Micro-Managing Can Lead to The Peter Principle

When I made the conscious decision of stop doing the work and only to decide the work, I realize:

When I clung to do the work before I was a manager, I would become a micro-manager.

A micro-manager is a boss that would oversee every single detail of your work down to the smallest task.

This happens because the manager doesn’t let go of their previous role and don’t accept their new one, in my case, a senior contributor to the team.

If I went with this, I would do both jobs of contributing and managing the team badly - I could solve this by “delegating” the contribution part to a single individual with detailed oversight. Eventually, I would see this person isn’t contributing to “my levels” and I would take them up to my level with detailed guidance, emphasis on detailed as I would give them the exact steps I would do.

Over the long term, both get frustrated. The manager doesn’t grow as they are constantly trying to get the delegated team member to their level. The delegated team member resents having every detail of their job dictated to them.

This manager stays at their current level, not advancing further in their career. which is also known as the “Peter Principle”, where a company promotes a person to level of work they cannot do achieve more.

Does micro-management and The Peter Principle go hand-in-hand? It definitely does!

How does one overcome being a micro-manager and grow past their current role?

By letting go of your old role, in essence, your old self.

(Yes, easier said than done!)

Ultimately, what got you promoted won’t get you to the next level, especially a shift from a contributing role to a managing role. The skills for success in both roles are radically different.

The only thing in common is: YOU!

How would you break this cycle?