Free Manager Cheat Sheets

You don’t have to wing it and hope for the best. These cheat sheets are your roadmap to becoming a confident and effective leader.

Author

Roel Timmermans
March 22nd, 2024

Feeling Lost in the Leadership Jungle? ️
Here are your Free Manager Cheat Sheets!

Ditch the guesswork and level up your management skills with my collection of cheat sheets. Each one tackles a crucial aspect of being a great manager, like:

  • Setting a clear vision to inspire your team.

  • Onboarding new hires for success from day one.

  • Providing crystal-clear direction to avoid confusion.

  • Showing recognition to keep your team motivated.

  • Creating a healthy work environment that promotes mental well-being.

Cheat sheets index

1. Preventing Office Politics

I don't know anyone who likes office politics. They:
💥 derail teams,
☠️ kill efficiency,
🚫 hinder progress,
😓 & demotivate people.

I'll be real here, you're not gonna be take out all of the politics. But you can make an effort in preventing it as much as possible.

2. First Time Manager

I've made plenty of mistakes as a 1st time manager.
If you landed your first manager role, you will too.

However, that is not a bad thing. We all learn from mistakes, no one starts out perfect.

You can however, make a great start. Just follow the sheet and the Notion Workbook.

The biggest mistake I made?
Probably not providing enough clarity.

That doesn't help you team to actually focus on outcome. It also keeps yourself in a bottleneck position, everyone still needs you for info, continuously.

3. Onboarding New People

Do you remember a moment when:
🧑‍💼 You started at a new job?
🙋 Chat with your manager
☕️ Tried the coffee options
👨‍💻 Installed your computer
🤷‍♂️ Thought: 𝘕𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵?

Felt a bit like you were lost right?Perhaps brought some 1st doubts about the job.

If you're hiring new people, make sure they don't feel lost.
Foolproof that onboarding process.

The seven tips below help you tackle the most common issues.

4. Recognition at Work

Do you remember the moment when:
🗼Your dad cheered for you because you built a massive Lego tower?

🥅 Or the moment you scored that winning goal and everybody was superhappy because of you?

👂Or how about the moment you you helped out a friend in need, and later on the shared how much that meant to them?

Felt good right?

We all want recognition at some point, and perhaps wanting it can feel egotistical. But the feeling you got when you were recognized, it does something to you.

Makes you feel like you matter.

And you do.

We all do.
We all feel better from it.
We all benefit from getting it once in a while.
And so do the people on your team.
So give them some recognition.

Here are 7 things to keep in mind:

5. Clarity at Work

Many stumble when it comes to this:
- bringing clarity to the workplace.

But sidestep these 3 common pitfalls, and you'll outshine most.

I assure you.

❌ 1. Lack of Defined Roles and Responsibilities.
→ Remember, ambiguity stifles progress.

✅ Do this instead:
↳ Clearly outline individual duties and tasks.
↳ Develop role matrices for team clarity.


❌ 2. Unclear Communication Channels.
→ It leads to confusion and inefficiency.

✅ Do this instead:
↳ Establish transparent communication pathways.
↳ Document workflows for easy reference.


❌ 3. Neglecting Feedback Culture.
→ It hinders growth and improvement.

✅ Do this instead:
↳ Encourage open dialogue and regular feedback.
↳ Implement structured feedback mechanisms.

Don't create a culture where everything becomes based on assumptions, we all know assumptions are the mother of all Fuck-ups.

Clarity is the cornerstone of organizational success.
Avoid these missteps, use the cheat sheet.

6. Mental Health at Work

Mental health should be a non-negotiable.

A couple of years ago I was running a marketing team,
... you may have related to this: I was that team.

Working to support a number of internal teams,
running campaign after campaign.
The work couldn't suffer,
so I had to.

I was working towards a burnout 🤯

It tought me things.
Things I used to:
➟ Say a lot more "No"
➟ Prevent it happening again
➟ Spot things getting out of control

I put a bunch of them and others in this cheat sheet.
Make sure your team doesn't burn out.
Don't negotiate on mental health.

Use the sheet.

7. Establishing a Vision

Most leaders are awful at crafting their company's vision.

But if you dodge these 3 common missteps,
you'll be better than most of them.
I assure you.

❌ 1. No clear and engaging objective.
→ Remember a vision is not a KPI, it's not a number.

