Micromanagement in the Workplace and You

I effin hate this word. It’s such an ugly 15 letter word. So ugly, that I don’t have a better word to describe it, aside from ugly. Micromanagement is ugly any way it’s presented. We all know what it means. We know someone who has worked for a micro-manager. Maybe some of us have even worked for a micro-manager. It’s a shitty feeling being micromanaged.

How do you feel about Micromanagement?

Do you feel used? or maybe incompetent? or maybe you feel like you’re not trusted. Yeah, that’s the magic word I’m looking for; “trust”. Micromanagement at any level has no trust in it. If you’ve ever experienced it, its a low sickening feeling. You are trusted more than the photocopier.

Look at it this way, your manager will go to the photocopier to make copies that they desire. Why? Because they trust that the photocopier will do the job. Make the photocopy. You on the other hand, not so much. You are asked to do something, but just as you are to jump into the task, in a polite way you are told; “I think you should do this like this and maybe add this and subtract this…” WTF is that?” Micromanaging at it’s finest.

Why does Micromanaging happen?

One word: Insecurity. That’s the be all and end all of why micromanaging happens. Someone is passing their insecurity off to you. Why? There could be a number of reasons, such as they are afraid you will do a better job than them or they simply just want to control everything to gain the credit at the end.

Effects of Micromanagement

There are many effects of micromanagement, such as the feeling of being controlled and mistrust. Once the employee gets the sense of being controlled, they become disengaged from their jobs. They lose interest and don’t feel that their ides are being valued. This article addresses some key NEGATIVE effects of micromanagement on the employee. None of which are positive by the way.

Micromanaging is simply inefficient. It’s repressive as well. It turns the employees off immediately. How can one possibly do their job right, if they are told every step along the way on how to do it. It simply not a long-term solution. It may work initially, but it hinders the relationship between them employee and the manager. New ideas, new products, new markets are discouraged as the talent to create and move forward has been imprisoned in the mind of one person – micro-manager.

A wiseman once said: “Get the barriers out of the way, to let people do what they do well” -  Robert Noyce, Founder of Intel

To add to the above, I sat in a meeting once presented by a consultant within my industry. I got to know this 67 year old man fairly well over the years. He gave me good insight and helped me get through some barriers to overcome certain challanges of getting my job done. Too bad he’s retiring at the end of next year. Anyways back to this meeting. He said during his presentation:

“I look around the room, there are quite a few talented employees here. The owner pays them, the least he can do is listen to what they have to say”

Overcoming Micromanagement

Fighting back won’t do anything about it, as it’s clearly illustrated in this article. Instead do the opposite. Work hard at gaining that mangers trust. Remember, this is more of an emotional/mental issue than a process. Schedule regular meetings to discuss progress. Ask for input from them, rather than doing everything your self.

The key here is to gain trust, rather than rebel against the system. Most importantly try to understand what worries that manager, which pushes them to micr0manage. In the end if there is no positive progress being made, it’s time to move on somewhere where you can fully utilize your skills. Somewhere where your quality of work will be appreciated and you will be given a full opportunity to do your job.

To conclude, I’d just like to say to all the micro managers in the world. You are a sad soul. You ain’t got enough to do.
Seriously.
Take on some new projects until you are forced to take your nose out of your employee’s business. Let them breathe and their results will flourish.

Have you ever worked for a Micro-manager? How did it make you feel?

Eddie