Managing Yourself Up

Managing up is a term I heard on the radio this morning that has taken on a new meaning in the workforce. Truly this term is not new, and has been around during the last 50 years. The thought came from a satirical play and now a motion picture titled "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying." The play had you believing that to manage up meant kissing up to your boss. Originally, the concept of managing up is truly not about kissing up or maneuvering up, but it's about the relationship with you and your boss, or you and the organization (Turk, W. p. 21). In all honesty you are being aware and bringing attention about the relationship with your boss as well as the organization and with those individuals within the organization who have different ideas.

Managing up could also just mean that you need to stretch in your thinking, in your doing, and in your working belief systems. While working in your assigned area and the tasks assigned to you extend the tasks and enhance your department (Garone, E. Wall Street Journal). Make the tasks more meaningful, and more enjoyable, and reach beyond the mundane effort of day in and day out routines. Basically within that realm of making those tasks more valuable you are creating a better organization and a better relationship directly with your manager.

Another advantage to the concept of managing yourself up is the fact that you are valuing yourself within that organization. That should promote yourself as an upstanding person and will draw attention to yourself so as to obtain a possible promotion. The real question then becomes how does one manage yourself up? There are very simple steps to help you manage yourself to a greater you or as this article states manage yourself up.

Communicate, communicate and communicate some more. This is vital to all endeavors to managing one's own self. Not just through verbal, but through non-verbal communication. That means that through communication you will need to listen, and take heed to knowing how managers manage the department and know the expectations of the boss.

Being aware, provide solutions to problems, not more problems, be honest and trustworthy in all endeavors are good ways to manage yourself up. Other ways are to be loyal and committed to the boss, management and the mission or vision of the company, and be ever respectful and observant of the boss? perspective, preferences and his agenda.

Along with the above suggestions there are a few others about your own specific self. Be sure that you also understand your own management style, and how you respond to managers. Develop a working relationship with your manager as well as your boss. Know your strengths and weaknesses, and learn to use these to your advantage. Learn how best to organize yourself (Turk, W. p. 22).

Keep your boss in the loop, and never go over his head or behind his back. Also, keep in mind that your boss has weakness, and you might be able to offset that with a positive spin. Request feedback before your evaluation is due; find out how well you are doing so that you can change now instead of later when it becomes too late.

Managing up is not brownnosing, and it?s not kissing up or kissing the boss' ***. You are also not moving yourself into the position as the boss? pet. It's helping yourself become a better worker, a better individual, and an overall better team player in the workforce that you are employed. Managing up is a way to promote yourself as a successful individual, and to state that you are worthy of success.

References:

Garone, Elizabeth. What It Means to ?Manage Up? Wall Street Journal. 27 Sept. 2011 Retrieved From: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122511931313072047.html

Turk, Wayne. The Art of Managing Up. Defense AT&L. March-April 2007 p21-24. 27 Sept. 2011 Retrieved From: http://www.uthscsa.edu/gme/documents/TheArtofManagingUp.pdf