LeaderSHIFT: Unlearning II

Early in my consulting career, I was promoted quickly, and soon enough I was managing projects. My projects continued to go well by every measure — teams met deadlines, clients were happy, reviews said I was crushing it.

 But an honest examination would have revealed a different reality. Every meaningful decision (and some not-so-meaningful ones) ran through me. I was up late tinkering with models and slides, even for routine status updates. I was quicker to take over a fix than to delegate. I didn't notice, but my diet and fitness habits suffered.

 I wasn't failing at my job. I was doing two — and one of them belonged to my team.

 If you'd asked me then what I was most proud of, I'd have pointed to a deck or a model I had personally created (or at least significantly edited). Sure, I'd have been quick to point to my team's contributions, even given examples of great analysis each of them had done. But I couldn't see how much I was still holding back their growth (and mine!) by "doing them a favor" and taking on so much myself.

 The truth is I loved being the one to finish the work. To know all the details.

 I wish I could say I had a quick fix. I didn't… and it took multiple years before I really adapted. The only way through was getting genuinely comfortable letting go of work that had belonged to my team the whole time. When I did, I saw more growth from the people around me than I ever had when I was holding the reins.

 The transition from high performer to effective leader wasn't really about adding new skills. It was about building a different relationship with the work — and for me, that happened under pressure rather than by design. That's exactly what I try to help leaders do differently.