Promotion as Passage

It helps to view your promotion to GM as a passage rather than an end-point. A passage connotes movement and growth. If you see being a business head as a static experience, you’ll be shocked by what occurs. Typically, most GMs reach a point of being overwhelmed and paralyzed, usually in the third, fourth, or fifth month on the job. During the first two months, they are usually able to convince themselves that it’s only a matter of time before they get on top of things. Then it hits them. They’re never going to get on top of things! A lot of self-doubt can enter at this point, and they may even question whether they’ve got what it takes to be a business head.

Some people are simply not cut out to be a GM, and it is hard to face this reality if you live in a corporation in which this position is valued above all others. If you feel in your gut that this is the wrong spot for you—that you prefer staff work to P&L responsibility, for example—then you must face into this reality courageously. We have coached several GMs who could only admit privately that they didn’t enjoy the role. This may be difficult to do in the short term; it’s tough to be named a business head and then admit you’re not up to it. But in the long run, you and your career will benefit.

Fortunately, most people who become GMs have self-selected for the job. Extensive succession-planning processes and vetting usually ensures that the right people are selected, and typical GM candidates are tough-minded, smart, energetic, and highly motivated.

These traits will serve you well when you feel you’re managing too many issues or have too much to learn in too short a time. As we’ve emphasized, what helps people get through a passage successfully is an openness to new ideas and approaches. Admittedly, this particular passage requires you to absorb a huge amount of new information and to acquire skills you may have disdained in the past. The good news is that if you’ve made it to a business head level, you probably have the capacity to apply yourself effectively to all this learning. This passage may be a trial by fire, but you’re in a better position than most to withstand the heat.