It’s Time to Let Go - Here’s How
Possibly one of the most influential outcomes of Covid-19 on the business world is the evolution of a new leadership style. In the coming months of life and work in a world of pandemic and change, leadership will be tested in never-seen-before situations.
As we adapt to a remote workforce and uncertain times, knowing how and when to take control is difficult and the value of showing empathy and compassion for our teams is clearer than ever. In order to move forward, we need to look at the leadership pendulum.
The Leadership Pendulum
Leadership takes many forms. On the one hand, we have leaders who are heavy on taking charge and default to control. They provide strong team direction and expedite decision making. But their teams can feel micromanaged and discouraged from contributing.
On the other side, we have leaders who are at ease letting go. They allow team consensus and dialogue to facilitate decision making and workflow. But sometimes teams need direction, and if their leader can’t build that skill, they will struggle to move forward or feel engaged.
In reality, most leaders aren’t pigeonholed by either approach. After working with many leaders, I’ve noticed that most of us lean naturally towards one side than the other. Great leaders have the ability to swing from one side to the other without creating friction. Their teams are comfortable seeing them wear both hats, and they can stay authentic to who they are.
I’ll share an example that was shared in one of our group mentoring sessions for leaders. One participant, a CEO shared that she realized quite early on during the start of the pandemic that they needed to take charge, a position that went against their usual leadership style. They took control, being the single voice in a time of uncertainty, and communicating clearly and frequently.
One the other hand, another Leader expressed that he had the opposite experience, they expressed that although they feel much more comfortable taking control, in their case, they realized they had to pull back, take on a more coaching role with their team, and give the space to their global CEO to take the reins. He shared that although he recognized the need, moving into a new style of leadership at this time felt uncomfortable and challenging.
Both of these cases demonstrated exemplary leadership. They took the time to read the room and instinctively recognized what their teams needed from them, and took on the role even when it felt uncomfortable.
The Balancing Act
Often, we will try to swing to the other side of the pendulum when we recognize that our natural style of leadership won’t get the right result. However, sudden shifts on the leadership pendulum can throw your team off. Let’s take a look at another example of two leaders. They’re part of the same team, but the results of their leadership styles are eye-opening.
We’ll start with Leader 1, who leans toward the “taking charge” end of the pendulum. He is heavily involved in his team’s projects and is driven by action and results. When the team went into isolation, Leader 1 swung to the other end of the pendulum to start a more open dialogue with his team -- asking how they were feeling, how their families were... Although driven by good intentions, it felt disingenuous to the team, who was suspicious of what seemed like a sudden 180 in his approach to management, and that perhaps he was working through a “how to lead in crisis” checklist.
Elsewhere in the team, Leader 2 leans toward the “letting go” end of the pendulum. During the transition to remote work, she felt that the team needed more direction in these uncertain times, and shifted to take control of the situation. Unlike Leader 1, whose shift wasn’t so well received, Leader 2’s actions were a relief to her team because she had already built a strong relationship of trust with them through open dialogue and valued contributions.
Finding a middle ground on the pendulum balances out the extremes of leadership styles. We want to know how to shift naturally, both for ourselves and those we are leading. Plus, whenever it’s necessary to shift to one side of the pendulum, the idea is that starting from a middle point is smoother than swinging from the very opposite end.
When we are centered on the pendulum, our teams know and respect our ability to come in and take control. At the same time, our trust and confidence in them allow us to let go and give them the space to grow and be autonomous when it matters.
The Path to Self Awareness
Working to become a better leader is an uncomfortable process. It doesn’t happen overnight, it happens over time. A big part of this process is understanding your own actions as a leader. We develop this kind of self-awareness not only by committing to a self-reflection practice but by asking our teams for feedback on how we show up for them and what they need from us.
When we talk about self-awareness, another part is staying grounded in the moments where it really counts. Learning to not react and take a step back from a situation before addressing it is one of the most difficult parts of leadership. High stress and rapid change environments test our resilience but taking a few minutes to respond instead of reacting makes for a better outcome in the long run.
It’s hard to stay “on” all day, every day. When you’re working with your team, self-awareness means constantly assessing where you are on the leadership pendulum, where you want to be, and how to make shifts that don’t disrupt your team’s workflow. The end goal is for this to come naturally.
When you’re not actively thinking about how you’re leading, you default to a particular style of leadership, one that likely feels comfortable. But this isn’t growth.
At the end of a long day, are you going to take more control or let go of it? Knowing where you start on the pendulum is the first step to learning how to swing to the other side.
By understanding your team individually, you know how to stretch them, meaning letting go. I often see well-intentioned leaders swooping in right before their team would have worked something out in a moment of growth. Our ego is always at play, eager to jump out and make us feel useful. We need to fight against it and teach ourselves how to coach, guide and support so that when we do get the urge to take charge, we’re doing it for the right reasons, and our teams will respect that.
Getting out of the Weeds
The future of leadership is a two-way relationship between you and your team. Self-awareness is about listening to your team and to yourself. Knowing when to take charge or let go is about allowing your team to thrive and not stifling them, and giving them the space to learn without getting involved too quickly. Leadership is no longer a top-down affair but one that motivates, energizes and involves our teams in the work that we do.
At the end of the day, leading with empathy and compassion makes the foundation of the leadership pendulum. In order to do this, we have to step out of the weeds, learning to trust and guide our teams so we can see the wood for the trees. It’s about creating a team environment that allows us as leaders to stay focused on what’s ahead, and not what’s immediately in front of us. I’ve worked with countless leaders who feel uncomfortable when they find themselves with “free time” and aren’t sure what to do with it. Own that space. Lean into it. Your role is to create space for your leadership to grow.
You got this.
If you’re interested in developing your leadership style in these uncertain times, you might be interested in talking to us about some of our remote offerings.
At OverTime Leader we provide executive leadership and management advisory for technology-enabled businesses and teams. If you are looking to spark a people-powered change in your business our team has a toolbox full of ways to help you get started.
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