Managing up is one of the most important skill sets you can develop as a leader, and almost nobody teaches it. You don't take a class on this in school and you likely are not mentored around how to do it. With the prevalent ‘power over’ approach to leadership that runs rampant today, we are trained to simply do what we’re told. It may sound counter intuitive, but to be a great steward of yourself, your team, your projects and your goals, you have to be a steward of clear communication and expectation setting. Here's where I want to slow it down. Before you get to the how of managing expectations, whether that's above you, below you, across from you, etc., you have to do the deeper work of understanding that you need to put yourself at the same level as everyone else. Despite what the hierarchy may say, nobody is above you and nobody is below you. Not in terms of you being an equal human to everybody else. Period. Point blank. We've been trained not just to say ‘yes’, but to defer. We’ve been trained to get it done at all costs at any cost. And of course, we’ve been trained usually to do things the way our manager likes, or the way the template dictates, and are not encouraged to allow our own style and creativity to shine through. We have to decondition from this type of thinking in the new age of leadership. I know this work intimately because I’ve been in large multinational organizations with high expectations, high standards, and significant pressure to win in the marketplace. The pressures of our capitalist society, of constant growth, and of constant increase of profits, mean that there's often unrealistic expectations placed on us. So what we have to do is manage up, down, and all around, and that means we will have to name the things that people don't want to hear. Episode Highlights: Why managing up is one of the most important leadership skills and why nobody teaches you how to do it The deeper work of honoring that you are not above and not below anyone else How to communicate timeline disruptions without bringing problems. Bring obstacles, reality, and potential solutions. The "here's the menu, which way do you want to go?" approach that empowers both you and your leader Why documenting in writing isn't just CYA, it's how you land the point and help people make better decisions How checking in on priorities keeps you from running and gunning toward something that changed two months ago Why over-communicating is your friend, especially in new roles, new companies, or with new leadership How managing expectations enables setting appropriate boundaries and protecting yourself from burnoutQuotables: [01:04:50:15] "The very first step of this work is for you to honor that you are not above and you are not below anyone else, that you are just as valuable." [01:07:35:20] "I'm not saying bring the problems to your leadership or to the stakeholders. I'm saying bring the obstacles, bring the reality, and then bring potential solutions." [01:08:50:14] "This is how you both empower yourself and empower your leader to say, here's the menu. Which way do you want to go?" [01:16:24:04] "We have to break the systems that are happening right now. In order to break the systems, we have to change how we lead."Stop letting self-doubt dictate your decisions and actions. Take back the power from your inner critic and take the Inner Critic Compass today to see which one is running your show. As a gift, I'll send you a toolkit to help you on your path to be your own best friend: https://www.toscadimatteo.com/innercritic-compass Tosca's Links and Resources: Sign up for Tosca's Newsletter: http://toscadimatteo.com/newsletter Tosca's Website: https://www.toscadimatteo.com Get in Touch with Tosca: https://www.toscadimatteo.com/contact Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/toscadimatteo/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toscadimatteo/Props for: Theme music by Adrian DiMatteo: https://adriandimatteo.com
