Things I thought I knew

1. I thought I knew what it was like to have to deal with customers while performing in the sales role and even as a training coach but it definitely becomes a little more difficult at times as the manager. When dealing with upset or frustrated customers as a manager you can no longer rely on the "let me speak with my manager" line because, well, it's quite obvious. Also, customers often want answers and solutions right away which requires us to make decisions more quickly than we'd sometimes prefer. What I'm finding with this is that although I might be wrong at times at least I'm learning and learning on my own rather than having to rely on what someone tells me.
   
   
2. I thought I knew what it was like to put in long hours and to try and fit everything in during the course of a work day, but again, I'm learning that it sometimes and often takes more. Starting the day with a list of things to get done, coupled with a training schedule was a challenge to me before but the real challenge now is having to deal with additional things as they happen during the day and prioritizing as the day goes on. Something that may have been a high priority at the start of the day can quickly become a lesser one, especially when dealing with customers, fellow coaches and the facility. The savior for me has been to continue planning as best as I can and utilizing the spare minutes and hours to get as much done as possible with a real sense of urgency.
   
   
3. I thought I knew everything that was involved with running a facility and leading a team based on the various tasks that had been given to me and my experiences with them. What I didn't realize was that being a manager requires us to do everything at the same time all the time and the moment we forget about something is the moment that it starts to slip. Unfortunately we don't have the luxury of picking one thing and seeing it right through from start to finish without having to think about or deal with something else at the same time because life just doesn't work that way sometimes. Although I think I've improved on this a little bit the thing that will help me even more is continuing to help develop those teammates around us and then delegating various things to them.
   

What are some things that the rest of you think you know and / or thought you knew? And taking it one step further, how are you resolving the matter or moving past it?