Howdy, peeps. I hope all of you have been well. I’ve been taking everyday day by day. But that’s another conversation for another time.
Today’s dragonshapedskittles talk will be about managers and bosses. I have lots of thoughts on those who oversee others. I’ll try to consolidate them. For the record, I have managed others to varying degrees myself, so before anyone tries to clap back with, “Oh, but you’ve never been a boss (in the classic version of the hiring and firing sense) so how can you say…..” Why yes, yes I have. And I’ve even had jobs where I was not in a management/supervisor role whatsoever and other employees, mostly new, came to little ol’ me with questions or concerns about the ways of the company. It’s truly flattering; but also a little troubling.
That leads into the main point I wanted to get into. Managers need to be approachable. Approachable in this sense is meant in a few ways. Having that ability and trait is so important and crucial for employee retention. A lot of companies hate to hear others say this because it would be admitting they have a flawed system. Excuse me while I roll my eyes.
In my opinion, if brand spanking new employees are actively seeking out elder employees on their same job level and not HR themselves or their supervisors for help with HR related matters, workplace conflict dispute opinions/options, reviews, etc, you get the idea….not things directly related to the job description that you also do, but extraneous matters that should be addressed with higher ups but aren’t, can potentially be a problem. With that being said, with you being on their same job level, you are neither paid, nor prepared to deal with fellow employees’ issues. You don’t owe them anything. There is a point where you need to draw the line because there are folks who will take advantage of others just to get ahead. Not everyone has nefarious actions like that though. You should never feel obligated to help when you can’t or shouldn’t.
My experience has been that these behaviors can be because the new employee respects you/your work quality, trusts your opinion, likes you as a person, or on the other end of the spectrum; they’re lazy and don’t feel like talking to the boss or HR about something because you’re more convenient and easily accessible for questions. OR it could be because the boss/HR have not helped or supported them in the past; in the way one needs to be supported as a new employee in a new company. AND they don’t feel like they can come to them with their concerns because they feel as though they would be unheard or misunderstood. It’s truly sad how often I’ve seen this happen.
Granted, as a former supervisor, I can say that it is a lot of work managing my own workload, let alone several other employees that I was responsible for holding accountable. It’s really all about honing in your own self management skills. I feel like some people go into management just to do it because it’s a job and approach it from a money mindset. Meanwhile, others do it because they truly have a passion for it. They enjoy leading people, encourage continued success, and are not opposed to applauding others when they do well. That’s weird to want anything to the contrary for your employees. You ideally would want them to be as successful as you, if not, more. Their continued success in the company showcases your commitment as a leader. Why would you want anything less? I always encouraged my employees to learn more whenever and wherever they can, and never be discouraged from asking for help when they need it. IDK. Maybe I have an overly optimistic way of looking at how management should be in an ideal world? That’s anyone’s guess. I can’t say I necessarily had a passion for management when I did it, but I certainly enjoyed the experience, and it taught me a lot about myself. How one treats others is often a reflection of how one sees themself, they say. Although, there are times like in my case, where I have absolutely overcompensated for my lack of self-empathy, by making sure my employees were always taken care of because I never felt that way….🤷🏼♀️🤷🏼♀️🤷🏼♀️
Enough of my rambling. Feel free to comment your thoughts below. And please, PLEASE be kind. The intent of this post was not to call out anyone or come across as rude. I am simply sharing my thoughts based on an experience I had this month.
Thanks for reading! 🫡✌🏻☮️
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