A parable written to myself about my failure in leadership:
A cheery voiced captain walks light-heartedly up to the airline gate attendant, smiles and says “I’m here a bit early. I can help you check-in passengers!”
A bit later, down below the airliner with its twin-engines humming, that same pilot proclaims to his maintenance crew, “Hey there! You guys all looked a bit overwhelmed, and I’m here to assist. Did you notice this over here? And have you thought about that? And when was the last time these tires were replaced?”
Shortly after takeoff, the stewardess looks up to find an extra pair of hands hard at work in the galley. “Don’t mind me, I’m just here to help! I’ll take care of this pot of coffee for you.” The captain continues, “And you know that lady asking for OJ in aisle five, I already took care of her!” The stewardess stairs in disbelief and terror into the empty cockpit while the smiling captain begins pouring out coffee.
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In a company, everyone has a job to do. And helping those who work for us often feels admirable. But how much should leaders & managers be helping our teams?
Unfortunately, for leaders helping is more often hurting their organization. Helping out sends a message: “although I’ve hired you to do this job, you still need my help.” It says, “You’re not actually accountable for the results.” Most of all it declares, “I don’t trust you.”
Leadership requires looking out ahead with a longer view than can be seen by any other individual in the company. It requires a 30,000 foot view, at the front of the plane looking into the future. There’s only one person on a flight crew capable of seeing into the future and directing the plane to its destination.
But the biggest reason a leader shouldn’t be helping? Because nobody’s is in the cockpit.