The First-Time Manager

As a new manager, it might be tempting to wield your new authority just for the sake of displaying your power. Some new managers feel like they need to play the part of the boss by making drastic departmental changes or issuing extensive orders.

In most cases, though, using this kind of authority isn’t necessary. Instead, it shows your employees that your new power has simply gone to your head. And that makes it difficult to gain their trust going forward.

However technical your job may be, successful management comes down to having good people skills. How others perceive you impacts their motivation to work for you. So, it’s especially important upfront to make an impression that builds confidence and trust in your abilities.

The key message here is: Prioritize building confidence and trust as a new manager.

During your first week as a new manager, avoid making any major changes. Give your employees some time to get used to your presence. Then, at some point over the next two months, schedule an initial conversation with every person on your team. This could be a casual meeting in your office, a lunch, or a coffee. But it’s important that the conversation happens in person and isn’t rushed.

This meeting isn’t meant to assert your agenda, though. It’s meant to open the line of communication between you and your direct reports. So avoid doing all the talking!

Establishing this open communication is crucial not only for your team to gain trust and confidence in your abilities, but also for them to see that you have trust and confidence in theirs. And to build confidence in your team, it’s important to show them how much you appreciate their contributions. 

Though most people like to feel appreciated for their performance, this doesn’t mean you should constantly praise your employees. On the contrary, giving too much praise comes across as insincere. Rather, show appreciation only when you truly believe someone deserves it. You should be specific about their behavior and describe how the impact of their performance benefits the company. You’ll want to do this in private so you don’t accidentally make other employees feel undervalued or jealous.

Building confidence and trust doesn’t happen overnight. But by listening to your team’s concerns and showing your appreciation for their work, they’ll come to see you as honest, decent, supportive, and ultimately trustworthy.