Empowered Teams

Talking about exceptional products last week made me think about the teams behind those products. You need exceptional people to create exceptional products. And I’ve been lucky enough to work with a lot of exceptional people over the years.

I really like principles. I believe in foundational truths we can use across all areas of work and life. So let’s dig into principles for leading teams—or at least the ones I’ve found success in as a leader over the past 10+ years of my career. These are the same guiding principles that have helped me build empowered teams.

Ego-Free Leadership

Most people think of leadership as making decisions on the behalf of other people—showing them how to do something. But that’s not leadership. Leadership is guiding others and supporting them to do something exceptional through their work.

You can’t be a great leader if you carry a big ego. Why? Because the first thing you learn is that it’s not about you.

Ego-free leadership is about supporting and guiding those you lead. Yes, you’ll have to make decisions and frequently lead by example. But, more importantly, you’re helping to position others so they can be successful.

Consistent

Ego-free leadership starts with being consistent. You need to show up regularly and remember information shared with you. You can do this by having regular cadences with your team and the individuals on the team: 1-on-1s, team retros, etc. Take notes, be diligent, and always show up.

Clear

You need to be clear about expectations. You can’t expect anyone to match your expectations if you aren’t clear with them. I set a high bar for my team, but I make sure they know what the bar is, and how I’m there to support them. This levels people up quickly (who care enough).

Collaborative

Good leadership is not an echo chamber. You need to engage in healthy debate, wrestle with difficult challenges, and let the best idea win. When my team comes to me for a decision, I always start by asking them what they think we should do. More often than not, they already know the answer, so this communicates ‘I trust you and you got this.’

Supported Independence

Early in my leadership career (I still catch myself doing this), I would regularly take on other people’s problems as my own. It’s not leadership. And it’s a recipe for burnout and stagnation, limiting my own growth and, more importantly, those I’m leading.

If you don’t give someone the tools to solve their own problems, they never will. Even worse, if you keep solving problems for them, they’ll rely on you. I call this “Extreme Dependence.”

To fix this, I started moving towards a sustainable system of support. Instead of solving their problem, I helped them frame the problem in such a way they could understand how to solve it for themselves. I call this “Supported Independence.”

Equip

It starts with equipping them with the tools they need to make decisions and work effectively. Getting better at making decisions is about understanding the underlying thinking behind the decision. You have to think out loud and show your work when making decisions. I think out loud naturally, so this comes easy to me. It takes practice to think through problems in a transparent way.

Elevate

As team members start to understand the decision-making process, they are continually building their taste and intuition. This is where you can start to give them more responsibility, more latitude, and more agency. That shift elevates them and intensifies their growth.

Empower

As you elevate team members, you can then empower them because they now have the tools and responsibility to create more influence. This is powerful. It accelerates their growth and creates more margin for you as a leader.

Pull-Based Communication

Good leaders listen, but great leaders listen, understand, and reflect. I don’t believe you can effectively lead without understanding the work—deeply and fundamentally. You can guide in the abstract, but you can’t coach in the specific, tactical, and tangible. Get close to the work, live in the details, and manage that tension to empower others.

Some will call this “Founder Mode,” but I like to think of it as push-based vs. pull-based leadership. Are you leading by pushing down the direction to the team? Or are you leading by pulling up from the details into the bigger picture? The former requires repetition, but the latter drives clarity. You’re directly connecting the dots and removing the need for translation.

Details

My favorite way to lead is by getting my hands in the work. I’ll pour over ever pixel and line of code to help make the product exceptional. It’s like the captain of a hockey team. They are the best player on the team, but they also lead the team on (and off) the ice. You are the leader, but you need to be in the work to lead effectively.

Knowledge

To work effectively in the details, you need deep knowledge of the work. If you don’t, you’re micromanaging, causing friction, and creating tension. Don’t be just another warm body—meaningfully contribute to the work and decisions through extensive knowledge. Thinking as a leader while contributing to the work is a superpower.

Trust

When you understand the work and get into the details, there’s implicit trust built with the team. They know you’re working alongside them. You’re part of the team, not sitting above. I’ve built incredibly high-trust teams this way. It works.

Find the Middle

I believe great leadership comes from finding the middle, the balance between operating at a high level and digging into the details. A leader’s job is to guide, support, and connect the dots to create motivation, purpose, and engagement. It starts from a deep understanding of the people you lead and using clear principles as a compass. Find the middle and you will empower teams to do the best work of their lives.