There Are No Micromanagers

Despite a wide variety of management styles, most managers have two things in common. They're pretty sure they aren't micromanagers, and most have micromanaged somebody sometime.

Some of us know that we micromanage (or don't); others have some doubts. Here are Four Warning Signs of micromanagement:

• When you charter a task, you feel a strong need to specify or approve exactly how it will be done.
• You feel unsure about your understanding of what your people do, but you think you're concealing it pretty well.
• You require status reports far more frequently than you need for constructive intervention.
• You're so busy that delays happen frequently, while people wait for your input or sign-off.

You can change only
what you can acknowledgeIf two or more of these indicators fit you, you probably feel that you're coping in the best way you can with the shortcomings of the people you supervise. But if their incompetence is a real factor, do something else — micromanagement isn't the answer. Training, transfer, reassignment, or replacement work much better.

Sometimes, simply stepping out of the way works. Usually, if you just let people do their jobs, and let them make some mistakes, you'll be delighted with the results.

If you really want to stop micromanaging, here are six tips to put you on the path to a more peaceful and successful management experience.

Tune in to your own behavior

Becoming aware that you're micromanaging is difficult. Watch for the Four Warning Signs.

Hold a conversation with yourself

You'll be changing your behavior, but you can change only what you acknowledge. Gently, with understanding, tell yourself about your micromanaging.

Choose something different

The only way to change is to change. Promise yourself that you'll do things differently soon, and set a realistic start date.

Tell someone about it

Telling a real person seals the deal. Tell your coach, or tell a close confidant who isn't associated with your position at work. Include your start date and a description of your plans.

Do it

Start managing something small in a new way. When you make a task assignment, tell people the what, and let them work out the how, with help from you only if they ask. Be careful, though, because even if they're complaining about micromanagement, they might be uncomfortable with the change.

Be available to others

When you've made some real progress, look around your organization. Are any of your people micromanaging? How can you guide them in new directions without micromanaging them?

As you carry out this change, take care not to micromanage yourself. Focus not on how you change, but on what you change; not on lapses, but on successes. Remind yourself that there are no micromanagers — there are only managers who micromanage, and they can change. You will be proof of that.  Top    Next Issue

Is every other day a tense, anxious, angry misery as you watch people around you, who couldn't even think their way through a game of Jacks, win at workplace politics and steal the credit and glory for just about everyone's best work including yours? Read 303 Secrets of Workplace Politics, filled with tips and techniques for succeeding in workplace politics. More info

More about micromanagement

There Are No Micromanagers  [January 7, 2004]

If you're a manager who micromanages, you're probably trying as best you can to help your organization meet its responsibilities. Still, you might feel that people are unhappy — that whatever you're doing isn't working. There is another way.

Are You Micromanaging Yourself?  [November 24, 2004]

Feeling distrusted and undervalued, we often attribute the problem to the behavior of others — to the micromanager who might be mistreating us. We tend not to examine our own contributions to the difficulty. Are you micromanaging yourself?

Managing Pressure: Communications and Expectations  [December 13, 2006]

Pressed repeatedly for "status" reports, you might guess that they don't want status — they want progress. Things can get so nutty that responding to the status requests gets in the way of doing the job. How does this happen and what can you do about it? Here's Part I of a little catalog of tactics and strategies for dealing with pressure.

Managing Pressure: The Unexpected  [December 20, 2006]

When projects falter, we expect demands for status and explanations. What's puzzling is how often this happens to projects that aren't in trouble. Here's Part II of a catalog of strategies for managing pressure.

Managing Pressure: Milestones and Deliveries  [December 27, 2006]

Pressed repeatedly for "status" reports, you might guess that they don't want status — they want progress. Things can get so nutty that responding to the status requests gets in the way of doing the job. How does this happen and what can you do about it? Here's Part III of a set of tactics and strategies for dealing with pressure.

How to Tell If You Work for a Nanomanager  [March 7, 2007]

By now, we've all heard of micromanagers, and some have experienced micromanagement firsthand. Some of us have even micromanaged others. But there's a breed of micromanagers whose behavior is so outlandish that they need a category of their own.

Reverse Micromanagement  [July 18, 2007]

Micromanagement is too familiar to too many of us. Less familiar is inappropriate interference in the reverse direction — in the work of our supervisors or even higher in the chain. Disciplinary action isn't always helpful, especially when some of the causes of reverse micromanagement are organizational.

Lateral Micromanagement  [September 10, 2008]

Lateral micromanagement is the unwelcome intrusion by one co-worker into the responsibilities of another. Far more than run-of-the-mill bossiness, it's often a concerted attempt to gain organizational power and rank, and it is toxic to teams.

Bottlenecks: I  [February 4, 2015]

Some people take on so much work that they become "bottlenecks." The people around them repeatedly find themselves stuck, awaiting responses or decisions. Why does this happen and what are the costs?

Bottlenecks: II  [February 11, 2015]

When some people take on so much work that they become "bottlenecks," they expose the organization to risks. Managing those risks is a first step to ending the bottlenecking pattern.

