Being a boss – an ongoing process

On avoiding complacency or stagnation as a manager:

Most bosses reach a certain level of proficiency and stop there – short of what they could be and should be.

…Many progress and fulfill their ambitions. But too many derail and fail to live up to their potential. Why? Because they stop working on themselves. … Too often managers underestimate how much time and effort it takes to keep growing and developing. Becoming a great boss is a lengthy, difficult process of learning and change, driven mostly by personal experience. Indeed, so much time and effort are required that you can think of the process as a journey – a journey of years.

What makes the journey especially arduous is that the lessons involved cannot be taught. Leadership is about using yourself as an instrument to get things done in the organization, so it is about self-development. There are no secrets and few shortcuts. You and every other manager must learn the lessons yourself, based on your experiences as a boss. If you don’t understand the nature of the journey, you’re more likely to pause or lose hope and tell yourself, “I can’t do this” or “I’m good enough already.”

From “Are you a good boss – or a great one?” by Linda A. Hill and Kent Lineback, Harvard Business Review, January-February 2011, pp.126-127.

One thing I’ve learned this year: being a manager is a challenging, sometimes difficult job.