I used to work for a Manager that wanted to be involved in every detail of every task I completed. I had no authority to make any design or technical decisions without running my ideas by her first. If she had an idea how a task should be completed, that was how it had to be done. This left no room for my creative side to shine through. As a result, she often took credit for any work I completed. It very quickly became clear to me that this person was a Manager (or better: glorified babysitter), not a Leader. 

Having a boss like this was frustrating on the best of days. She infuriated me to tears, but I refused to give her the satisfaction of seeing me cry. This experience taught me to reflect on myself. By doing so, I could see the type of colleague that I am and the type of Leader I want to be (or don’t want to be). I did what I could to take these negative experiences and use them for the good. 

There were three main lessons that I learned from this:  

Hire people smarter than you

Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) are experts for a reason. They love to dive into the details of a topic and figure out the best way to resolve an issue. SMEs have a thorough understanding of a topic or process, and they are the people you want on your team when you run into an issue or are looking to make improvements (so you always want them ;)). These individuals need time and authority to be creative to help build upon or deconstruct a process or topic.  Most of all, they want to do their job, do it well, and be pushed to the next level. So what does that mean for you as a leader? 

Before we dive into that, there is one thing we need to get off the table. Just because your team members are skilled in a different area than you, does not mean that they want your job. In fact, most people (SME or not), do not want to manage others. People do not want to deal with others emotions. They are bored by the administrative requirements that come with managing a team. They most certainly do not want to help resolve other people’s problems. Walk your ego out of the room and take a deep breath. 

Back to what this means for you: What most managers fail to realize is that hiring a diverse set of skillsets and personalities can only strengthen their team as a whole. A happy, well-rounded team who is pushed to step outside of their comfort zone to grow in new ways will always be more successful than one that is micromanaged in every aspect of their work life. Learn what makes your team members tick, what motivates them, where they want to grow, and work to help them get there. And the best part about hiring people who are smarter than you? They make you look realllyyyyy good as a manager.  

A Leader gives credit

We can all agree that it is infuriating when someone takes credit for our work. You slave for hours to complete a project only to see that your boss or one colleague gets the praise … and they don’t have the confidence to comment that they had a very capable team working together with them. Let’s talk about what we can do to highlight this issue and prevent it in the future. 

I personally like to speak up for those that can’t speak up for themselves. I think the main reason is that I have very little respect for colleagues that take credit for other people’s work. If I am sitting in a meeting and see one individual taking credit then I will praise that individual for their contributions, highlight the names of others I know worked on the project, congratulate them on their teamwork, then look at the Manager and tell them how proud they must be to have such a great team. I find it is a softer approach than when someone directly in the team speaks up and says, “What about me?”. 

A great leader doesn’t get into the habit of taking credit for others. They don’t care about the praise of their peers, because they care more about the happiness and motivation of their employees. What most Managers fail to realize is that when their team is successful, that makes them look good. I have so much respect for a Leader that can put their ego aside and hand the credit to others. It is one of the things that separates a Manager from a Leader – that and being able to take the blame. 

Own your mistakes

There is an acronym that I often have to remind myself of: FAIL. It stands for First Attempt In Learning. This means that every experience, whether I am successful or fall flat on my face, is an opportunity to learn. Though this may be a positive mindset, it is not always easy to think in this way. And it certainly isn’t easy to sit in room full of executives and peers and confess that something went wrong due to an oversight or poor decision on your part. So what is the right way to handle these types of situations? 

I have learned how to react by watching a true leader in action. When she was confronted with the harsh reality that her department had an issue, she would sit up tall, look her colleagues in the eyes and directly tell them where she made a mistake. But she didn’t just stop there to only focus on the problem. She would talk about the measures that she would be putting in place to ensure a similar issue does not happen again. Subsequently she followed up with the support that she needed from the various departments in order to move forward.  

The message here is to acknowledge successes and failures, then move forward. If you are confident enough in your capabilities, you will quickly realize two things: Admitting a mistake is a sign of strength, not weakness. Another person’s successes won’t cast a shadow on yours. Insecurities will start to set in when you begin to doubt yourself. This is typically when we start to see the dreaded behaviors (e.g. finger-pointing, stealing credit, etc.). Whatever you do, always remember: 

1. It is important to hold yourself and your team accountable for their actions.
2. Give credit to the employees who are busting their butts for the organization.
3. Build a great team by hiring employees with a diverse set of skills.
4. Don’t settle to be a manager, always strive to be a Leader.