Greeners describes the way I was taught, and it works for me. "Use the force"! I don't really think about it in VFR - just look at the spot on the runway where I want to crash, and the aeroplane goes there.
For IFR, I had an outstanding instructor, and he taught me to fly "by the numbers". I know, for my aircraft, the power settings that will achieve S&L and the normal ROC and ROD. Set those, trim (trim) and the aeroplane does what you want. For minor adjustments, it's usually the yoke for me - the power stays in the right place.
I suppose it would be very different in an aircraft with widely varying weights, but with the standard load in the Arrow, that works fine.