Ever a believer in the inherent goodness of people, I reasoned that if two smart, well-intentioned individuals couldn’t agree, then surely it must be the result of some misunderstanding
A good analogy is dating. You can totally imagine meeting a person who is a catch by all accounts
If what I’m saying gets them nodding along like it’s music to their ears, then they’re going to love this job. If not, that’s fine too. Even if they are super-duper talented, it’s better for them and me to not try and sell a round peg into a square hole. Each of us ought to be doing the thing we really and truly want to do, in an environment that cares about what we care about. Life’s too short to live otherwise.
Making a bunch of decisions they didn’t agree with felt like the fastest way to fall into the cliche of the out-of-touch manager
what I considered support and consideration for the people on my team actually came from a place of fear and uncertainty
uncertainty. I was afraid of creating conflict
Of course you should aim to be someone your team trusts. But in your role as a manager, you often have more information than they do. Your perspective of what is important for the organization may be more complete. And you are being asked to do a
being transparent about what they believe and why, and doing those things rather than simply talking about them; setting clear expectations with team members and giving them feedback often; asking for feedback and acting upon that;
