When Protecting Your Team Becomes Disempowering

Have you ever decided not to give someone feedback because you thought they would become defensive? Or not told someone about an opportunity because you assumed they were already too busy? Or avoided a difficult conversation because you didn't want to upset the other person? It can feel considerate. It can even feel like good leadership. But what if, without realizing it, you're actually taking away that person's ability to choose for themselves? As leaders, we sometimes make decisions for other capable adults based on assumptions about what they can or cannot handle. We tell ourselves we're protecting them. But in doing so, we may be taking away their agency, information, learning, and opportunities to grow. And there's another side to this: we may also be taking away our own opportunity to grow as leaders. In this episode, you'll learn: How seemingly caring leadership decisions can unintentionally disempower others Why our assumptions about how someone will react can start to feel like facts The important difference between being responsible for how we communicate and trying to control someone else's reaction Why discomfort is not necessarily the same as harm How avoiding difficult conversations can prevent both you and your team members from developing Why empowerment requires trusting people with choices, feedback, opportunities, and sometimes uncomfortable truths A simple set of questions to help you recognize when you may be deciding what another adult can handle Sometimes empowering someone isn't about giving them more responsibility. Sometimes it's about trusting them enough to give them the information, let them experience their own emotions, and allow them to decide what happens next. And trusting yourself enough to handle the discomfort that may come with it. Watch on YouTube Here