Growing into Leadership: 4 Key Lessons I Learned as a First-Time Manager

Becoming a manager at 24 was a huge milestone for me. It’s something I had been working towards for a while, and when the opportunity came, it felt like a big win. It opened up so many doors for growth, both personally and professionally. But, as you can imagine, it was more challenging than I had expected.

I thought my skills, experience, and knowledge were enough to make the transition, but I quickly realized I had a few wrong mindsets that were holding me back. What helped me succeed as an individual contributor wasn’t quite cutting it in my new role as a manager.
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I’ve learned a lot over the past few months in this role. Here are my four key takeaways:

1 - Humility is Key to Being an Effective Manager

When I first became a manager, I felt like I needed to know everything to prove myself. But I’ve learned that it’s okay to admit you don’t have all the answers. In fact, being a manager isn’t about knowing it all—it’s about knowing when to ask for help.
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There are often people on the team who know more about certain situations than you do, and that’s okay. Asking questions not only helps you make better decisions but also builds trust and credibility with your team. As Amy Edmondson said, “You need to recognize what you don’t know and be willing to learn it.” It’s something my boss reminded me of, too: overconfidence can be dangerous, especially if it leads to pretending you know something you don’t.

2 - Management is All About Process

I used to think of decision-making and execution as one-off events. But I’ve realized that they’re really a series of steps that involve different people across various teams. Without a clear process, any initiative is doomed from the start.
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Before adopting a process-driven approach, I treated projects like tasks on a to-do list. The problem? This way of thinking overlooked all the moving parts. As work piled up, it became harder to track progress and coordinate with others. Now, I’ve learned that having a well-designed process from the beginning makes everything smoother.

More importantly, I’ve realized that failure isn’t usually because of one person’s mistake—it’s often due to a broken or missing process. Blaming others doesn’t help anyone learn. Instead, it’s better to focus on what went wrong in the process and how to improve it.

3 - Letting Go of the 'Superstar Doer' Mindset​

One of my biggest challenges was shifting from being a doer to a manager. I was so used to handling things myself that it was hard to step back and let others take the reins. But I’ve learned that to be an effective manager, I need to focus on the bigger picture—communication, coordination, and ensuring alignment across teams.
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Management is about empowering others to do the work, not doing it all yourself. It’s a mindset shift that took me a while to get used to, but it’s made a huge difference.

4 - Make Mistakes Early

Asking for feedback early on and not waiting until you’ve “perfected” something has been a game changer for me. It allows for adjustments before you’re too far along. I’ve realized that providing regular feedback to the team—whether formal or informal—is just as important.
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One of my biggest takeaways? Don’t wait until the job is done to give feedback. It’s better to catch issues early so they can be fixed along the way.

To sum up...

Becoming a manager has been one of the most humbling experiences of my life. It’s shown me how much there is to learn and unlearn — about myself, my craft, and the people around me.

I’ve had to let go of a few wrong mindsets, and I’m still growing into the role. But with the support of my mentors and the lessons I’ve learned, I’m working on becoming a better leader every day.
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I hope these lessons help you in some way. If they did, leave a comment or share with a friend!