Being a leader is an evolution. Usually being a leader starts BEFORE becoming one with grandiose ideas of how she/he would manage their teams to achieve stellar results with their whole team loving them. And guess what….it’s usually a bit more difficult than they think with perhaps those results are not as stellar and their team isn’t always warm and fuzzy. Of course a new manager has trials and tribulations but that’s how we learn and grow from these mistakes that pave the path for the evolution. I’ve had the honor to work with many different teams, offices and companies accompanied by learning and evolving in every leadership role.

Here are 5 tidbits I’ve learned over the years (of course, there are many more!):

It’s usually not as bad as you think

Many times, my staff would come into my office with that dreadful look that either they or someone they manage made a HUGE mistake. Over the years, I learned not to press the panic button but rather listen to the entire issue, ask a few questions and realize it’s not a big deal. Very rarely was it truly something that was massive and even if it was, we just advised the appropriate superiors, fix it and move on. The vast majority of issues were not even mistakes but rather just taking a different approach.

When there Really is a BIG mistake

Yep, I made some big doozers and luckily had it ingrained in me to fall on the sword quickly. I’ve seen too many leaders try to hide a mistake and not tell the right people which ultimately cost their careers. I recall a leader early in my career who advised to never hide a mistake because she could sniff it out in just 3 questions. That was such great advice and it always stuck with me. Those mistakes ALWAYS fester into bigger issues and if people don’t know about it, it’s problematic. If a mistake is made, let others know quickly so the collective team can fix it! Be open, honest, and transparent but most importantly be accountable without passing blame.

Leaders Certainly Don’t Know Everything

Leaders don’t know all the answers and they shouldn’t. They should know who to ask and how to get the resources for their teams. Many new managers or potential managers think they need to know every single thing before being an effective leader. This is not true. Leadership is having a toolkit of resources to find answers if they do not know the answer. If you don’t know something, just say, “I don’t know but I’ll find out”. The last part of “I’ll find out” is critical because just saying “I don’t know” diminishes the trust of the team. I’d be rich on how many times I said, “I don’t know but I’ll find out.” Again, the key is to get the answer and follow up quickly.

Surround Yourself with Top Talent

If you have a big ego, this one will be hard to fathom. I aimed to surround myself with people who knew more than me so that I could concentrate on leading the team versus being a technical expert. I tried to know a little about a lot so I had pretty good knowledge of key areas to ensure we met our metrics, stayed in compliance and off the proverbial radar. I’ve seen leaders feel challenged by their team members who knew more than they did and instead of being challenged; I would encourage leaders to LEVERAGE and embrace it! It’s definitely an asset.

Trust your Team

This last tidbit took a few years to really embrace. A leader’s team is pretty darn smart and once the creativity is unleashed for problem solving to help meet and exceed expectations that’s when magic happens!  The team bonds since they all become part of the solution and it alleviates tons of pressure from the leader! Trusting your team is a trait that evolves more and more with time. Why? Because the leader evolves with experience and knows when to be involved and when not to be involved. If you don’t need to be involved, DON’T!!

Being a leader and influencing a team is a wonderful role. Sometimes you feel like a hero AND sometimes you feel like a zero! It’s not for everyone since a leader is ultimately held accountable for anything their team does or does not do. It’s not an easy job and comes with trial and tribulations. But over time, you develop your own style and grace. A great leader makes it look easy but to get to that point, there were oodles of mistakes, learning, growing and evolving! 

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