WEBVTT

1
00:00:04.200 --> 00:00:06.960
<v Speaker 1>Helping leaders motivate their people to a higher level of

2
00:00:07.000 --> 00:00:11.720
<v Speaker 1>performance through strong human relations, team building, and golajiving. This

3
00:00:11.919 --> 00:00:15.519
<v Speaker 1>is the seven minute Leadership Podcast with your host Paul

4
00:00:15.640 --> 00:00:16.399
<v Speaker 1>Fello Aledo.

5
00:00:21.480 --> 00:00:25.239
<v Speaker 2>Hello everyone, and welcome to this seven minute leadership podcast.

6
00:00:25.280 --> 00:00:29.160
<v Speaker 2>It's episode six oh four. I recently got off a

7
00:00:29.199 --> 00:00:33.039
<v Speaker 2>call with a client who said something that stopped me cold,

8
00:00:33.240 --> 00:00:37.719
<v Speaker 2>and I have his permission to talk about this. He said,

9
00:00:37.759 --> 00:00:40.079
<v Speaker 2>I love my job and I'm really damn good at it.

10
00:00:40.159 --> 00:00:42.920
<v Speaker 2>The problem is I have a boss who won't get

11
00:00:42.960 --> 00:00:44.479
<v Speaker 2>out of my way, and now I don't want to

12
00:00:44.479 --> 00:00:48.200
<v Speaker 2>get up and come to work. That sentence matters not

13
00:00:48.320 --> 00:00:52.600
<v Speaker 2>because it's dramatic, not because it's emotional. It matters because

14
00:00:52.600 --> 00:00:56.799
<v Speaker 2>it is the sound of a great employee quietly disengaging.

15
00:00:57.799 --> 00:01:01.719
<v Speaker 2>This episode is for two people. It is for the

16
00:01:01.759 --> 00:01:05.920
<v Speaker 2>employee who feels boxed in second guest and slowly drained

17
00:01:05.920 --> 00:01:09.200
<v Speaker 2>by someone above them. And it's for the leader who

18
00:01:09.280 --> 00:01:12.480
<v Speaker 2>might not realize they are the reason someone great is

19
00:01:12.560 --> 00:01:17.239
<v Speaker 2>thinking about quitting a job they once loved. So let's

20
00:01:17.280 --> 00:01:20.719
<v Speaker 2>start with the employee side. When someone says I love

21
00:01:20.799 --> 00:01:23.959
<v Speaker 2>my job and I'm really good at it, that tells

22
00:01:24.000 --> 00:01:27.000
<v Speaker 2>me everything I need to know. This is not laziness,

23
00:01:27.079 --> 00:01:30.560
<v Speaker 2>This is not entitlement. This is pride and work, This

24
00:01:30.760 --> 00:01:34.799
<v Speaker 2>is ownership. This is someone who wants to contribute and win.

25
00:01:35.560 --> 00:01:39.879
<v Speaker 2>The problem is not the work. The problem is friction.

26
00:01:40.640 --> 00:01:42.640
<v Speaker 2>And here's the advice I gave him. And if you're

27
00:01:42.879 --> 00:01:47.879
<v Speaker 2>in this position, please listen closely. First, name the real

28
00:01:47.920 --> 00:01:54.120
<v Speaker 2>issue clearly and professionally. Most people stay vague because they're afraid.

29
00:01:54.239 --> 00:01:58.719
<v Speaker 2>They say things like I feel unsupported or I feel micromanaged,

30
00:01:58.760 --> 00:02:03.319
<v Speaker 2>and that language is emotional and easy to dismiss. Instead,

31
00:02:03.920 --> 00:02:08.159
<v Speaker 2>get specific, What decisions are being overridden, What work is

32
00:02:08.199 --> 00:02:11.199
<v Speaker 2>being redone? What authority do you think you have that

33
00:02:11.280 --> 00:02:18.520
<v Speaker 2>you actually do not. Clarity removes drama, vague frustration creates it. Second,

34
00:02:18.960 --> 00:02:24.199
<v Speaker 2>have the conversation before resentment does it for you. Resentment

35
00:02:24.439 --> 00:02:28.520
<v Speaker 2>is patient. It waits until you're tired, short and sharp.

36
00:02:28.599 --> 00:02:32.080
<v Speaker 2>Then it talks for you in ways you cannot take back.

37
00:02:32.800 --> 00:02:36.800
<v Speaker 2>The conversation sounds like this. I care about this role.

38
00:02:37.280 --> 00:02:40.560
<v Speaker 2>I take pride in the results. Right now, the way

39
00:02:40.680 --> 00:02:44.840
<v Speaker 2>decisions are being handled is slowing me down and affecting

40
00:02:44.879 --> 00:02:47.280
<v Speaker 2>my motivation. I want to talk about how we can

41
00:02:47.319 --> 00:02:52.319
<v Speaker 2>fix that. This is not an attack. This is ownership. Third,

42
00:02:53.039 --> 00:02:57.719
<v Speaker 2>ask one question that changes everything. What does success look

43
00:02:57.879 --> 00:03:01.680
<v Speaker 2>like if you fully trust me in this role? That

44
00:03:01.800 --> 00:03:06.879
<v Speaker 2>question forces alignment or exposes the lack of it. If

45
00:03:06.919 --> 00:03:10.759
<v Speaker 2>the answer is clear, you now have a target. If

46
00:03:10.800 --> 00:03:15.960
<v Speaker 2>the answer is fuzzy, the issue was never you. Fourth,

47
00:03:16.479 --> 00:03:20.840
<v Speaker 2>protect your standards even if you cannot change the environment immediately.

