If You ‘Know’ All the Answers, You’re the Bottleneck
Do your leadership principles involve you knowing everything?
If so, get ready to fail in 2025 and beyond.
But everything has changed since 2020. And, in our world of perpetual disruption, everything will continue to change. Which means everything you know will change.
That makes it even more imperative that you create a culture that encourages your team to think independently, innovate and thrive. If you don’t let your people grow, you are doing more stifling than leading.
Leadership that relies on command and control simply cannot succeed in today’s world. These days, some of your teams could be continents away. Others will show up in the office only a few times a month. Fewer will be right there on the factory floor or warehouse dock.
Wherever they are, your people often need to make decisions when the inevitable disruptions occur.
Bad Leadership Principles Include Helicopter Parenting
Traditional leadership has often focused on leaders as the primary decision-makers. Supposedly, we had to be the thought leader and business authority all rolled into one.
But leaders who insist on maintaining this dynamic risk becoming a bottleneck for organizational growth. If you don’t give your team members space to learn and make decisions, they remain dependent.
They cannot fully develop their skills if you continually give instructions, stifling your teams’ potential.
I liken command-and-control leadership principles to being a helicopter parent. Such parents are always ready to intervene, but they prevent real growth and learning.
If you go to the school’s principal or board every time a teacher disciplines your child, what are you really teaching? Do you really think it’s a good idea to always complain, “That’s not how you talk to my kid.”
Give me a break.
To grow into adulthood, children must learn to deal with some adversity. In the real world, someone is going to cut you off in traffic. Someone is going to make a rude gesture. Someone might even yell at you.
None of those are nice things to do. And I certainly don’t advocate or recommend them. But they are part of life. And you must get through some not nice parts of life to reach your full potential.
The same goes with employees. If leaders don’t let their people solve problems and learn from mistakes, your workforce will be ill-equipped to handle challenges when you’re not around.
Leadership Must Evolve with Change
To be effective, future leaders must recognize that leadership is an evolving profession in itself. Business leaders can provide an inclusive environment and develop your workforce’s emotional intelligence.
You can help by practicing what you preach. Model self-awareness and emotional regulation. Share appropriate examples of how you handle challenging situations. And talk openly about learning from mistakes and emotional triggers.
Above all, avoid dismissing or minimizing emotional responses. That helps create psychological safety for your employees to discuss feelings and emotions. And always provide specific feedback.
Need more? This Harvard Business Review article has three good ways to develop emotional intelligence. Model them and share them with your staff.
Delegation Does Not Mean Abdication
Another leadership principle? Thoughtful delegation.
Delegating means entrusting team members with responsibilities and letting them make sound decisions. It doesn’t mean letting them sink or swim – you can coach them through their decision-making, particularly at first.
Otherwise, you risk having a team scared to move forward, terrified to make a decision, just sitting there waiting for directions.
That leads to bottlenecks and delays. If you’re on a sales trip, vacation or otherwise unavailable, operations can crash.
There’s enough disruption out there in the world without your command-and-control personality causing more.
Consider the analogy of a couple managing a household.
If one partner handles all the responsibilities, the other may be left vulnerable if something happens to the first. Both partners should understand the other’s role to ensure stability and adaptability.
Similarly, a successful organization doesn’t rely on a single “answer-giver.” It relies on a network of informed, capable people who can manage responsibilities independently.
The future of leadership lies in a balanced approach where leaders guide and support but step back to let others develop their potential.
Leaders who embrace this shift in leadership principles will create resilient, adaptable teams prepared to face the perpetual disruption of 2025 and beyond.
Related Reading
- Strengthening Corporate Culture in Splintered Societies
- Leading Remote Teams – Don’t Let Different Cities Stop You
- Navigating Your Supply Chain Career Path
Jim Tompkins, Chairman of Tompkins Ventures, is an international authority on designing and implementing end-to-end supply chains. Over five decades, he has designed countless industrial facilities and supply chain solutions, enhancing the growth of numerous companies. He previously built Tompkins International from a backyard startup into an international consulting and implementation firm. Jim earned his B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from Purdue University.
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