{"id":4127,"date":"2019-05-01T16:23:05","date_gmt":"2019-05-01T23:23:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/knowyourteam.com\/blog\/?p=4127"},"modified":"2024-07-15T09:17:49","modified_gmt":"2024-07-15T16:17:49","slug":"am-i-micromanaging-my-team","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canopy.is\/blog\/2019\/05\/01\/am-i-micromanaging-my-team\/","title":{"rendered":"Am I micromanaging my team?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Here are the 5 most telling signs of micromanagement \u2013 and what you can do instead. <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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I won\u2019t tell anyone: You think you might be a micromanager. Argh. If there were scarlet letters for a bad manager to wear, \u201cm-i-c-r-o-m-a-n-a-g-e-r\u201d would be among them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But, how do you know if you\u2019re a micromanager, for sure?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, you can directly ask your team members if they think you\u2019re micromanaging them. If you have a direct report who has a penchant for shooting you straight, I highly recommend this. (In fact, when we asked through Canopy<\/a> to 606 employees across 61 companies, \u201cDo you feel micromanaged?\u201d 12% said \u201cYes.\u201d)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But it\u2019s also probable that your direct report might not concede the truth. You are their boss, after all. And telling a boss they\u2019re a micromanager is the equivalent of, well, slapping them in the face.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Given that your team member does not want to slap you in the face\u2026 you can sort of do it yourself \ud83d\ude42 What I mean by this is that you can consider the behaviors most often exhibited by micromanagers, and honestly reflect: Do I do this?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the research and insights we\u2019ve gathered through Canopy<\/a> and the interviews I\u2019ve done with leaders on our podcast<\/a>, here are the 5 most-telling signs that your answer to \u201cAm I micromanaging my team?\u201d is \u201cDrat, yes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sign #1: You have a habit of asking, \u201cJust checking in on this?\u201d before a project is due.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The clock is ticking and you haven\u2019t heard how a project is coming along. Is it on time? Is it going well? So, you do what feels only natural: You ask, \u201cHow\u2019s it going?\u201d or \u201cWhat\u2019s the latest?\u201d or \u201cJust checking in on this?\u201d While seemingly harmless to you\u200a\u2014\u200aand rather important to you that you have an answer\u200a\u2014\u200ait\u2019s death by a thousand paper cuts for your direct reports. You\u2019re not giving them a chance to prove to you that it\u2019s going well. You\u2019re literally intruding and asking for a status update to appease your own anxiety about progress. Instead, make it clear upfront<\/em> how you\u2019d like progress to be communicated to you, instead of popping in and asking, \u201cJust checking in on this?\u201d on your own whim and schedule.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sign #2: You find yourself saying, \u201cHere\u2019s how I would do it,\u201d before they ask, \u201cHow would you do it?\u201d<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

You want to be helpful. You\u2019ve done the thing a million times yourself. You know the tricks, the nooks, the crannies\u2026 Wouldn\u2019t your team want to know your opinion? They might. But when you assert your opinion before they ask for it, you can obligate a team member to do something your<\/em> way. No one wants to offend their boss by not following their advice. It can feel constricting\u200a\u2014\u200anot to mention distracting\u200a\u2014\u200ato have suggestions heaped on them before they\u2019ve even had an opportunity to wrestle with the problem themselves. Rather, try waiting for your direct report to ask, \u201cHow would you approach this?\u201d instead of offering your advice immediately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sign #3: You mentally log what time someone arrives or leaves the office (or appears online or offline).<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When you\u2019ve got a crucial project on the line, it\u2019s tempting to know that your team will produce the results you\u2019re looking for. And, it\u2019s easy to correlate the likelihood of an outcome with the number of hours spent in the office or online. However, that\u2019s not how it works. The quality of results has nothing to do with the amount of time spent at the office or online. Remind yourself: What you care about are the results. So any energy you spend\u200a\u2014\u200aeven if it\u2019s 30 seconds\u200a\u2014\u200agaging how often someone\u2019s green \u201conline\u201d dot is ever-present in Slack is wasted energy. You\u2019re only building up more frantic, unproductive energy within yourself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sign #4: You say, \u201cI can just do it\u2026\u201d or \u201cLet me just do it\u2026\u201d<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A problem appears. A team member comes to you, asking for your help. Or perhaps it\u2019s a mistake or issue you notice on your own accord. Someone has to fix it\u200a\u2014\u200aso who better than you? You roll up your sleeves and get to work. This is the right move\u2026 right? Not quite. In my podcast<\/a> interview with Wade Foster, CEO of Zapier<\/a>, he shared how solving problems<\/a> as a manager is a big sign you\u2019re not doing your job well as a manager. When you\u2019re the one saying \u201cI can just do it\u201d or \u201cLet me just do it\u201d you don\u2019t give your team a chance to do it. Your team never learns, and thus, they can never get better. You stifle your team, and unknowingly to you, are micromanaging them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sign #5: You ask: Can you \u201ccc\u201d me on that?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

You want to be in the loop<\/a>. You need context to do your job well as a manager. As a result, you ask \u201cCan you \u2018cc\u2019 me on that?\u201d While appropriate in some cases, your reliance on this phrase can also reveal how much space you\u2019re giving your team to do their best work. Are you asking to be cc-ed on things you don\u2019t truly need to copied on? Is it \u201cjust in case,\u201d to quell your own uncertainty? Consider that the more you use this phrase\u200a\u2014\u200aand the greater triviality of the message you\u2019re asking to be cc-ed on\u200a\u2014\u200athe more you\u2019re trying to micromanage your team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If one (or all) of these signs of micromanagement had you nodding begrudgingly\u200a\u2014\u200ait\u2019s okay. You don\u2019t need to castigate yourself or hide in shame. There are some small, practical things you can do to avoid becoming a micromanager.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead of defaulting controlling tendencies, here are some questions you can ask to avoid micromanaging:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n