Are You Leading or Just Managing? Let’s Find Out

The terms manager and leader often get used interchangeably, but should they? “Leading versus managing” is a common search phrase. At HPC, we don’t really think it’s a “versus” situation. You can be a good manager without being a great leader, but you can’t be a great leader without strong management skills. So, what’s distinct about them, and why does it matter? Let’s break it down. 

You Manage Time and Tasks

Management primarily involves managing things that largely impact people, but it does not seek to influence people like leadership does. 

It’s hard to lead others well if you can manage your tasks and your time and help others do the same.  

Here are two resources for growing in managing your tasks and time so you can model that well for others: 

• Book Review of When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing
• Want to be a millionaire? A Good Leader? Manage Your Time First (an oldie but a goodie)

You Lead People

Leadership at its core is simply influencing others to achieve desired and mutually beneficial outcomes. To do this, you have to manage your time and tasks well and help others do the same, but you also have to: 

• Create and share a vision. Where you are wanting to influence people to go, and how?
• Provide individual influence to achieve the desired outcomes.

Focus on what you can control by modeling the behaviors you want to see.

Deploy strategies to meet people where they are to provide positive influence. Some models/books we like related to this are:

• Situational Leadership (and The One Minute Manager)
• The Motivational/Influence techniques Mel Robbins describes in Chapters 14-15 of her book Let Them

Be sure to check out our coaching moment videos that are coming out over the next few weeks to gain practical tips and tools on how you can manage and lead effectively.