Don't be the buffer of your team
Hi everyone! First time posting and I wanted to share something that could be valuable to someone, and I think of this:
Through my years (leadership in technology) I have learned that for some of us in a leadership position, its easy to fall in the trap of what my coleages and I called "being the buffer" for the team, let me explain:
Some of us feel responsible for the wellbeing of our team (something I consider part of being a good leader), but that feel could lead to shield them from stress, hold back messy information, and sometimes do the work ourselves. At first glance, for me at least, felt like care.
Has someone felt the same?
In my case, I had to learn the hard way that protecting or shielding my team from the client, other leaders or the general context/situation, its was like I was treating them as a child, not as adults. I was strechting my self trying to channel the pressure I had, and in the long run was a mistake for me and for them.
My main take aways are:
- Its better to give them the full context, not the reduced version. With context they can decide better.
- Its important to keep your ego out of it. I realized my job isn't to be the information center or shield them from "the world", it's to facilitate and give them direction.
- To be transparent even when it's hard. They're adults who can handle the truth, shielding them makes it worse.
- To be clear on what's expected and let them get there. It grows them and frees me as a leader.
Leadership is a delicate balance between support and empowerment. Buffering felt like support but it was the opposite of empowerment.
Does anything of this resonate with someone? If so, how do you catch yourself when you're buffering instead of leading?