I’ve succeeded and grown in my career, up until a few years ago, purely through my ability to problem solve. And I love to problem solve.
But as I shifted into increasingly more leadership-oriented roles, my roles demanded less of a direct hand in problem solving, and instead indirect guidance for the problem solvers, my team.
Claire on the Signal v Noise blog has a great article on this, and I think it’s the perfect explanation for why so many people struggle in the shift to a people manager role. The problem solving skills that got us the job won’t help us keep it. In fact, unchecked, they may get in the way.
I encountered this early in my manager roles where I tried to lead through subject matter expertise. I wanted my team to see me as a repository for knowledge, who could always step in and take care of the issue if they hit a snag. But for the junior employees I hired, it ended up limiting their resourcefulness and hindering the sense of ownership in their roles.
And for the more senior employees on my team, they simply felt stifled. I’m pretty sure I lost an employee or two because of this early on.
I eventually learned, especially as I started hiring for roles whose expertise was outside of my own, that it’s both impossible to be a SME in everything, and counterproductive.
Sure, sometimes I still need to roll up my sleeves and problem solve, and it’s a delight when I get to do so. But it’s as much a reward in helping my own team recognize they can do the same.
See also: What Got You Here Won’t Get You There