What Micromanaging Is and Isn't  [April 14, 2021]

Micromanaging is a dysfunctional pattern of management behavior, involving interference in the work others are supposedly doing. Confusion about what it is and what it isn't makes effective response difficult.

On Schedule Conflicts  [May 10, 2023]

Schedule conflicts happen from time to time, even when the organization is healthy and all is well. But when schedule conflicts are common, they might indicate that the organization is trying to do too much with too few people.

Reader Comments

John DeMassi

How about an article on the anti-micromanager (the hands-off manager)? I feel at times that I am providing not enough management to my employees. Obviously, the way you have written this article, I could be in denial. Being who I am and knowing my experiences, I will first doubt that thought.

I actually remember times and situations where I was a micromanaging nightmare. I remember how painful it was to force people to do it the way that I would do it and I even had reasons/excuses why it was the right thing to do at that time.

Now, I try to hire people who can run with a set of tasks and not "bother" me unless the sky is falling. I look for technical equals or potential technical equals. I try to steer a course and hope they stay in my wake. I have found that I cannot choreograph the outcome so I try to set the scene and let it happen with a set of bounds. I have found that change is inevitable. My coach/mentor used to say the goal is in cement but the plan is in sand. I use weekly status reports as a mechanism to get the individual to know what they did and to communicate it to me in a very succinct manner. I want three things. What did you do, what will you do next week and what is in your way.

— jdm

Your comments are welcome

Would you like to see your comments posted here? rbrenDJpmhgyaDTwBQXkhner@ChacmGoYuzfZpOvDQdRkoCanyon.comSend me your comments by email, or by Web form.

About Point Lookout

Thank you for reading this article. I hope you enjoyed it and found it useful, and that you'll consider recommending it to a friend.

This article in its entirety was written by a human being. No machine intelligence was involved in any way.

Point Lookout is a free weekly email newsletter. Browse the archive of past issues. Subscribe for free.

Support Point Lookout by joining the Friends of Point Lookout, as an individual or as an organization.

Do you face a complex interpersonal situation? Send it in, anonymously if you like, and I'll give you my two cents.

Related articles

More articles on Workplace Politics:

When You Think Your Boss Is Incompetent

After the boss commits even a few enormous blunders, some of us conclude that he or she is just incompetent. We begin to worry whether our careers are safe, whether the company is safe, or whether to start looking for another job. Beyond worrying, what else can we do?

Projects as Proxy Targets: I

Some projects have detractors so determined to prevent project success that there's very little they won't do to create conditions for failure. Here's Part I of a catalog of tactics they use.

More Obstacles to Finding the Reasons Why

Retrospectives — also known as lessons learned exercises or after-action reviews — sometimes miss important insights. Here are some additions to our growing catalog of obstacles to learning.

Narcissistic Behavior at Work: VII

Narcissistic behavior at work prevents trusting relationships from developing. It also disrupts existing relationships, and generates toxic conflict. One class of behaviors that's especially threatening to relationships is disregard for the feelings of others. In this part of our series we examine the effects of that disregard.

Flattery and Its Perils

Flattery is a tool of manipulation. When skillfully employed, it's difficult to distinguish from praise or admiration. When we confuse flattery with praise, we are in peril.

See also Workplace Politics and Workplace Politics for more related articles.

Forthcoming issues of Point Lookout

Coming May 14: Working with the Overconfident

A cognitive bias known as the Overconfidence Effect causes us to overestimate the reliability of our judgments. Decisions we make based on those judgments are therefore suspect. But there are steps we can take to make our confidence levels more realistic, and thus make our decisions more reliable. Available here and by RSS on May 14.

And on May 21: Mismanaging Project Managers

Most organizations hold project managers accountable for project performance. But they don't grant those project managers control of needed resources. Nor do they hold project sponsors or other senior managers accountable for the consequences of their actions when they interfere with project work. Here's a catalog of behaviors worth looking at. Available here and by RSS on May 21.

Coaching services

I offer email and telephone coaching at both corporate and individual rates. Contact Rick for details at rbrenDJpmhgyaDTwBQXkhner@ChacmGoYuzfZpOvDQdRkoCanyon.com or (650) 787-6475, or toll-free in the continental US at (866) 378-5470.

Get the ebook!

Past issues of Point Lookout are available in six ebooks:

• Get 2001-2 in Geese Don't Land on Twigs (PDF, )
• Get 2003-4 in Why Dogs Wag (PDF, )
• Get 2005-6 in Loopy Things We Do (PDF, )
• Get 2007-8 in Things We Believe That Maybe Aren't So True (PDF, )
• Get 2009-10 in The Questions Not Asked (PDF, )
• Get all of the first twelve years (2001-2012) in The Collected Issues of Point Lookout (PDF, )

Are you a writer, editor or publisher on deadline? Are you looking for an article that will get people talking and get compliments flying your way? You can have 500-1000 words in your inbox in one hour. License any article from this Web site. More info