Tips on being a supervisor/manager/leader

I'm starting to actually believe that to be the case.

Never ask someone to do something you wouldn't do yourself.

Don't act like a 24 year old, recent college grad, know it all.

Don't micromanage.

Don't ask them to do anything they haven't seen you do.

Read "The Art of War" and "The Prince"

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Never ask someone to do something you wouldn't do yourself

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this.

Lead by example. As cliche as that saying is, it's 100% accurate.

Is there one person out of your group that is undermining you the most out of the six? You may have to make an example out of him, not necessarily fire him. Maybe write up, time off etc. ... I know your young but don't ask them to do something , tell them

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stout

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Listen to him

Never thought of it that way, Stout.

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As much as I hate the whole alpha/beta thing in regards to pick up artist shite I think it absolutely applies to work/business. No matter how long they may have been doing this they will still respond to a leader that takes charge of things. It's why they have been doing it for 30 years and haven't moved on. They are followers and always will be. 

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This. Leaders are born, not made. There's a reason those guys have been low to mid level for 30 years, the leaders they came up with have moved on.

But as as leader you must remember that 1. You came from somewhere and can easily be sent back to a lower level. 2. There's always someone else trying to get your job 3. A superior is nothing without his subordinates. Though you may be above them you are not necessarily better than them and even if you are a true great leader never shows his arrogance. Be confident, be decisive, be clear, and they will respond and respect that.

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Don't act like a 24 year old, recent college grad, know it all.

Don't micromanage.

Don't ask them to do anything they haven't seen you do.

Read "The Art of War" and "The Prince"

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Good stuff here.

I'd highlight the "Don't act like a know it all" part personally. I know from my experiences as an engineer it can be extremely difficult when put in these sorts of positions. I remember as a field engineer at 22 I was giving directives and instructions to guys who'd been working in the construction industry for 30 years all because I was good at math. It can be extremely intimidating. Ask a ton of questions and don't ever give an answer you don't know is correct. If you don't know, say you don't and find out the correct answer.

Some other general things like first in and last to leave, don't micromanage, etc. One thing I've found difficult as a young leader is learning how to build a raport with your coworkers while still having them respect you. That one is really personality dependent, though. What works for some might not work as well for others.

One thing I'd recommend is if there is a senior member of your team that you respect and feel the other coworkers respect, go to him/her (ok the her part was a joke) and talk with them about this sort of stuff. If you ask young officers in the military how they got through their early years all the best ones will say their NCOs. These guys have come up the ranks as one of the guys. They know the ins and outs, they can help you through situations and give you recommendations.

When I started as a field engineer one of my first jobs I had three crews under me. The foreman for two of them sucked and thought I was some young punk, but the third one was incredible. I'll never forget how much he taught me and still talk with him a couple times a month. We'd get to work a half an hour early and just go over all the drawings and tasks we'd be getting to that day/week.