How to Embrace Your New Identity as a Manager

HBR On Leadership

Becoming a manager for the first time comes with many common challenges: balancing your time, managing team conflicts, and delegating work to direct reports.

But leadership coach Jen Dary says there are also subtler challenges—like learning to actually see yourself as a leader. Assuming responsibility for other people’s professional development and personal happiness does change you. And the feelings can be mixed until you’re able to build your identity and confidence back up.

In this episode, Dary discusses how you can explore your new identity as a manager. You’ll learn how to plan your own professional development, deal with disillusionment, and set priorities and boundaries with your team—all while juggling the responsibilities of your new role.

This is the first episode in a special series highlighting the four best leadership episodes of 2023, curated from across Harvard Business Review’s podcasts.

Key episode topics include: leadership, gender, leadership development, managing people, early career.

HBR On Leadership curates the best case studies and conversations with the world’s top business and management experts, to help you unlock the best in those around you. New episodes every week.

• Listen to the original Women at Work episode: How to Manage: Finding Yourself Again (2023)
• Find more episodes of Women at Work.
• Discover 100 years of Harvard Business Review articles, case studies, podcasts, and more at HBR.org.