Summary
Let’s get painfully honest:
If your team can’t move without you, If every project stalls at your desk, If nothing feels “ready” until you’ve had a pass at it—you’re not saving the day, you’re strangling it. You’re not leading. You’re clogging the system.
The Control Spiral: Why You’re Doing It
It starts when things feel chaotic. Deadlines slip. Outcomes wobble. And you think: “If I just jump in and tighten this up, we’ll be back on track.”
But it never ends with one tweak. You rewrite the email. You rework the deck. You sit on approvals for too long because you’re “just not sure yet.”
Suddenly, everything is stuck. And the only constant is you.
Perfectionism Isn’t Excellence—It’s Fear in a Fancy Suit
What feels like “getting it right” is actually just fear:
- Fear of being judged.
- Fear of being wrong.
- Fear of letting go.
But here’s what your team hears every time you take over:
“Your best isn’t good enough.”
Even when that’s not your intent, and when people feel like their best doesn’t count, they stop trying.
What This Bottleneck Culture Creates
- Delays that stack and compound
- Low morale and quiet resentment
- A lack of ownership
- A leader who’s exhausted and out of time
You want things to be better, but your grip is too tight. Your edits are creating chaos. Your “final passes” are breaking the flow. Your delays are blocking growth. You think you’re helping. But you’re the reason it’s stuck.
How to Get Out of Your Own Damn Way
- Let 80% Be Enough
Everything doesn’t need to be perfect. It needs to be published, shipped, and live. Done creates momentum. Perfect creates bottlenecks.
- Set the Direction, Then Step Back
Define what success looks like. Let your team define the path. “Here’s what matters. You own the execution.”
- Replace Tweaking with Trust
If you’ve hired capable people, act like it. Don’t just say, “I trust you.” Prove it by not interfering.
- Set Approval Boundaries
Decide what actually needs your sign-off—and what doesn’t. Let go of low-risk, high-friction checkpoints.
- Reflect on the Cost of Your Control
Ask yourself:
-
- How many projects are waiting on me right now?
- How much better could my team be without my edits?
- What would happen if I let them finish it their way?
The Truth You Don’t Want to Hear
You say you want the best from your team. But your behavior says:
“I want to be the best on my team.”
And that’s ego, not leadership. Let them be great. Let the work move forward. Let go before everything stalls out. Because right now?
You’re the bottleneck. You’re the delay. You’re the reason nothing feels good enough.
Final Word: Their Best Is Good Enough
You don’t need to fix everything. You need to fix why you feel the need to. Your job is not to make the work perfect. Your job is to make the team powerful. So step back. Unclench. And let it flow.
Your people are ready. Are you?
