Stop Expecting Leaders to Come Fully Assembled (#243)
The Confident Leader
BOOST YOUR LEADERSHIP IN UNCERTAIN TIMES
While having coffee with a CEO last week, he expressed frustration: “I expected my leadership team to be ready to lead, but now I’m training them in basic leadership skills!” Instead of executing from day one, he found himself coaching them. Sound familiar?
“The function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers.”
— Ralph Nader
This Week’s Edition
Most leaders assume that if they hire smart, capable people, they’ll automatically know how to lead. Research shows that only 10% of people are natural leaders, and the rest need development.
Clarify Your Thinking
Many leaders wrongly think their teams should “just get it.” When they don’t, frustration mounts. Work often bottlenecks at the top because those who you need to lead aren’t pre-assembled as leaders for every situation.
In reality, leadership isn’t something people wake up knowing how to do. Even the best hires, who possess good instincts, need guidance. A Gallup study found that only 30% of employees feel their managers invest in their development; yet, those who receive leadership coaching are twice as likely to be engaged in their work.
Your leadership team might not be failing due to a lack of capability. They may be struggling because they haven’t received the training and coaching necessary for success. And here’s the kicker: If you don’t train them, someone else will imprint their version of leadership.
So, how do you ensure that your team evolves into strong, independent leaders without overloading your already full plate? The key is shifting your mindset from “they should already know this” to “my role is to help them get there.”
Old Thinking: “I don’t have time to train leaders. They should already know how to lead. If they don’t, I will just do it myself or find someone who can.”
New Thinking: “My role involves more than just execution; it’s about enhancing leadership capacity. I must invest in my leaders to fully leverage the capabilities they contribute to our shared growth.”
Thoughts Lead to Actions
Developing your leadership team doesn’t mean adding more to your plate—it means investing in their ability to share the load with you. When you take the time to train and coach your leaders, you cease to be the sole decision-maker, the exclusive problem-solver, and the only person to turn to for every issue. Your team gains confidence, and in turn, you gain time. Time invested creates more time.
Here’s how to train leaders without feeling like it’s another full-time job:
Ownership. Give them the reins. Allow them to make decisions—even the risky ones. The best learning comes from experience, and failure is often the greatest teacher. Instead of constantly providing answers, encourage them to think critically and take ownership of their choices and the outcomes that result from them.
Curiosity. Hire for curiosity, not just competency. Leaders who ask insightful questions and actively seek answers will grow more quickly than those who rely solely on experience. Curiosity fosters problem-solving, which in turn promotes leadership development.
Community. Surround your team with intelligent individuals. A robust leadership culture develops organically as leaders learn from one another. Foster mentorship, peer coaching, and opportunities to engage with experienced leaders who exemplify effective decision-making.
When you stop expecting perfection and start fostering growth, you’ll likely build a team of independent leaders who take ownership of their roles. The more you invest in your team’s growth, the less you’ll need to intervene, and the stronger your organization will become.
Boost Your Performance
What’s Your Opinion?
Have you ever assumed a leader should “just get it” and been proven wrong? Share it with me at robin.pou@robinpou.com.
If you are going to be a leader, you might as well be a good one. Don’t let doubt count you out. Have a confident week!
Robin Pou, Chief Advisor and Strategist
We live to make bad leadership extinct so forward this newsletter to others who strive to be confident leaders.
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What is “The Confident Leader”?
During the Covid-19 Pandemic, I began a video series called “Panic or Plan?” It was designed to equip leaders to navigate the doubt they experienced and to rise in the confidence they needed to lead during turbulent times. It took off. I then started this newsletter to equip leaders in the same fashion each week for the doubt that crashes across the bow of their leaderSHIP.
