The Leadership Myth: Why You Don’t Need All the Answers

How Letting Go of Perfection Makes You a Stronger Leader

Early in my career, I believed that great leaders had all the answers. I thought my job was to solve every problem, make every decision, and always have the perfect plan. But the more I tried to be the one with all the answers, the more I became the bottleneck. My team would wait for my input instead of taking initiative. Progress slowed, creativity stalled, and I felt completely overwhelmed.

Then I learned one of the most valuable lessons of leadership: Your job isn’t to have all the answers—it’s to ask the right questions.

Why Leaders Shouldn’t Have All the Answers

🔹 It limits your team’s growth. If you always step in, your team won’t develop problem-solving skills.

🔹 It creates dependency. Instead of thinking for themselves, your team will always look to you for direction.

🔹 It slows down progress. When everything has to go through you, decisions take longer, and opportunities are missed.

The Shift: From Answering to Asking

✔ Encourage independent thinking. Instead of responding with solutions, ask: What do you think? or How would you handle this?

✔ Trust your team to figure things out. Give them the space to experiment, make decisions, and learn from the outcomes.

✔ Admit when you don’t know. Strong leaders say, I don’t know—let’s figure it out together. It builds trust and encourages collaboration.

Try This Today: The “No Answer” Challenge

For one day, resist the urge to give answers. Instead, respond with a question that guides your team toward finding the solution themselves. You’ll be surprised how capable they really are.

Lead with Confidence, Not Control

The strongest leaders aren’t the ones who know everything—they’re the ones who empower others to think, act, and lead. If you’re ready to make the shift, Lead Forward! will show you how.