Exemplary leadership isn’t about doing everything yourself.

You’re busy, working flat out and at times meeting yourself coming backwards. I get that. Or maybe you believe you’re best placed to be out on the road. Since closing deals or serving customers brings some satisfaction. And at least you’re acting on opportunities.

Worst case scenario, you consider yourself to be the only person with the skill, experience or longevity in the business to fulfil that particular task. As a business owner I can appreciate your predicament.

Nevertheless, I’d invite you to take stock for a moment. And think about where you are putting your focus. If you’re behaving that way because you can do someone else’s job better than they can; are you in the right role?

Moreover, are they in the right role? We often get involved because a person lacks the skill to get the job done. Or because we’re secretly more comfortable doing what they should be doing!

Perhaps business growth has gone beyond existing (management) resources. And your hands-on approach is in response to that. Then you’re experiencing a problem that is common to all successful businesses. In either scenario, lift your head up and take a step back. It’s vital to know exactly where you stand at all times and you can’t do that whilst you’re immersed in the ‘doing’.

Exemplary leadership requires you to be Coach and Mentor

Remember, we still have many leadership responsibilities to fulfill whether or not we’re doing the job we’ve employed others to do. For one thing, you need to set expectations and provide relevant information. Then people will have the opportunity to deliver the right results.

You also need to support individuals and teams; whether they’re employed or retained, on site or remote workers. Also, making time to coach and mentor is vital in keeping people on track towards achievement of business outcomes. And in holding people accountable for results.

So, whatever led you to ‘interfere’ in the duties of others, some re-alignment work is necessary. This will ensure you have the right people in the right roles, working in an environment that supports them to excel.