How To Tell If You’re Ready To Become An Engineering Manager

Are you up for the new challenge?


As you excel in your career, you could soon be stepping up into a management role in your company. You’re interested, but you’re just not sure if you are quite ready to handle such a heavy responsibility.

Here are a few signs to help you see if you are actually ready for this leadership role.

You Enjoy Answering Questions

Being a manager means people will approach you–nonstop. They will come to you with a lot of questions. If this act irritates you, you might not be ready to guide others. However, if you enjoy helping other people learn and grow genuinely, then this is a good sign that you could be a great manager.

You Can Give Up a Little Control

While it is true that being managers means getting more control, managing a team actually involves releasing some control. You will need to trust that your team is doing their job well, individually and as a team, without you needing to oversee every small detail.

You will need to loosen the reins in order for your team to learn and grow– even if they do things differently than what you might have done.

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You are More Collaborative

Your team meetings are the highlight of your week. You enjoy brainstorming sessions with your colleagues. Management roles are always partnered with lots of meetings. You will need to do regular sit-downs with your team both as a group and individually. If you don’t find this exciting at all, then you may not be ready to be a manager yet.

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You Are Known For Your Problem Solving Skills

If you are already known as someone who can be approached to solve a certain problem, or asked to get them out of a sticky situation, that is already a strong indicator that you are ready to take on heavy leadership duties.

You are Invested in Other People’s Success as Much as Your Own

Great managers are invested in the growth and development of their team, they sometimes even prioritize that ahead of anything else. If your team members fail, you fail as well. If your team members succeed, you succeed as well. When somebody in your company achieves a major win, are you genuinely happy for them? Or are you filled with jealousy? If you’re the former, then you know that you are a good fit as a manager.

Taking the responsibility of a manager is not easy. It is not just about the higher salary and better perks. It is a combination of leadership skills, understanding, and a lot of patience. So if you feel you really want to be a manager but lack a few of the signs mentioned, then it’s time to do a self-check and see what you can improve to help you become a great manager.

 

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Cielo Santos

Engineer. Writer. Artist. Gamer. Musician. She dreams of building a time machine and help kittens take over the world. Is secretly the pink power ranger in real life.

How To Tell If You’re Ready To Become An Engineering Manager

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