Anyone who’s been a manager will tell you that there is a huge difference between doing and managing.

Instead of doing the work you love, you’re spend your time in meetings, filling out forms, writing projections and dealing with personnel problems. 

Instead of just making sure you get to work at 8:00AM, you now worry that your team gets there at 8:00AM. 

Instead of worrying about whether your work is sufficiently done and turned in on time, you must worry that your team is sufficiently doing their work.

Instead of ignoring the toxic team member, you must do something about him.

And the list goes on.

In most organizations, if you are the best at your craft, it’s likely you’ll be selected to be the next team leader, supervisor or manager. The irony is that few new managers get much training on how to actually manage. The reality is that you must leap into a completely new set of tasks that require a whole new set of skills.

Unfortunately, most new managers receive very little training to prepare them for these new challenges. One study found that of all the training we receive from our employer, 95% is task and job related and only 5% supports the kind of skills you need to manage others. Skills like communicating assignments, setting deadlines, resolving disputes, dealing with employee problems and inspiring your team to excel.