Leadership Isn’t a Solo Act (Trust Me, I Tried)

For a long time, I believed being a leader meant having the answers.

I thought I had to be the one steering the ship and patching the sails and reading the stars. Every decision, every deadline, every ounce of responsibility sat on my shoulders because I thought that’s what “strong leadership” looked like.

Spoiler: I burned out.

The truth is, and it’s taken me years to learn this, leadership inside a team is never about one person calling the shots. It’s about co-creating momentum. It’s about trust. And yes, it’s about getting out of your own damn way sometimes.

I was reminded of this recently reading this Gallup article on improving teamwork, which lays out something so simple, but so often overlooked:

“The best teams are not collections of the same kind of people. They are a mix of strengths and styles, and they know how to lean into them.”

I used to think delegating meant losing control. That trusting others meant setting myself up for disappointment. But the more I practiced (and failed, and tried again), the more I realized that empowering others is not about letting go of excellence, it’s about redefining where excellence comes from.

These days, I ask for help more quickly. I bring people into decision-making early. I try to create space where others can lead without me needing to shape it. It's messier. Less predictable. But far more powerful.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth:
If your leadership depends on you doing everything yourself, it's not leadership, it's martyrdom.

Real leadership is shared. Lived. Trusted. Messy.
Unpolished. But deeply, deeply human.

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What to Try This Week:
Think about one place where you’re trying to lead solo.
What’s one small way you could invite others in? Ask for input, delegate a task, co-create a solution?
Then notice what it feels like, not just what gets done.

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Rooting for your growth,
Amber-Lea