Becoming a Manager: Advantages and Challenges

Management & LeadershipConfidence & Self-AwarenessManagers≈ 20 min

Key skill: The manager's role & stance

Summary

Clarify the real reasons you became a manager by examining four motivations — money, advancement, power/autonomy, self-fulfilment — so you can choose this demanding role with clarity rather than by default.

Target audience

Managers or future managers

Learning objectives

Clarify why you became a manager and what you personally gain from the role
Assess the advantages of holding a management role: autonomy, power, advancement...
Reconnect with the meaning of your role by revisiting and broadening why you chose this demanding function
Diagnose your career anchors — what matters most to you in choosing a job: balance, creativity, management, meaning, expertise...

Module outline

StorytellingA humorous take on the importance of thinking carefully before accepting a management position, through an analogy with a calf's head
ArticlesBecoming a manager isn't everyone's dream · Guide: "Do I Still Want to Be a Manager?" (5 key points) · Exploring alternative career paths
Expert videoExploring the motivations for becoming a manager: money, advancement, power/autonomy, self-fulfilment
AnchoringQuiz and True/False to dig deeper into the topic and anchor what you've learned
Memo cardDownloadable coaching memo card: the key points from the expert video
CommitmentConcrete examples to help you define your own commitment
BonusA selection of videos to go further (TED, YouTube)

Models & methods

Exploration of the four management motivations (money, advancement, power/autonomy, self-fulfilment); career anchors questionnaire.

Research-based

Data cited: two-thirds of employees would turn down their manager's responsibilities; one-third of managers say they don't enjoy managing.