before the title

You're not a manager yet. Here's how you get there.

The rest of this site is for after you get the job. This part is for before, the case you build, the habits you start, and the conversations that turn "I want to be a manager" into "here's why I'm ready."

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The Whole Year on One Page
Twelve months, one move each, from the first conversation with your boss to the direct question. Start here if you only read one.
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How to Get Promoted to Manager When You've Never Managed Anyone
You can't get management experience without a management job, and you can't get the job without the experience. Here's the way out.
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Start With Small Leadership Opportunities
You don't need a company-wide initiative. Coordinating one small project with real people is enough to start building evidence.
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Learn to Delegate Before You Have Direct Reports
Doing it yourself is faster, right up until it isn't. Delegation is a skill you can practice long before anyone reports to you.
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Build Relationships Across the Organization
Managers succeed through people, not just technical ability. Start building the relationships that make collaboration easy now.
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Become Comfortable With Accountability
You can't want the authority without the responsibility. Practice explaining what went wrong, including your part in it, now.
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Ask for Responsibility, Not Just a Promotion
"When will I be promoted" is hard to answer. "What responsibility could I take on" isn't. Ask the second one.
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Do Not Confuse Visibility With Value
Speaking in every meeting isn't leadership. Making your work useful to other people is what actually builds a case for promotion.
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Prepare for the Conversation About Readiness
Eventually you have to ask your boss directly whether they see you as a future manager. Here's how to have that conversation well.
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How to Get Promoted to Manager in the Next 12 Months
Timing matters, openings matter, and sometimes there just isn't a job available. A month-by-month plan for building the case, and knowing when to look elsewhere.