10 Reasons You Don’t Want to Be the Boss

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How about I just don't want people to report to me and I don't want to work the extra hours involved in being a manager. My personal time is important to me and I don't want work to interfere, just as I don't let my personal life interfere with my job.

Dee G. of CT 10:12AM January 02, 2013

How about the 10 reasons to be a manager:
1) The goose pimples you get when you see a struggling person finally get it and it was because of your mentoring.
2) The gratitude you receive when issuing a well deserved promotion.
3) The sea of smiles you receive when sending a team off to class to learn to a new skill.
4) The look of excitement and anticipation when hiring a new associate.
5) The gratitude you receive from your team when you coached them through a problem allowing them to solve it on their own.
6) The proud feelings you have for your team when they run into problems, solve the issues on their own and just let you know the status along the way.
7) Writing performance reviews for your best staff.
8) Giving the performance reviews to your best staff.
9) Celebrating successes with your team.
10) Writing a thank you note to your staff for delivering the most impossible project on time and within budget.

Pat Malloy of IL 3:17PM August 07, 2012

fyi

George Thottam of CT 4:42PM August 05, 2012

Well, even in my former job (NPD project manager) I was handling with most of the topics (of course, except of HR field) and I assume they are connected also to the jobs where one has NO management power but responsiblity = e.g. mentioned project manager.

Petra 6:10AM March 23, 2012

Excellent!bThank you for the info on my dream job. This is an eye opener.

Leola of LA 9:29AM December 29, 2011

The problem is that there are no managers in the US. They have no training in employee relations or organisation and are not qualified to manage. The incompetence of US managers is the reason companies go bankrupt and there are mass layoffs. In other countries like Germany and the UK, for example, arbitrary layoffs are very difficult. If there is a valid reason the company is held responsible for having hired him and the employee they hired stays on with full pay for a period until he finds a new job. Managers of medium to large companies must have formal management education by law. Every employee of a company from janitor up is considered a manager in his own right and has input in company policy. All of these concepts including regulation of company policies and ethics are completely foreign to America, which is why the US is going down the tubes.

Mark of UT 6:29AM December 13, 2011

I would add to be prepared for upper management to not support middle management. I see my boss in between a rock and a hard spot all the time. He has no support other than the 3 of us that work under him. He gets pinned into a corner and has to defend himself or us regularly. This alone is the only reason I have preferred to stay out of management. Why would I position myself to have the people above me put unending pressure on me, assign ridiculous deadlines with limited resources and then pin me into a corner when we don't make deadlines? Who would do that? I don't need that stress. The 10 reasons you named are not issues for me but not having support of upper management is the 1 thing that keeps me from pursuing management. It may be worth it for some but not for me, at least not in this season in my life.

ruth of TN 10:50PM December 01, 2011

Being the boss has never a popularity contest, but that doesn't mean people won't like you or your wont have friends at work. Just try to make close relationships over lunch with peers or build up your networking relationships they will come in handy during periods of retrenchment. You might be able to help others by giving a referral letter or some advice on who's hiring. Boss don't have to play the bully as your article suggest.

Lee of CA 7:20PM November 29, 2011

My tough part is always that I want to be liked by everyone. :) So far, in management, I've actually done a decent job of it, but I know that future management positions aren't likely to be like that... terror!

Kim of DC 11:18AM November 29, 2011

Great post. I have been researching what it takes to be a great manager, as I fear this is where my position is going. Unfortunately, in the company where I work, the only way to get paid more money is to have people reporting to you. Reading this post makes me think it isn't worth the extra money!

Jane 10:18PM November 28, 2011