are you leading (or are you doing)?

leadership is one of those hard to define words, especially if you’re talking about great leadership. a friend of mine passed along an awesome article on the f our capacities every great leader needs and, which very few have (i suggest you read it). one of my favorite ideas contained in the article, which i think the author absolutely nails, is his point #3: great leaders take the time to clearly define what success looks like, and then empower and trust us to figure out the best way to achieve it.

simple enough. but i would bet at least 80% of people in leadership positions get this wrong. not because they can’t do it, but because they don’t understand that the same thing that got them to this higher position (being a great individual contributor) is not what will make them successful at the next stage (leading teams). being a great leader is not about doing the work yourself. but unfortunately, so many leaders misinterpret their title to think it means they always have to be the smartest person in the room, have the right answer, & know the most about the problem they’re solving. but that’s not true.

here are the five things great leaders actually do.

great leaders lock the team on a winning direction
build a synchronized team of the best talent
place this talent in positions where they can thrive
assign them clear objectives
hold them accountable

after that, they get out of the way. i know it’s counterintuitive, but the truth is that you don’t have to be the smartest person in the room (in fact it actually probably sucks for you if you are). you just have to be smart enough to recognize that your job is not about worrying about how the job gets done, but about defining the what gets done and why the team is being asked to do it. as tony schwartz says, a leader is a chief energy officer, which doesn’t mean expending your own energy getting the job done; it means lighting the energy (people) you have on fire and focusing/directing it in the places that will enable your team to win.

before this week starts and you walk into the office to lead, take a second to ask yourself one question: are you leading or are you doing?