You're Not In Charge, You're Responsible For Those In Your Charge

Being in a leadership role doesn't mean you have absolute authority over those reporting to you. Rather, you are entrusted with responsibility for the wellbeing, growth and performance of your team members. Leadership is not about control or power. It's about nurturing people to achieve their full potential.

Facilitate Growth

Your primary role as a leader is to be a growth catalyst for your team members. Getting the best out of people involves taking the time to deeply understand individual strengths, passions and aspirations. Then facilitate projects, training opportunities and lateral moves that align with organizational objectives while providing stretch assignments. Guide people to expand their skills in their roles rather than pigeon-holing them.

Foster Teamship

While focusing on individual team member's development, also cultivate an esprit de corps and culture of mutual support within your team as a whole. Model collaborative behaviors that break down silos, stimulate resource sharing and idea synthesis between members. Build relationships centered on trust and interdependency rather than competition or factional interests.

Champion the Cause

To elicit extreme team performance, members need to be passionately invested in the shared mission and purpose behind their work. As a leader responsible for your team, it's your job to frame the "why" behind organizational goals in a way they'll find genuinely inspiring and meaningful. Take the time to understand what drives each person at a values level and draw associations with shared vision.

Check Your Ego

Responsible leadership means frequently checking any ego or self-importance at the door. It's not about you or your status. Avoid top-down decision making that fails to leverage the collective wisdom of your team. And skip the temptation to grab credit for team achievements. A secure leader celebrates successes without needing the spotlight.

Develop Decision Skills

An essential part of nurturing your team members is growing their own leadership abilities. Even if they never manage people directly, build skills like accountability, communication, influence and decisiveness that serve them well regardless of role. Give emerging leaders decision-making authority on projects along with access to your mentorship.

In summary, being responsible for those in your charge is vastly different from just being in charge. It means seeing your central role as serving team members by unleashing their potential, uniting them behind meaningful goals and equipping them with transferable leadership skills for the future. It's about empowering people, not exercising power over them. Responsible leadership puts people first.