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CHAPTER 8MANAGING FOR THE FIRST TIME:Things Just Got Real

There are many exciting and important moments throughout your career. The raise you didn’t expect (but deserved!) comes through. You’re given a new title, put in charge of an important project, or transferred to a high-profile division. While all these can be confidence boosters and do advance your career, none come close to the importance of being made a manager for the first time. You. People. In charge. The boss. It’s a whole different world.

Interestingly, this shift can happen at almost any stage of a career. Some people fresh out of college get tapped to run a small team. Others go years as individual contributors, preferring or doing quite well in the trenches. But no matter how or when a first-time management gig starts, let me be very clear. This is a big moment—a huge chance to succeed or, conversely, fall flat on your face.

For better or for worse, companies generally give higher salaries and fancy titles to those who lead—not those who are led. So unless you work for yourself and only yourself, you’re not going to get ahead unless you embrace and excel as a manager. Even though managing is fairly commonplace, and it’s a role that’s been around forever, it’s hard to imagine anything more challenging. Just look at some of the tasks the role can require:

OVERSEE A STRANGER. Suppose you moved into a new neighborhood ...