Great message as always. I had a really good boss/leader who exemplified that "push the decision back down" when I went to him to help me make some decision around a problem I've long forgotten. He responded with "Chris, you're the best qualified person in the company to make this decision. I'm happy to be a sounding board, but it's your decision." That was both in line with your leadership points above and incredibly empowering to me at that time.
Really great article. This made me also reflect on Trust and supporting justifiable decision making (e.g., “at the time the decision was made, the facts and opinions aligned”) - if we can use each situation to spot either a success (what went well) or a learning opportunity (even better if) then no-one had to feel like something or someone failed - everyone has learnt something of value.
Excellent encapsulation of a common managerial -- er, leadership -- dilemma...the balance of command and control. Maybe another Friday Thought can 'flip the script' and explore when delegating command in the name of developing leaders can lead (pun intended) to an inadvertent loss of control when the lead leader delegates too much, so much so that information flow is inhibited or emboldened staff take too much leash. Balance is key.
Great message as always. I had a really good boss/leader who exemplified that "push the decision back down" when I went to him to help me make some decision around a problem I've long forgotten. He responded with "Chris, you're the best qualified person in the company to make this decision. I'm happy to be a sounding board, but it's your decision." That was both in line with your leadership points above and incredibly empowering to me at that time.
Really great article. This made me also reflect on Trust and supporting justifiable decision making (e.g., “at the time the decision was made, the facts and opinions aligned”) - if we can use each situation to spot either a success (what went well) or a learning opportunity (even better if) then no-one had to feel like something or someone failed - everyone has learnt something of value.
Yes, you highlight the concept of "returning authority".
Excellent encapsulation of a common managerial -- er, leadership -- dilemma...the balance of command and control. Maybe another Friday Thought can 'flip the script' and explore when delegating command in the name of developing leaders can lead (pun intended) to an inadvertent loss of control when the lead leader delegates too much, so much so that information flow is inhibited or emboldened staff take too much leash. Balance is key.