Leadership Is Hard - Especially When You’re Really Good at Your Job
- Michelle Gianferrari
- Feb 6
- 4 min read
Updated: Feb 9
Leadership is not easy. And in many cases, it’s hardest for those who are technically excellent, sometimes even better than the people they lead. When you can do the job faster, more accurately, or to a higher standard yourself, it’s tempting to step in. To correct. To control. To “just do it properly.”
But real leadership isn’t about being the smartest or most capable person in the room. It’s about creating an environment where others are equipped, empowered, and enabled to do their best work without you standing over them. That paradox is at the heart of modern leadership: the better you want your team to be, the more you often need to get out of their way.
Trust, Control, and the Micromanagement Trap
To build a high-performing team, leaders must develop the ability to trust, relinquish control, and delegate effectively. Yet so many leaders we encounter express the same frustration:
“My team doesn’t take initiative.”
“They need constant direction.”
“If I don’t check everything, it doesn’t get done properly.”
But is this really a “them” problem or could it be a “me” problem?
Peter Drucker famously said, “The best way to predict the future is to create it.” Leaders create the conditions in which their teams operate. If a team requires constant micromanagement, it’s worth asking whether the leader has often unintentionally, created an environment where micromanagement is simply The Way Things Are Done.
When leaders consistently step in, correct, redo work, or withhold trust, team members quickly learn that initiative isn’t safe. Over time, they stop trying not because they’re incapable, but because the system doesn’t reward independence.
Blind Spots, Not Bad People
It isn’t a cop-out to attribute many team issues to leadership. In fact, it’s usually the opposite. Most team performance issues stem not from ill intent nor incompetence, but from leadership blind spots. These blind spots quietly shape expectations, behaviours, and outcomes. Amy Edmondson’s work on psychological safety shows that people perform best when they feel trusted, supported, and safe to try and, sometimes fail. Without that foundation, initiative withers.
So the question becomes: how can leaders shift their approach to truly empower their people?
Start With the Right Foundations
Empowering leadership doesn’t begin with delegation it begins much earlier.
1. Hire for Capability
First, employ people you genuinely believe can do the job well. That means rigorously testing for capability during the interview process, not relying on gut feel alone. If you don’t trust someone’s competence, delegation will always feel risky.
2. Get Onboarding Right
Many leaders are quick to criticise new team members’ performance, overlooking the reality that onboarding and on-the-job training have been suboptimal. Clarity creates confidence.
A thorough, structured onboarding process sets people up to succeed rather than struggle. When expectations are unclear, performance almost always suffers.
3. Be Realistic With Expectations
Both new and existing team members need clear, achievable expectations. Unrealistic standards or unspoken assumptions don’t drive excellence they drive anxiety and disengagement.
Great leaders design success before they demand it.
Delegate to Build Confidence, Not Dependency
Effective delegation is developmental, not transactional. Start small. Delegate contained tasks where success is likely. Allow team members to win. Then, critically, acknowledge those wins. Recognition builds confidence and reinforces trust.
Gallup’s research consistently shows that people who feel recognised and trusted are significantly more engaged and productive.
As confidence grows, increase the complexity of what you delegate. Step back. Resist the urge to interfere. Shift from doing to overseeing, from controlling to guiding. And something interesting happens when leaders do this well: They reclaim time and energy for more complex, strategic, and meaningful work, often the work they actually love!
Your Team Is a Mirror
One of the most confronting truths of leadership is this:
Most people’s performance at work is a direct reflection of how they believe their leader feels about them. If people sense doubt, impatience, or mistrust, they tend to shrink. If they feel belief, support, and confidence from their leader, they rise to meet it. So the next time you’re disappointed by a team member’s performance, pause before coming down on them. Hold a mirror up first.
Ask:
What signals am I sending?
Where might my behaviour be shaping this outcome?
What environment have I created?
The reflection isn’t always comfortable, but it is powerful. Be brave and look closely.
Leadership Can Be Learned
The good news? Leadership isn’t a fixed trait. It’s a skill.
Simon Sinek reminds us that “Leadership is not about being in charge. It’s about taking care of those in your charge.” With the right support, feedback, and self-awareness, leaders can change long-standing habits and develop more empowering ways of working. And when leaders improve, teams improve. Engagement rises. Performance strengthens.
Turnover drops. Because the final truth remains as relevant as ever:
People don’t leave bad jobs; they leave bad managers!
The better you become as a leader, the better your team will be and the more likely they are to stay, grow, and do exceptional work alongside you.
Ready to build stronger consistency and accountability in your team? Explore Prime Practice’s Leadership Series, a proven pathway for dental leaders to elevate communication, culture, and confidence across their practice.
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