This may go without saying but I found it to be surprising (albeit expected to a lesser degree). Managing is nothing like doing work. There’s lots of people all over the web that can further expand on it but here’s my two cents.
I’ve been a Maker my entire career so far. Give me direction, a budget and a deadline and I will get the project done. Give me an outline of what needs to be created and I will deliver a prototype (or the end product). Put me with a group of like minded individuals and mountains move.
Becoming a manager is something completely different (particularly because I haven’t put aside my Maker projects yet). It’s not necessarily harder (I can’t adequately speak to that yet) but it is diametrically different. Luckily for me I’m working with an amazing group of people that don’t need me to really manage much. Most of the difficulty comes from my side of making sure I know everything going on, managing expectations and fighting for what the team needs.
Making and Managing. I’m sure I’ll find a happy middle ground soon but it’s been quite the learning experience so far.