Leadership is Getting Out of Your Own Way

Leadership is getting out of your own way.

I used to think that being a leader meant being up in front, telling people what to do. Leaders were powerful and important. I believed that having the right answers was one of the most important things in life, and leaders had the right answers. Being a leader was a lot of responsibility, but it must feel wonderful!

I met and worked with leaders. I learned from each of them. Some leaders showed me how to become a better leader, while others demonstrated qualities I wanted to avoid.

Slowly, I began to realize that leading was not about always having the right answers. I worked with leaders who struggled, who made mistakes, who ran into obstacles.

As I worked with these leaders, and as I practiced being a leader myself, I began to understand that leadership felt different than I thought it had.

The challenge of leadership is not about finding the right answers. It is not about getting people to do the right things at the right time. It is not about me knowing what to do and getting other people to do it.

The challenge of leadership is seeing things in new ways each time I open my eyes, and helping other people see in new ways. The challenge of leadership is listening to what people have to say. The challenge of leadership is giving people opportunities to find their own answers. The challenge of leadership is benefiting from my own mistakes.

The challenge of leadership is not allowing what I already know to get in the way of learning something deeper and more valuable.

Leadership is getting our of my own way.

How are you in your own way?

What will you do today to get out of your own way?

[Image by Giuseppe Bognanni]