Three jumps for programmers to become senior managers

Author / Yuan Wufan

Many of my fans have talked to me about their career confusion. Some of them have just graduated, and some have been working for more than 10 years.

Everyone’s professional confusion basically revolves around how to continue to improve and how to be promoted to senior managers.

So in this article, I will talk about the leap from programmer to executive.

After graduating from the ivory tower and stepping into the big dye tank of society, after 3 years and 5 years, there have been three extremely important leaps in the course of growth. If you can't step up, your height will end here.

—1—

Technology leap

The so-called technological leap is: from individual beginners to individual contributors

The first jump is from individual beginners to individual contributors. This leap is from a layman to a capable one.

This time, you really opened the door to do things right.

When you were a beginner, your abilities were like this:

Once you become an individual contributor, your abilities have been improved:

So how can the ability jump, the following are several aspects you have to achieve.

The first is the target upgrade.

It is to have strict requirements on oneself, from the previous goalless and clear goal to a clear and achievable goal.

Many students in school are full of ambitions, dreams, and desire for success.

But after entering the company, you suddenly lost your goals and didn't adjust your mentality in time, and you will enter a state of being complacent and reluctant to make progress.

So you must have your own goals, your own goals that need to be upgraded.

How to set goals?

It must meet the smart principle, and don't set unachievable goals for yourself.

Once this goal is not fulfilled, it will become a reason to release your guilt.

Set yourself a stage goal.

What to complete in 1 year

What system to be familiar with in 2 years

What ability to improve in 3 years

…

Target upgrade is the most basic requirement for ability jump.

If a person doesn't even have a goal, what is the difference with Xianyu.

The second is to learn to upgrade.

In student days, we learn new knowledge

This learning method is systematic learning.

But when you enter the enterprise, you obviously don't have a lot of time for systematic learning.

The enterprise is to achieve commercial purposes, which is his only purpose.

How to learn efficiently?

It is necessary to upgrade from a systematic learning method to a multidimensional learning method.

What do you mean?

It is based on the point-to-surface approach, supplemented by the systematic learning approach.

At work, it is often only necessary to focus on solving a specific problem.

But there must be a more complete and in-depth knowledge structure behind these problems.

Therefore, after finishing the work, we still need to continue to learn the knowledge structure behind it.

Take network programming as an example. I made a tool in 15 years, a tool for device discovery, and the udp multicast technology used, and it was successfully developed quickly.

But learning has just begun, and there are many technologies that can be digging deeper:

Expanding from udp, it can be extended to all corners of network technology, from user mode to kernel mode, from API to specific implementation methods, from data structure to algorithm, this is a complete knowledge system.

The third is thinking about upgrading

You have to upgrade from simple thinking mode to deep thinking .

What do you mean?

We will face many difficult problems in our work. You can solve the problems with experience, but if new problems arise, you seem helpless.

Why is this?

Because you lack the ability to think, especially the ability to think deeply.

Deep thinking is not inborn, but can be cultivated.

Acquire in-depth thinking through proficiency in methodology.

First, the 5why analysis method, also known as the "five-question method", is to ask a question point continuously with 5 "whys" to investigate its root cause.

Second, reverse thinking, the so-called reverse thinking, is when you don’t know what to do? You have to think about things in the opposite direction of the people's daily thinking. That is, not according to [Cause] -> [Result], but [Result] -> [Cause].

Third, deliberately connecting, applying what you have learned , and deep thinking is a habit. Since it is a habit, it needs to be practiced. And it requires a lot of deliberate practice.

The fourth is perseverance upgrade

You have to go from the state of giving up when you encounter a problem, and upgrade to a state of perseverance and perseverance.

You must learn to persist, but we are all born with inertia, and inertia can easily defeat us.

We also often find that setting goals is easy but difficult to achieve.

Let's look back, because we lack long-term persistence, and the lack of perseverance leads to very many failures?

As the saying goes, "If you never forget, there must be an echo."

What you look for is the goal. Through continuous efforts, don't give up easily. In the end, we will find that only you are left on this track .

The above 4 upgrades, goals, learning, thinking, and perseverance can be completed step by step.

I believe your ability can be improved.

—2—

Management jump

The second jump is from individual contributors to grassroots managers. This leap, is a single-handedly, turned into a team battle.

With this leap, you really opened the door of management.

Although it just knocked on the door, for you, this is a change in the entire ability system.

When you are a personal contributor, your abilities are like this:

When you are a grassroots manager, your ability requirements have completely changed:

My own work has undergone a radical change, and the requirements have become coordination, organization, and feedback .

So the following 4 upgrades must be done.

The first upgrade is called responsibility upgrade

When you are a personal contributor, you are responsible for the task, give you one thing, tell you the details of the task, and the deadline tells you,

You just need to do it well before the deadline, and it's OK.

And now you need to be responsible for the outcome of this matter.

That is, the same thing is not done by you personally, but you assign tasks to subordinates, and the coach guides the subordinates to complete this task.

The outcome of this task is up to you .

If your leader entrusts you with an arduous task, orders you to complete it within 1 week, and finally messes up and fails to complete it on time, the boss asks why this is so?

