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Rising manager? This isn't college. If I drive a Toyota I'm not a rising Lexus driver.
Ask for feedback from your subordinates
My last manager micromanaged me to pieces. He was actually trying to be helpful. But I tactfully brought it up and we changed the dynamic going forward.
S&1, how did you bring it up?
I asked him for some feedback and coaching. I thought maybe he was micromanaging because I wasn't doing exactly what he wanted. His feedback was that I was doing well and am very coachable. Knowing that it wasn't because of any mistake I made, I turned the conversation towards how I can be more proactive and independent so he can free up time to do more client-facing, strategy or other high-value-add stuff. I mentioned that although I really appreciate his guidance and coaching, and found it really helpful, I didn't want to take up so much of his time. I didn't use the phrase micromanage during the conversation.
Oh we also agreed to use a document (he called it a "action record") to keep track of the "asks" that I am responsible for delivering. He would check in occasionally to see my status and how I I'm progressing. I can escalate if I'm running into roadblocks and having trouble getting something done. And at the end of the day we can go over the list to see what I did/accomplished during the day.
S&1, thank you for sharing. That's a great way to change your manager's behavior. Depending on the mature of the project, I would still consider an 'action record' a bit too much. People talk about empowerment all the time, but not many give others power, they 'rent' it and take it back. Wonder if there is a good recipe for making sure what I do is empowerment (besides asking for feedback)
To answer your question: when assigning things, don't tell them how to do it, but be specific enough about the deliverable. Also ask follow up questions: do you understand what I'm looking for? Iterate with feedback - it'll be painful at first but stick with it. If a C understands your style but still can't deliver within 2-3 iterations, you've either failed in describing what you want or they are not up to speed.
Yeah I see your point. But it was my first time working with him so he might have been afraid to take away the training wheels on day 1. But once I showed that I can be reliable, he definitely gave me a lot more leeway. By the end of the project he gave me a really good review.