personal feelings about the people in your work group and expand to include an impartiality that allows you to make appropriate decisions and get the work done.

This shift in relationships is not a one-way street either.  With promotion to a leadership role comes a change in the balance of power.  People who were once peers become, (organizationally speaking), subordinates and that means you will have some influence over areas of their working life that you previously did not.   They will be looking for evidence that they can trust you with that.  And they will expect you to be fair about it.  So, you may not be invited to lunch as you once were.  And if you are, you should consider the wisdom of accepting.

The up side to this (and there’s always an up side) is that as a boss, you will have opportunities to build new relationships with not only those who work for you but with a new set of peers.  One of the crucial roles of a leader is to build relationships across a variety of lines of work.  This allows for easier communication, collaboration between and among stakeholders and an opportunity to learn new things from a variety of perspectives.  And that’s a good thing.

So while you may initially feel the loss of your previous working relationships, there is a bigger world out there for you to play in.

That’s what I think anyway.  What do you think?

P.S. While I think the shift in relationships is probably the most difficult one to make.  There are others.  Here are two more posts that address some of these ~ The Leadership Activity Shift and the Leadership Measurement Shift