Every rep in my teams has a development plan. One skill, what good looks like, a review date.
For a long time, I did not have one for myself.
It is a common gap. A first-line manager coaches every week, but who is coaching them? Their own manager is busy. The next leadership course is months away. So the manager simply waits.
What I try to do now is treat my own growth the way I ask reps to treat theirs.
One skill. Not "become a better leader". Something I can practise: running a debrief, handling a hard conversation, saying no upward.
Someone who watches. I ask my own manager to sit in on one coaching session and tell me what they saw.
A review date. The same discipline I ask of the team.
And two habits that help.
I ask two reps what I should do differently. Then I listen and do not defend. That part is harder than it sounds.
I read one book at a time, and try one idea from it in the field before I start the next.
“The coach needs a coach too. If nobody offers, ask.”
Lesson 4 of 6 in Step 8: Managing up and growing, with the full guide and a checklist for this week.