✅ Do this instead:
↳ From the vision derive what impact you want to make, from that an outcome you want to see, and then work your way to the metrics.


❌ 2. Neglecting Employee Empowerment.
→ This suppresses a shared sense of ownership.

✅ Do this instead:
↳ Give employees a chance to shine.
↳ Let them decide on the output needed to get to the outcome.


❌ 3. Ignoring Achievements.
→ It diminishes morale and motivation.

✅ Do this instead:
↳ Celebrate team's accomplishments.
↳ Acknowledge good work to boost morale and drive to support the vision.


Remember, a powerful vision is the core of a successful business. Avoid these blunders, and use the topics in the cheat sheet below and you have a head start. And remember Vision, Mission, Purpose, all different things.

8. Feedback Culture

A robust feedback culture is the cornerstone of organizational growth and success. If we all see it as opportunity, and can serve it as help. The possibilities are amazing.

Here are 7 common challenges,
tackle them and you'll
lay the foundation
for a culture
where

feedback is:
↳ valued,
↳ encouraged,
↳ and acted upon.

❌ 𝟭. 𝗙𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗨𝗽.
→ Silence is a killer for innovation and growth.
✅ Do this instead:
↳ Focus on open dialogue and constructive criticism being welcomed.
↳ Create a level of psychological safety for employees to voice their opinions and ideas without fear of reprisal or any negative consequences.

❌ 𝟮. 𝗟𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗠𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘀𝗺𝘀.
→ Leads to missed opportunities for improvement.
✅ Do this instead:
↳ Establish regular and structured feedback processes and channels.
↳ Implement formats that best suit the goal and person to get comprehensive insights and not just critique.

❌ 𝟯. 𝗙𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗔𝗰𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸.
→ Erodes trust and undermines the value of feedback.
✅ Do this instead:
↳ Actively listen to feedback and demonstrate a commitment to and taking of meaningful action.
↳ Communicate changes resulting from feedback to show its impact and value.

❌ 𝟰. 𝗟𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗻 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗖𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲.
→ It hinders the development of a feedback-rich environment.
✅ Do this instead:
↳ Provide training and resources on cultivating a feedback culture. (𝙏𝙄𝙋 𝙞𝙣 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨)
↳ Offer workshops and coaching to develop feedback skills and mindset.

❌ 𝟱. 𝗟𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗼𝗳 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀.
→ It diminishes the incentive to provide feedback.
✅ Do this instead:
↳ Recognize and appreciate feedback contributions at all levels of the organization.
↳ Highlight instances where feedback lead to positive outcomes and improvements.

❌ 𝟲. 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗮𝗻𝗼𝗻𝘆𝗺𝗼𝘂𝘀.
→ It undermines accountability and transparency.
✅ Do this instead:
↳ Encourage open and transparent feedback channels and processes.
↳ Foster a culture where feedback is given and received openly and constructively.

❌ 𝟳. 𝗗𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸.
→ It discourages honest communication and learning.
✅ Do this instead:
↳ Embrace feedback as an opportunity for growth and improvement. (hard to do, I know)
↳ Respond to feedback with gratitude and a willingness to learn and adapt.

Establishing a feedback culture is key to driving organizational excellence and continuous improvement.

9. Workplace Bias

Your brain is constantly bombarded with info,
it has some hacks, but be wareful of some:

Supposedly your brain takes in the equivalent of 74GB of data each day.

To navigate this complexity,
we rely on 𝗰𝗼𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝗮𝘀𝗲𝘀,
mental shortcuts that help us
make quick decisions.

While these shortcuts can be helpful in everyday situations, they can also lead to irrational choices in the workplace.

I put some together in 2 cheat sheets.
I could probably fill more.

Some of these biases
can be a danger to success,
some are just plain hard no-go's.

I assume you know which are which.


𝗣.𝗦. Which is the worst?

10. Time Management

Unless you're Ali Abdaal perhaps,
you might want to save this list.

Myself included,
Time management is
scarce skill, but one that brings value

One of the things I have always need to upskill in:
how to be efficient with time,
and how to properly plan.

Some of these are sure to bring some:
- efficiency
- less time wasted
- real priorities to the front
- free space in your agenda

P.S. Which one do you already use?

My favorite: say more "No"

You may want to bookmark this page, I’ll add more cheatsheets as I create them. If you want more leadership content, watch out for the newsletter, and follow me on LinkedIn. 

I talk about these topics daily.

Cheers,

Roel

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