Leadership is exhausting. On top of all the stuff you have to get done there’s all the stuff the people you’re leading have to get done, and all the stuff the people being led by the people you’re leading that has to get done. I need a nap just writing that sentence, but we haven’t even gotten to the part where you have to develop all the people developing all the people, and you have to hold all the people accountable for holding all the people accountable for developing all the people. Oh, and next Sunday is Easter.
Its almost too much for one person to handle. Which may be the point.
What if our challenge with leadership isn’t that we’re not working hard enough? What if the challenge is that we’re working too hard? As I have gotten older I’ve realized that the most effective leaders actually do less, not more. Perhaps laziness is the unspoken hero of leadership qualities. If that is the case, here are some tips on how to be a lazy, effective leader.
Don’t be Google
As leaders we love to answer questions. It makes us feel smart and important, and when we answer the questions we know the answers are right. (Because the answers are ours.) There are a few challenges when I become Google for the people I lead. First, if I answer the first question then I’ll need to answer the second, third and fourth questions. Soon there will be a line at my door of people with questions only I can answer. Have you ever tried to take an afternoon nap with a crowd at your door demanding answers? Its almost impossible.
The second challenge with trying to be Google is that I don’t always have the best, or even the right, answers. I’ve found that when I let people figure things out for themselves they often come up with better answers. It is a killer to my ego, because I always want to be right, but my ego often needs a little deflating.
The third challenge with filling in for Google is I am keeping people from growing. Growth comes from trying, failing, getting back up and trying again. I can give insight from my own experience, but for the most part it is healthy for people to learn for themselves rather than just parroting what they hear from me. It also leaves me a lot more time for my siesta.
Don’t be Jiffy Lube
Every time I take my car to Jiffy Lube for an oil change they find 15 other things I urgently need to fix. “Mr. Surratt, your catalytic converter isn’t converting, your tie rods are untied, and your oil pump has pumped its last.” They don’t understand my philosophy of car repair; if you ignore a problem long enough it will eventually go away. Unfortunately this philosophy hasn’t worked out so well as a car owner.
On the other hand, its actually a decent leadership philosophy. Similar to our urge to be Google, as leaders we often want to jump in and fix things. We jump on every urgent email thread with the solution to the problem. What I’ve discovered, however, is that if I’ll hang back and not provide the instant solution, many problem will indeed fix themselves. Sometimes the solution isn’t exactly what I would have suggested, but its usually good enough. And it didn’t interrupt my afternoon game of golf. (I haven’t golfed in years, but you get the point.)
Don’t be Netflix
Netflix constantly has suggestions for what I want to watch next. “Because you watched Ted Lasso you might like Bend It Like Beckham, or Drive to Survive, or Ted.” You know me so well, Netflix. Leaders are tempted to do the same thing, but instead of making suggestions based on the other persons background, all of our suggestions are based on our own experience. “When I was a youth pastor back in the 90’s, before you were born, lock-ins were really big. You should do a lock-in.” Never mind that lock-ins and the Backstreet Boys have had been equally popular with teenagers over the past 20 years. We mistakenly think our nostalgic suggestions are even remotely helpful to this generation of leaders.
A much better approach than Netflix is the Braintrust process developed by Ed Catmull, co-founder of Pixar. His book, Creativity Inc., is worth the read, but here’s an excerpt describing the Braintrust process.
Don’t be Waffle House
Breakfast at the Waffle House may be the most American experience possible. Truck drivers and bar tenders sharing a meal with a sweet little family of four on their first foray into the world of smothered and covered hash browns. And breakfast is served 24/7/365, the Awful Waffle is always there for you. Even on Christmas Day. Especially on Christmas Day.
Great lazy leaders don’t share Waffle House’s hours. There are hours of the day, days of the week, and weeks of the year when you aren’t open for business. You don’t answer email, respond to texts, or “jump on a quick call.” Waffle House leaders burn out leaders, including themselves. 99% of leadership challenges either resolve themselves or can wait until you get back. You aren’t a short-order cook in a greasy kitchen.
A healthy, effective, sometimes lazy leader is a gift to the church, non-profit, or company they work for. They empower the leaders around them, and present a model of life-giving leadership to everyone in the organization. So take that nap, play that round of golf, and practice the art of lazy leadership.
