One of the things I’ve learned in working with aspiring entrepreneurs is that managing and leading a team is a scary venture into the unknown for many people, even if they have worked as a business professional for years. Having worked in my own career on both sides of the fence at various times, I recommend that everyone practice thinking like the boss in every role to prepare.

This will improve your effectiveness in your current role, and give you a head start towards a future role, such as startup founder, where you are the boss. You will find that the same key principles apply in both situations, and that every business professional has a boss, and should be a leader in their own domain to others with less experience and expertise.

I found some good insights and details on this approach in the classic book, “How To Be A Great Boss,” by Gino Wickman and René Boer, who speak from years of experience working with leadership teams of both small and large companies. Here is my summary of their key principles on being a great boss, which I will characterize here as applying to any business professional:

1. Surround yourself with great people. As an entrepreneur, executive, or team member, you are most impacted by the people you gather around you. The smartest team members and the smartest bosses spend more time with people who are smarter in the relevant domain than they are. Then when you have to hire people, you will pick the best.

2. Make more effective use of your own time. We all know bosses and peers who are always too busy, but never seem to get much done. Make sure that person is not you. Free up time for others by eliminating low priority tasks, and delegating items to the right people. Work on habits that improve your productivity, and find better tools every day.

3. Understand both leadership and management. In business, leadership consists of creating the vision and direction, while management is primarily about gaining traction to achieve it. You don’t have to be a boss to be a leader or a manager. You should be practicing both in every role, and there will be no surprises as your career evolves.

4. Train yourself to follow leadership best practices. If you practice all the key elements of leadership in every role, you will make a great team member or a great boss. These elements include giving clear direction, providing tools and training to the right people, getting out of the way, walking your own talk, and reflecting regularly on the big picture.

5. Focus on demonstrating accountability for your actions. Accountability is everyone’s obligation, to accept responsibility for their activities, and to disclose your results in a transparent manner. Accountability cannot be imposed on you by a boss or entrepreneur – it’s a practice that you must learn to impose on yourself to be effective and appreciated.

6. Develop productive relationships with people around you. Effective relationships, inside your business and outside, are critical in every professional, management, and leadership role. The most productive people get things done by working in concert with others, not demanding actions and results, but by orchestrating win-win relationships.

7. Learn to deal effectively with people who disappoint you. While highly productive relationships lead to success, dysfunctional relationships make you a poor employee and a bad boss. People issues cannot be solved by avoidance or edict. If you surface and manage relationship issues early with respect and minimum emotion, you will be seen as a good team member and a good boss.

Thus, putting yourself in your boss’s shoes to see what they see, and act as you would expect them to act, is the best way to assure success in your role today, or prepare you for the startup founder role you dream about. In fact, the best team members and managers I work with always see themselves as their own boss. Try it – you may find and train that great boss you never had.

Marty Zwilling