Reflections on 'The Six Counterintuitive Rules' - 1

BACKGROUND

I don’t consider myself a qualified manager, and this is probably a weakness for a product manager transitioning into a people manager. Because I focus too much on the product itself, I often neglect team building and personnel management.
After reading this article, I realized that some of the management issues mentioned were things that I wasn’t aware of before (actually, it was only recently that I became aware of them, how belated!)

RULE #1: MANAGEMENT IS NOT LEADERSHIP

One of the big mistakes I see people make is conflating management and leadership. I strongly believe you can be a leader without being a manager.
Management isn’t telling people what to do. It isn’t setting a vision and aligning the work around it. That’s leadership. True management is the act of making the people around you better.

Only people who have certain characteristics and certain ‘loves’ should be managers.‘What do you love doing?’ a great answer is ‘I love investing in people and I love making them better, into the best versions of themselves.’ If that really brings you joy, great — being a manager is one of the most powerful and high-leverage jobs inside of organizations.

The easiest way to see if you’re a good manager is by running through these questions:

• Are the people around you growing?
• Are they taking on more in scope?
• Are you seeing them change in terms of things they weren’t good at six months ago?
• Are you pushing your highest performers and watching them explode?
• Are you helping your lower performers figure out what’s not working?”

Inspiration 1：Investing in people

The article I read recently highlighted an important realization I’ve had in my own career. I’ve often focused on telling people what to do, but I’ve overlooked the importance of helping them become better. While I possess leadership skills, I recognize that I lack some of the management skills necessary to truly make a positive impact on my team.

I’ve come to understand that to be a good manager, I need to love investing in people and helping them grow. This investment not only benefits the individuals themselves, but it also brings me joy and helps me grow as a leader. For me, investing in people means devoting my own time, energy, and thoughts to help my subordinates develop and reach their full potential.

To Be Continue…