Leaders often feel like they must have all the answers – you reason, “I have a ‘Chief’ in my title, so I must know it all!” That’s why it often feels “lonely at the top”; you can never have all the answers, and you’re better off not trying to fake it.
Even more important, the most important thing you can do as a leader is to create more great leaders. This helps everyone – now you don’t have to know all the right answers because you have a whole team of great leaders. While at first it may feel like you are not adding value or even leading because you are not the one with “all the answers,” remember that you’re actually giving a greater gift by leading others to discover the answers for themselves.
This can be a vast shift for many leaders, who feel like they must be the sole authority on everything. But leaders who give their teams the teachings, power and responsibility to think for themselves consistently have more successful, happy teams. If you are always giving the answers you may be helping at one level but unintentionally atrophying the decision-making muscles and confidence of others. And once you take the responsibility of having all the answers off your shoulders, you’ll be much more readily able to focus on your core skills to grow the business. (And you’ll have more energy for yourself!)
The next time a team member comes to you to solve a problem, instead of giving them an answer, ask some questions instead. (Bonus: These also help when you’re trying to come up with answers to your own conundrums.)
Try one of these great questions; some of these I learned from my friend Chris Osborn, President of Coach Training Alliance, to help your team member uncover the answers for themselves.
So, what do you think? As a leader, are you more likely to give the answer or ask the questions? Which work better for you and your team?
Note from Bob: My Dad (who is now in Heaven) was one of the wisest people I knew – and I still ask, “What would my Dad do?”
Kirk Dando is a leadership and growth expert whom many executives have nicknamed the “Company Whisperer.” As a C-level executive, he walked the lonely road of leadership and worried himself to distraction, but learned a valuable lessons. He has coached thousands of leaders over the past 20 years. Today, Kirk helps leaders and their teams who are at a strategic or organizational crossroads gain peace of mind about the decisions they have to make. His bestselling book, Predictive Leadership, has helped leaders around the world predict and prepare for uninterrupted growth and success. You can connect with Kirk on his website: KirkDando.com or for speaking at BrightSightGroup.com
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