In December, I got an offer to become a Team Lead at an Ed-Tech startup in a new city. For a while, I had lingering mixed feelings and was not sure of what to expect. But then, I reminded myself of my achievements and how I got to this point. So I packed my bags, hyped myself, stayed positive, and decided to fully immerse myself in this new opportunity. It’s been 4 months so far and here are 3 things I’ve learned so far:
1. Always Explore (Google is your Friend)
There have been so many times I’ve had to look up how to do things online to learn from other first-time senior management leaders and industry experts. I’ve also had to research the best ways to build teams and processes since I had to hire new people and establish processes to make work processes more efficient. These days, I’m making more effort to learn more; I’m revisiting old blog posts to remind myself of things I already know. I’m currently listening to The Compound Effect by Darren Hardy on Audible and spending a bit more time interacting more with professionals outside my area of expertise.
2. Be Patience
There were instances I spoke to soon as a Team Lead. There were also instances I did not give my team members room to contribute and complete tasks in their own unique ways. For a while, I even struggled with supporting some of the new hires on my team. But as time went on, I realized that I was a bit distracted with trying to be right almost all the time. I practice patience and graciousness more these days by listening more, responding not reacting, and not always yielding to pressure.
3. Stay Confident
I’ve made some mistakes and bad decisions over the past couple of months. I’ve also allowed them to haunt me for longer than I’d like to admit. But over time, the people closest to me who are more experienced have helped me see things differently. A lot of what I’ve experienced over the past few months is a learning curve and part of the process. I was reminded I’m great at what I do and that my mistakes and bad decisions do not define me. Now every day when I wake up, I push myself to show up as the confident leader I need to be and try to make better choices.
If you have other recommendations on things To Know As A First-Time Team Lead, share them in the comment section.
By Chika Ehirim