Worker Bee or Manager?

            Source: Scientific American

"Do I want to be a manger?" Many people probably have the same question time over time in their career. How to find out if you are more comfortable as a subordinate or a manager? A lot of it will probably depend on the type of job as well as personal preference.

Recently, I came across a table comparing the characteristics and qualities of managers or individual specialists when I was flipping through the pages of the book "The Unwritten Laws of Business". The book was written with engineers in mind. Some of the characteristic qualities listed might not be applicable for other professions. Also, keep in mind that the book was written back in 1951. 

Manager	Individual Specialist
Extrovert	Introvert
Cordial, affable	Reserved
Gregarious, sociable	Prefers own company
Likes people	Likes equipment and systems
Gets energy from others	Gets energy from within
Dominant	Unassuming
Seeks to understand other views	Seeks the facts of the matter
Likes organizing things	Likes doing things
Interested in:	Interested in:
Business	Science, technology, know-how
Costs	Devices
Use	Function
Practices	Principles
Ability to get many things done	Ability to get intricate things done
Excels at communication	Excels at analysis
Fast, intuitive decision making	Methodical decision making
Talent for leadership	Independent, self-sufficient
Impulsive	Intellectual
Vigorous, energetic	Meditative, philosophical

Table 1. Characteristic Qualities of Managers or Individual Specialists

Setting aside that it is written for engineers, I do not agreed with all the characteristics qualities listed. Let's talk about the ones I agreed with.

"Likes people" - A manager has to work with her subordinates, peers and management. If you don't like dealing with people, you are going to be miserable as a manager. 

"Seeks to understand other views" - Some people have the perception that manager make decisions on everything. Yes in some ways but not everything especially on important decisions. Frequently, the manager will solicit input from her team as well as getting feedback from her management before making a decision.  

"Excels at communication" - This is probably one of the most important characteristic qualities for a manager. Unless the manager can communicate clearly to her team, it is likely that she is not going to get the results she expected.

Here are the characteristics qualities I do not agreed with. 

"Dominant" - If a person is dominant all the time, it is likely that she is not going to listen to input from her team. And in many cases, she is going to end up making a lot of wrong decisions. Worst yet, people will be afraid to speak up.

"Fast, intuitive decision making" - Making fast decisions might work in some jobs. But it might not work in many professions especially on major decisions which will require methodical decision making.

Conclusion

I don't know if we will ever come up with an universal check list to help people find out if they should be a manager. If you cannot figure it out, the best question to ask yourself is "will I be happy?"