You must not shirk responsibility, even if your subordinates do not complete the task, it is your responsibility.

Remember that there are many bumps in the middle. As a grassroots manager, you need to find ways to achieve your goals , because this is your responsibility.

The second upgrade is called action upgrade

You have now gone from going solo to the manager of a team.

Maybe because of your outstanding technical ability, you were promoted to team leader, manager (basic level manager).

As a new manager, one mistake is always made, that is, "Always feel that others do not do well, come by yourself."

This idea is very stupid.

No matter how strong a person is, he can't do an organized team.

When you are a personal contributor, your work is also relatively pure. Use your brain and hands to do this well, and that’s it.

When you are already a grassroots manager, you need to upgrade from direct action with your brain and hands to direct action with your brain. This is a complete action upgrade.

When you encounter a difficult problem and need to overcome it, you need to show your organizational skills, arrange a plan, appoint a suitable responsible person, and give your task orders.

Let your subordinates understand what you think, understand your way, and finally successfully complete the problem.

Remember, never replace them to solve problems.

The third upgrade is called collaborative upgrade

As a personal contributor, your working relationship is relatively simple, with colleagues and leaders in the group.

When you become a manager, your working relationship will become complicated, such as leaders, subordinates, brothers and colleagues, external customers, etc.

At this time, the way of collaboration needs to undergo major changes. You not only need to consider subordinates and leaders, but also other external relationships.

Relationships have become complicated, and the way of working collaboratively needs to be upgraded.

From pure technical collaboration between colleagues in the group, it is upgraded to a mixed mode of cooperation and technical collaboration between groups.

From the closed scope of collaboration to the scope of development collaboration.

When you need to develop a project, you are not only concerned about the work within the group, but also need to consider the work between the groups.

Just as the surface in the mathematical concept is upgraded to a three-dimensional space, the way of collaboration also needs to be upgraded .

The fourth upgrade is called achievement upgrade

Now you need to upgrade from personal achievement to team achievement.

What do you mean?

In the Maslow needs model of people, it progresses layer by layer from physiological needs, safety needs, social needs, respect needs, and self-realization.

Human pursuit is the same. Realizing self-pursuit through one's own efforts is the most basic pursuit. This is also a personal achievement.

Through your management, your subordinates continue to grow, and the team ability becomes stronger and stronger. This is team achievement.

As a grassroots manager, it is difficult for our team to become stronger if we only achieve personal achievement without paying attention to the achievement of subordinates.

if:

What do you think when you have a subordinate whose influence grows stronger and is recognized by more and more people?

If you feel threatened, you feel that your position is lost. Then you can only be a grassroots manager.

You have to know that you represent your entire team. The success of your subordinates is your success; the recognition of your subordinates is your approval.

If a team is not strong, can you still be promoted?

As the boss of a team, you need to have the mind to achieve subordinates in order to go further.

If you can complete responsibility upgrades, action upgrades, collaboration upgrades, and achievement upgrades , then you have completed the management jump and become a true manager.

—3—

Leadership jump

This leap forward is from a grassroots manager to a leader of the team.

If you want to become a leader, you need to change from partial control to mastery of the overall situation, leading the team to strategize, overcome obstacles, defeat the strong with the weak, and ultimately lead to victory.

To complete this jump, you need to do the following 2 upgrades.

The first is strategic upgrade.

The term strategy was originally a military concept. It is a plan that considers the overall situation to achieve overall goals.

It is a long-term plan and a lofty goal. It often takes a relatively long time to plan a strategy, formulate a strategy, and achieve strategic goals.

Tactics are only one of the means to achieve strategy, and what the grassroots managers do is tactics.

Competing for the length of time can be achieved with tactics! If it is a "competition for the male and female", you need to plan from the overall situation. This is the strategy!

What do you mean?

Applying to the enterprise is to " do the right thing "

From the tactical level of grassroots management, do things right and upgrade to "do the right things" at the strategic level.

The most important responsibility of grassroots managers is to lead their subordinates to achieve the company's strategic goals faster and better.

The most important responsibility of the team leader is to formulate the company's strategic goals.

What goals do you want to accomplish and how do you cooperate with suppliers? Plan what to do in the next 3 to 5 years.

The second is the escalation of influence

Influence is the ability to change the thoughts and actions of others in a way that others are willing to accept.

Influence comes from many places. It may be your status in the company's hierarchy, your technical ability, your personal charm, and your personality characteristics.

Influence is a very important weapon. Once you have influence, whether it is the statement of opinions, the removal of obstacles, or the resolution of contradictions, these things will be easily handled.

You can also establish the company's values, vision, and lead by example to motivate the team, which can generate great cohesion.

—4—

Final summary

The jump from programmer to executive requires three major jumps.

From individual beginners to individual contributors.

From individual contributors to grassroots managers.

From grassroots managers to team leaders.

The first leap was the leap from manpower to automobile.

The second jump was the jump from car to airplane.

The third jump was the jump from airplane to spacecraft.

Every leap is a reborn change, a reconstruction of the ability system.

The road is long and difficult. I hope everyone can complete three jumps and be proud of it!