My 9 biggest mistakes in managing up early in my career were:
1. Assuming my manager's working style matched mine 2. Overlooking my manager's goals and priorities 3. Hesitating to raise challenges or opportunities 4. Keeping the relationship purely about work 5. Avoiding seeking or providing feedback 6. Believing my manager knew everything 7. Presenting problems without solutions 8. Being too tactical in conversations 9. Not providing enough visibility
Anyone reading this who has the same struggles, here’s my advice:
1. Learn how your manager likes to work and share your style to find common ground. 2. Know your manager's goals and priorities to support them in achieving these. 3. Raise challenges or opportunities for inputs, guidance, or decision-making, showcasing ownership toward improvement and growth. 4. Build connection and rapport with your manager - it will strengthen the relationship. 5. Actively seek and provide feedback with a clear intent of improvement. 6. Remember your manager is human. Share your perspective and seek those of others. 7. Offer solutions - even if partial or what you've tried so far) - not just problems. 8. Balance between discussing tactical matters and discussing strategy, longer-term priorities, and opportunities. 9. Highlight key risks, potential escalations, wins, and misses to avoid surprises.
What other challenges do you face when managing up?
PS: Your most important relationship at work is with your manager. Invest in it!
