The Best Leaders Become Less Necessary

“That’s our job.”

In every parent’s life, there are moments when you realize you’ve become less necessary to your children.
They no longer need you to brush their teeth.  They don’t want you to read them a bedtime story.  They don’t need you to drive them to practice.  They no longer tell you details of how their day was.
And at some point, they leave home to build lives of their own.

Sure, you’re still involved with them and in their lives.  But much less so than it used to be.
Years ago, a friend of my mother’s was lamenting she was “losing” her children as they became more independent.
My mother replied simply, “I thought that was our job.”

And so it is with leaders.  Early on, people may need your direction, judgment, and support. But over time, your job is to make that dependence unnecessary.
Strong leaders develop people who can think, decide, and act without waiting for their approval. They remain available, but they do not make themselves indispensable.

The goal is not to become unimportant. It is to become less necessary.
One of the best things a leader can hear is:  “I’ve got this.”

When fewer decisions must travel upward, it’s often a sign your leadership is working.  Your success isn’t measured primarily by what your team accomplishes when you’re present. It’s mostly measured by what they can accomplish without you.

To paraphrase my mother:

“That’s our job.”