29/09/2025
Can you remember the last time you had a full lunch break? Or even left the office early?
We know middle manager overwhelm is real, so let’s do a little self-assessment to see if you’re showing all the signs of being on the mid-level leader hamster wheel:
- Is your calendar chock-a-block and you feel like you’ve got no time for your actual work?
- Are you missing 1:1s or team meetings because you are drowning in endless to-dos?
- Do you run from meeting to meeting and barely have time for a coffee, let alone lunch?
- Are you fielding problems from all directions - your team, your leader and your peers?
- Is your biggest (secret) wish that everyone would just go away so you could get your work done?!
If you’ve answered yes to all or most of these, you’ve got to do something about it, STAT! Because these are the five biggest red flags we see for a middle manager on their way to burn out.
And it’s because you’re stuck in the Sandwich Zone – juggling competing priorities from reporting up, managing down and executing across – which leaves you feeling overwhelmed, overloaded and like you’re barely keeping your head above water.
But if you stay here too long, there’s a much bigger impact…
On your wellbeing, as stress levels rise and resilience wanes.
On your confidence, because you can start to question your capability.
On your performance, as you’re so focused on the detail you’re dropping the ball on the bigger targets.
And, more importantly, on your career, as opportunities for growth can pass you by because decision-makers see you as ‘snowed under’ and too busy to take on any more.
So, what’s the fix for this? How do we break the hamster wheel cycle and get you out of the sandwich zone? (So you can actually go out and HAVE a sandwich.)
Well, if you look inside most organisations the solutions they throw at middle managers are things like time management courses or training on how to lead diverse teams or be more strategic.
But that’s not what they actually need.
What we’ve heard middle managers tell us time and time again, is they really want help getting through the week, without burning out.
Here are four shifts middle managers can make to turn those red flags into green ones.
Plan your week around your essentials, not other people’s priorities. This looks like scheduling activities and tasks for your goals, projects and team - before anything else. This includes time for leadership essentials like reflection and planning, which are the key to staying out of the overwhelm.
Manage down and stop ‘doing the work’. When you’re doing the busy work, you become the squeeze point. Focus on delegating and meeting the needs of your team so they can perform and you can have space to take on stretch assignments. And yes, this does mean letting go and trusting your people.
Manage up – and manage expectations. When your plate is already full, but your leader piles on yet another to-do, you’ve got to get comfortable with saying ‘no’ and pushing back. Or, asking your manager to prioritise what’s most important so you don’t think everything is urgent. You could say something like: “I’ve got these 3 things on my plate, which is your priority for me to focus on?”
Make faster decisions, so you can move quicker. In an ideal world you’d have plenty of access to your own manager for input on the ‘best’ decision, but that’s not always reality. So we encourage our leaders to:
a. Start backing their own choices more
b. Find other people they can check in with, possibly someone external
c. Learn to influence their own managers to trust their decision-making more.
And if you’re a middle manager with ambition and career progression designs, here’s why you’ve really got to turn those red flags green…
In your mind, you’re probably OK with all the busy work because you believe it’s getting you ahead and showing you in a good light to your bosses, right? Wrong.
People who are seen to be drowning or not coping at work are not seen as high performers at all. So they’re not first in line for the promotions, or getting the fun projects that gain attention and visibility, or the growth opportunities that prepare them for bigger roles.
So that hard work cycle you’re in? It’s not going to help you fulfil your ambition. But nailing those 4 key leadership shifts above - they will. And they’ll make sure you’re not just important at work, but happy there too.
If you know it’s time to expand your leadership capabilities, or can see one of your team in what we’ve written today, here are the 3 ways we can help:
Gutsy Coaching: our on-demand guidance to support leaders at all levels with the practical support they need, when they need it. It’s like a coach in your pocket to help you better plan, prioritise, manage up and manage down. But most of all - leave the busy work behind.
Gutsy Leadership: designed for people who want to create great teams and enviable cultures. It tackles the areas most leaders struggle with and often avoid and gives them the foundational skills to be great.
Gutsy Culture: a program to support executive teams reduce the noise, clarify expectations, and harness the power of an organisational culture.
Not sure what’s the best fit for you or your organisation's needs? Give our team a call on 1300 110 165 and we can figure out together your priorities and the best program for you.
