Expect Responsibility Without Being a Jerk-Hole

Expect Responsibility Without Being a Jerk-Hole

Sincere managers unintentionally take responsibility for other people’s jobs.

People get dumb and weak when you solve problems for them. Being the answer-manager builds your ego and weakens your team.

Stop pressuring yourself to solve everyone’s problems. The more problems you solve, the more people expect you to solve their problems.

Expect Responsibility:

People are responsible to do their job. You’re irresponsible when you do it for them. Have this conversation the next time someone asks you to solve something for them…

1. They say, “Boss, I have a problem I want to give you.”
2. You say, “What have you tried?”

Team members won’t literally say, “I want you to own my problem.” But they plan to leave their problem with you when they walk away. Don’t rush to pick up problems that belong to someone else.

Asking, “What have you tried?” places responsibility where it belongs. Smile. Be pleasant and expect people to do their job.

If you have been the “answer-manager” their response is likely, “I haven’t tried anything.” It’s good for them to acknowledge reality. Don’t punish them. Take responsibility for teaching them to be helpless.  

When their eyes go to the ceiling and they say, “I don’t know,” say, “If you did know, what would you do?” Expect people to challenge themselves. If they still don’t know, ask, “Who might know?”

If they still can’t think of anything, say, “Let’s see if ‘we’ can come up with a solution that works for you.”

What makes holding people responsible difficult?

What would you add to the plan suggested in this post?

Author’s note: I’ve written about this before. I was reminded of this issue during a coaching conversation yesterday and thought it might be useful to hit this topic again. Also, some problems people bring you do belong to you.

Still curious:

4 Surprising Things Leaders Aren’t Responsible For

Stop Doing Your Team’s Work for Them