HERE ARE SOME COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT MANAGEMENT

As your managerial career progresses, you'll learn that many people have false assumptions about managers and their abilities. They think managers are able to read their minds and have no flaws in terms of character, competence, or experience.

Incorrect assumptions such as these are being made. Those who rise to managerial positions typically demonstrate not only a certain level of skill, but also a willingness and perseverance to learn more. No one ever assumes a managerial position with a complete picture of the organization's operations. Here are three misconceptions we want to dispel about management.

Managers can get their hands on any and all data they want.

Again, this is not the case. Managers inquire and seek knowledge, but upper-level management frequently has access to data that doesn't filter down to lower levels. Therefore, you and your team may discover that you perform unnecessary work that could have been avoided if someone had provided you with information that you were unaware even existed.

Managers' sole responsibility is to delegate work to employees.

No one can say for sure who started this falsehood, but we hope it dies out soon. A manager who simply assigns his work to his subordinates, then returns to his office to drink coffee and read the paper is a common target of criticism from disgruntled workers. Effective managers know how to split up jobs, handing off some responsibilities while keeping others in-house. A good manager is always doing something, whether it's delegating work to subordinates, finishing up his own work, or reassembling the project after its components have been finished.

Successful managers are masters of time management.

The reality is that most managers are surprisingly good at managing their time, despite common belief to the contrary. Managers may have made a daily schedule for themselves, but they may not have the freedom or autonomy to actually follow it. Managers are constantly disrupted by subordinates, calls, emails, and those who insist that their own tasks are more pressing than the manager's. We may discover that they accomplished 7 out of 10 tasks today, or on a bad day, none. Effective time management is more challenging for managers because of the people they are responsible for.

It's important to keep these misconceptions in mind as you deal with inquiries and comments from superiors, peers, and employees throughout the day. They probably have high standards for you, despite the fact that you're doing the best you can with what you have.