Asking a Question Costs Less Than Having an Answer
Control freaks fear freedom. But treating people like robots never inspires.
Control-freak-leaders deliver narrow results.
Choices inspire ownerships and instill responsibility. Every decision you give someone communicates trust, confidence, and respect.
Respect invites partnership. Disrespect creates disengagement.
When control freaks thrive:
Control freaks thrive in high control environments.
Narrow instructions enable efficient repetitive work.
Hierarchy is fertile soil for control freaks.
Strict controls matter during experimentation and testing.
Direction not control:
Courageously give talented people freedom to design strategies, plans, and accountabilities.
Control your control freakiness:
- Be open handed with talent and experience. Provide guidelines and boundaries for novices.
- Set responsible people free.
- Processes need control. Skillful people need goals.
- Explain purpose and get out of the way when talented team members demonstrate buy-in.
Flourishing:
Control freaks are tempted to tell people HOW to do the job. Define what needs to be done and why it matters.
Talented people flourish when you set them free.
Novices flourish with guidance and control, at least in the beginning.
Hold the seat when teaching children to ride bikes. But get out of the way when dealing with experienced bikers.
You can’t allow people to choose WHAT they do – they have jobs. But whenever possible, let them choose HOW they do what they do.
Tell talent WHAT you want and release qualified people to deliver remarkable results.
Setting direction and asking a question:
“What would you suggest?” is better than, “Do this,” when dealing with talented people.
Personally, I avoid clients who tell me how to do my job. Don’t you? Robert Rosenberg discovered that it’s costly to tell experts what to do. (1:02)
Sometimes not knowing is better than knowing.
What are the limits of freedom in organizational life?
How might leaders extend appropriate freedom to team members?
“Courageously give talented people freedom to design strategies, plans, and accountabilities. & Talented people flourish when you set them free.” Oh so true and that’s where I’ve found success being let free and being ahead. The thing is I’ve had support, encouragement and allowance to do so. When you have that “work” is enjoyable and the challenges (not problems) are just that challenges to be attacked, massaged, modified, adjusted and slain in any and all ways.
Thanks Roger. Love the idea that setting people free is NOT ignoring them. Your addition of support and encouragement is so powerful.
I’ve worked with several control freaks throughout my career. Their personality was tempered by anger and anxiety. One coworker remarked, “He acts as if things are going to fall apart and spiral out of control without him.”
Both the workers attitude and the work atmosphere changed dramatically when he was removed. Freedom never felt so good.
Thank you, Dan, for your words of direction and advice.
Randy
Thanks for the illustration, Randy. I imagine most of us have worked for control freaks that suck out the life of any team or individual.
Freedom seems powerful.
Dan after public accounting, I started my first big financial job at a fast growing private firm. On my first day the CFO, George, handed me a foot of “projects” he had set aside and told me to work on these along with my job as Corporate Controller and ask him questions along the way. I learned a lot. George was a great leader and became a live long mentor and friend and is in both my books. Brad
Thanks Brad. I see that freedom and being available to ask questions is important. Freedom and isolation eventually stalls progress.
There is a fine line between too much freedom and not enough freedom.
Effective leaders know where to draw the line.
As people grow and develop, they need more freedom. (like raising kids)
Highly experienced experts need to be given a lot of freedom.
But they are always some non-negotiables.
Such as–core values–respect, honesty, strive for excellence, teamwork etc.
Thanks Paul. It seem important to understand that freedom isn’t license. Freedom has constraints as you indicate.
“As people grow and develop, they need more freedom.” Bingo! And I suppose we could add more responsibility.
…as one of my bosses use to say—“We need to give him /her bigger bricks to carry.”
MORE Responsibility!
In many highly regulated situations, the HOW is more important than the what. An abject fail achieved in strict compliance with the rules and procedures is more valuable than a success obtained on an ad hoc basis.
Mitch: I worked in Nuclear Power from the 80s to 01 both in Construction and in Operations Support and while it was very regulated it still allowed enough leeway in accomplishing tasks and solving challenges such that we did not fail. We may have stumbled along the way but we succeeded.
Hi Roger, in my industry there is a very strong (but not universal) view that leeway is universally a bad thing. That judgement, interpretation and freedom and stepping stones on the road to anarchy. Essentially, if you can’t solve the challenge within the limitations of the SOP, don’t solve it. Crazy…