How to Stop Micromanaging your Team

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How to Stop Micromanaging Your Team

Micromanaging is a common management mistake. Micromanaging means "excessive interference by managers in the implementation of tasks performed by subordinate colleagues, which leads to a drop in their productivity and negative stress on working relationships".

Micromanaging can be corrected by eliminating its causes and replacing them with a new set, which generate more productivity and stronger working relationships.

What causes managers to micromanage their staff?

Micromanagement, like all harmful behaviour, is governed by "negative belief systems", which are routinely enacted, and which create their corresponding destructive results.

Micromanaging is caused by the manager holding five specific disempowering beliefs.

The solution to micromanaging is to identify the five causal beliefs, delete them from the management mind-set and replace them with an opposing set of positive beliefs which lead to an Innovative Management Style.

What are the five destructive beliefs that cause micromanagement?

Micromanagers hold one or more of the following beliefs and it drives them to do the wrong things:

1. If you want a job done right, you must do it yourself.
2. It is quicker if I just tell them how to do it.
3. If I leave this task to them, they may do it wrong, and I will have to pick up the pieces, so I had better keep a very close eye on things.
4. If I leave this task to them, they will do it differently to the way I would have done it, and I like things done my way!
5. If my subordinate colleagues complete this task without my guidance, I may end up making myself surplus to requirements and redundant, so I will keep them in the dark, because MY KNOWLEDGE IS MY POWER!.

Negative thoughts like these, drive negative micromanagement behaviours.

The Solution to Micromanagement

The solution to micromanagement is to cast aside the old beliefs and replace them with those that underpin an innovative management style, as follows:

1. I am a limited resource facing an unlimited demand; therefore, I cannot micromanage everything and it would be a mistake to try, which means I must delegate tasks.
2. It is quicker if I just tell them how to do it, but that way, they will never learn how to solve problems and there will be no evolutionary progress or innovation.
3. If I leave tasks to the wrong people, they will fail, so I will give the right tasks to the right people and give them the necessary support they need, but never more than they need.
4. If I leave this task to them, they will do it differently to the way I would have done it, and it will be very interesting to see what new ideas they come up with, since there are many ways to achieve any goal!
5. If my subordinate colleagues complete this task without my guidance, then I will have trained a fully functioning team, and I will be more able to concentrate on higher-value tasks, which will make better use of my experience, and may lead to my professional advancement.

Steps to end micromanagement

Micromanagers should compare and contemplate the Micromanager's belief systems and that of the Innovation Manager, and ask themselves two questions:

1. Which list corresponds most to my current way of thinking.
2. Which set of beliefs, if implemented would lead to greater productivity, greater innovation and better working relationships.

The answer is obvious. Here is a comparison chart.

The above belief systems should be contemplated and compared,

Learn more about Innovative Management

Corporate Coach Group's leadership and management training courses will help you to develop the skills that we've discussed to help you move away from micromanagement.

Sign up for online training, book an open session, or arrange bespoke training for your company.

About the Author: Chris Farmer

Chris Farmer is the founder of the Corporate Coach Group and has many years’ experience in training leaders and managers, in both the public and private sectors, to achieve their organisational goals, especially during tough economic times. He is also well aware of the disciplines and problems associated with running a business.

Over the years, Chris has designed and delivered thousands of training programmes and has coached and motivated many management teams, groups and individuals. His training programmes are both structured and clear, designed to help delegates organise their thinking and, wherever necessary, to improve their techniques and skills.

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