The Making of a Manager: What to Do When Everyone Looks to You

by Julie Zhuo

My reports were wary of bothering me or coming across poorly.

in the early days, most new apprentice managers are also handling individual contributor responsibilities.

the mistake that I made—and that I see virtually every apprentice manager make—is continuing to do individual contributor work past the point at which it is sustainable.

I finally realized that I had to give up wanting to be both a design manager and a designer, because in attempting to do both, I was doing neither well.

at the point in which your team becomes four or five people, you should have a plan for how to scale back your individual contributor responsibilities so that you can be the best manager for your people.

What qualities do I want in a team member?

What skills does our team need to complement my own?

How should this team look and functi...

How will my own role and responsibil...

there are two other groups you can lean on for support: other managers in your organization who support related functions, and managers in your area of expertise outside your organization.

Outside of your organization, finding a group of leaders in similar roles at other places can provide you with an invaluable network of support.

“informal CEO training” from casual dinners he attends with other founders.

I’ll often have coffee with design managers from other companies like Google, Airbnb, and Amazon, where we’ll discuss common challenges in the desig...

Use the newbie card to your advantage by asking as many questions of as many people as you can.

Some of your reports will appreciate the chance to build the kind of manager–report relationship that they’ve always wanted. Stay open-minded and curious as you meet everyone.

To make the most of having a blank slate, give everyone the benefit of the doubt, no matter what you’re told.

be up front with people—especially your reports—about the kind of relationship you’d like to build and the kind of manager you want to be.

In your first few one-on-one meetings, ask your reports the following questions to understand what their “dream manager” looks like.

What did you and your past manager discuss that was most helpful to you?

What are the ways in which you’d like to...

How do you like to be recognized fo...

What kind of feedback is most use...

Imagine that you and I had an amazing relationship. What wo...

In your first few months, your primary job is to listen, ask questions, and learn.

New managers on my team tell me that the thing they most want to understand is how to calibrate their expectations around “what’s normal.

What does it mean to do a great job versus an average or poor job? Can you give me some examples?

I noticed that Z happened the other day.… Is that normal or should I be concerned?

What keeps you up at night? Why?

“Since I’m new, you might not feel comfortable sharing everything with me right away. I hope to earn your trust over time. I’ll start by sharing more about myself, including my biggest failure ever …

It’s not unusual to go through periods of feeling that you bit off more than you can chew.

most successors are surprised by the extent of what they’ve inherited.

“I had no idea the lengths my former manager went to to shield us from the many requests from other teams,

be up front with your colleagues that they should expect a period of transition as you ramp up.

Because the memory of how things used to be is still fresh in your team’s mind, it’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking you need to preserve the status quo.

Change is a prerequisite for improvement, so give yourself permission to move on from the past.

New managers often ask me, “How long will it take to feel like I know what I’m doing?” I reply quite honestly, “It took me about three years.

After her brief introduction, the critiques would start.

At its best, critique was honest, creative, and deeply collaborative.

You don’t build Rome in a day, and you don’t start off your management career standing in front of a packed room delivering a ten-year vision.

Everybody knows everybody, and two pizzas are enough to feed the group.

developing a healthy manager–report relationship and creating an environment of support.

What gets in the way of good work? There are only two possibilities.1 The first is that people don’t know how to do good work. The second is that they know how, but they aren’t motivated.

you can do one of two things here: help your report learn those skills or hire somebody else with the skills you need.

perhaps he thinks nothing will change if he puts in more effort—there will be no rewards if things improve, and no penalties if they don

does “great work” mean the same thing for both of you?

the responsibility of building a trusting relationship lies more with you than with them.

I wasn’t comfortable admitting to my manager that I was struggling.

People’s dissatisfaction will fester beneath the surface until one day they surprise you with their resignation.

developing a relationship founded on trust, in which your reports feel that they can be completely honest with you because they have no doubt that you truly care about them.

My reports regularly bring their biggest challenges to my attention