“My CFO asked me to back off… I needed that wake-up call.”
That’s what a new CEO shared with me just six weeks into the role.
He had just stepped up from CFO and was used to being deep in the details…solving problems, fixing issues, moving things forward.
And he was good at it. That was the problem.
“I can’t help myself…”
He told me, “I can’t help myself…I know I need to stay high-level, but I keep getting pulled in.”
What he didn’t realize was the more he solved…the more his team stepped back.
Not because they weren’t capable…but because he was filling the space they needed to grow into.
I shared a quote from Peter Drucker:
“We spend a lot of time teaching leaders what to do. We don’t spend enough time teaching them what to stop.”
This was one of those moments.
Stop being the best problem solver in the room.
Start building people who can solve without you.
Simple Shifts
We put a few simple shifts in place:
- Ask more, tell less
- Share your thinking, not just your answer
- Let solutions play out (even when it’s slower)
- Follow up through check-ins…because you don’t get what you expect, you get what you inspect
It wasn’t easy but it was necessary.
If everything runs through you…you’re not leading a team, you’re creating dependency.
Question…
Where might you be stepping in too quickly right now?
