Acting Team Lead

I'm down to my last day and a half as the acting Team Lead (our lead is on vacation). This week is further proof that I'm not cut of the management thread. Things like finding out on Friday (at 4PM nonetheless) you're getting a new employee on Monday, and then finding out on Monday morning that you're not, bother me to no end. From what I can tell, sporadic fits of disorganization and ineptitude run rampant in management. Not my cup of tea. (NOTE: I've got my own disorganization and ineptitude to deal with. I don't need managements' as well.)

A few years back I gave the Team Lead role a try. I had a good team with no personnel problems, but only lasted nine months before taking a different position. What I couldn't deal with is the other Team Leads and Managers. Not all of them, but just a few. Team Leads and Managers are like a large barrel of apples. Most of them are good, but the few that aren't spoil the experience.

Choosing to not manage people has its limitations. For example, I'm pretty much at the end for career advancement. There is one (maybe two) individual contributor levels above me, but I'm not sure if my brain is large enough or if my schedule is flexible enough to be a senior technology leader (called Architects or Principal Architects where I work).

To be honest, I'm alright with staying at the level I'm at. At least when I go home at night, I feel relatively accomplished and know what I'll be responsible for the coming day. As the acting Team Lead, I felt neither of these.