48
00:03:21.960 --> 00:03:25.000
<v Speaker 2>If you're good at your job, stay good at your job.

49
00:03:25.159 --> 00:03:28.879
<v Speaker 2>Do not lower your performance to match someone else's insecurity.

50
00:03:29.560 --> 00:03:33.639
<v Speaker 2>That road only ends one way, and it damages your reputation,

51
00:03:34.240 --> 00:03:38.680
<v Speaker 2>not theirs. Now, let's flip this to the leader side,

52
00:03:38.680 --> 00:03:43.680
<v Speaker 2>because this is where the real lesson lives. Leaders If

53
00:03:43.719 --> 00:03:47.000
<v Speaker 2>someone who loves their job no longer wants to come

54
00:03:47.039 --> 00:03:51.360
<v Speaker 2>to work, that is a leadership problem until proven otherwise.

55
00:03:51.960 --> 00:03:56.680
<v Speaker 2>So let me say this plainly. Control is not leadership.

56
00:03:57.120 --> 00:04:03.319
<v Speaker 2>Hovering is not leadership. Re Checking every move is not leadership.

57
00:04:03.879 --> 00:04:09.560
<v Speaker 2>Those behaviors are usually fear wearing a title. Great leaders

58
00:04:09.719 --> 00:04:13.360
<v Speaker 2>higher capable people than they give them room to operate.

59
00:04:14.159 --> 00:04:17.319
<v Speaker 2>Your job is not to be everywhere. Your job is

60
00:04:17.360 --> 00:04:22.600
<v Speaker 2>to be clear, available, and decisive when needed. If you

61
00:04:22.720 --> 00:04:25.959
<v Speaker 2>have someone who is damn good at what they do,

62
00:04:26.800 --> 00:04:31.800
<v Speaker 2>your role is to remove obstacles not become one. Ask

63
00:04:31.839 --> 00:04:36.879
<v Speaker 2>yourself this tonight. Am I adding value? Or am I

64
00:04:36.959 --> 00:04:40.519
<v Speaker 2>adding drag? Am I stepping in because something is broken?

65
00:04:41.120 --> 00:04:45.360
<v Speaker 2>Or because I am uncomfortable not being involved? Do my

66
00:04:45.439 --> 00:04:50.959
<v Speaker 2>people feel trusted or tolerated? And here's a hard operational truth.

67
00:04:51.120 --> 00:04:54.959
<v Speaker 2>Good people do not quit work they love. They quit

68
00:04:55.079 --> 00:05:00.319
<v Speaker 2>friction that they cannot fix in the most dangerous part

69
00:05:00.360 --> 00:05:04.800
<v Speaker 2>is this, They often do not complain loudly. They go quiet,

70
00:05:04.879 --> 00:05:10.480
<v Speaker 2>they disengage, they stop bringing ideas, they stop pushing, and

71
00:05:10.519 --> 00:05:15.519
<v Speaker 2>then one day they leave and leadership act surprised. If

72
00:05:15.519 --> 00:05:19.519
<v Speaker 2>you're a leader listening to this, do one thing this week.

73
00:05:20.399 --> 00:05:24.920
<v Speaker 2>Ask your strongest performer, where am I getting in your way?

74
00:05:25.639 --> 00:05:30.639
<v Speaker 2>And then listen without defending yourself. If you're an employee

75
00:05:30.720 --> 00:05:35.560
<v Speaker 2>listening to this, remember this. You're allowed to want autonomy.

76
00:05:35.759 --> 00:05:40.279
<v Speaker 2>You're allowed to protect your energy. You're allowed to expect

77
00:05:40.319 --> 00:05:44.199
<v Speaker 2>clarity from leadership. But you also owe it to yourself

78
00:05:44.240 --> 00:05:48.680
<v Speaker 2>to speak up before burnout speaks for you. Leadership is

79
00:05:49.040 --> 00:05:53.959
<v Speaker 2>not about control. It is about trust, direction, and restraint.

80
00:05:54.680 --> 00:05:58.120
<v Speaker 2>And sometimes the most powerful move a leader can make

81
00:05:58.879 --> 00:06:07.519
<v Speaker 2>is stepping back. So if this episode felt personal, that's

82
00:06:07.560 --> 00:06:12.959
<v Speaker 2>because it's happening everywhere. Good people want to do good work.

83
00:06:14.000 --> 00:06:19.000
<v Speaker 2>Leaders either create space for that or they slowly squeeze

84
00:06:19.040 --> 00:06:22.240
<v Speaker 2>it out. Whether you sit in the chair with the

85
00:06:22.279 --> 00:06:27.000
<v Speaker 2>title or the chair doing the work, your responsibility is

86
00:06:27.040 --> 00:06:33.959
<v Speaker 2>the same. Clarity, ownership, and honest conversation beat silent frustration

87
00:06:34.519 --> 00:06:38.639
<v Speaker 2>every time. This has been the seven minute Leadership Podcast,

88
00:06:38.680 --> 00:06:39.920
<v Speaker 2>and I thank you for listening.

89
00:06:40.120 --> 00:06:44.879
<v Speaker 1>For more Paul Fell of Alito Podcasts, visit paulfellowalito dot com.