Micromanagers are never fun to deal with. They are controlling, and they just don’t seem to let their team members do anything without looking over their shoulder, breathing down their neck, and critiquing their every move and every click of a mouse! This type of control can cause team members to hate their managers and they may even find a way to escape.
Surely this can’t be me, I am not a micromanager. I’m not that bad!
You don’t have to be that bad to be labelled as a micromanager, all it takes is maybe one or two signs of micromanagement that may cause your team members to dislike you.
Below, are 5 signs that you are a micromanager
1. You don’t trust that your team will do a good job
You are anxious, worried, or simply just don’t think that your team members can do a decent job. Sometimes, you may feel that you are better off doing it yourself. It is often your way or the highway. You don’t care if your team knows a different way or has a different style of completing projects. It is your way or the highway
2. You only offer your criticisms
When was the last time that you told your team good job? If you haven’t told your team that they are doing well, then this could because you are constantly micromanaging every task that you give them. You are constantly offering you “constructive criticism” way before the task is even finished
3. Your team members avoid you
Were you invited to the latest happy hour? Maybe when you come around, they are always going to the bathroom or quickly closing out of whatever they are working on. This could be due to they are not in the mood for your harsh criticisms on a product that is not even complete yet
4. You send out too many emails regarding one task
You send out way too many emails regarding one task. You may want to know what the status is many days before the deadline, or even worse – you want to see what they are working on. In fact, you may even send out one extremely long email, which details how you want the task to be completed. This email probably took the same amount of time to write as it did to just complete the task.
5. You have the urge to know everything that is going on throughout the day.
“CC me on everything,” you say. “Only I will respond to the stakeholder…” you may also say. This is odd behavior, especially if your team is an experienced team. You must know what is going on, what everyone is saying, thinking, and doing at all times. How dare you team members have a discussion with you.
If you believe you may be a micromanager. Do not get yourself down, there is time to turn around. In fact, your employees will love it, and you may want to turn yourself around before your employees go elsewhere. Your team members come with experiences, point of views, talents, and most importantly – a voice. If their voice is shunned with your over-powering, micromanagement style, it may cause a shift in motivation-levels for the worst. Most employees want their project to succeed – no one gains anything in a failing project. So, get the idea that you know everything, and your way is the best way out of your head right now and start assigning tasks with a due date, and trust that it will get done. Once you get past that hurdle, you can get back on track with project management and ditch the micromanagement.
Defined by Her 