Do you still know - or are you already learning?
Many people want to understand, explain, penetrate. But there is much that cannot be penetrated. No matter how clever our theories are, reality doesn't care. Effect is achieved by doing. Not talking about it.
It is not uncommon for the smartest person in the team to be promoted to boss. If such a person retains their previous mindset, the team loses a great employee - and gains a mediocre boss.
Because wanting to explain, understand and penetrate sometimes makes sense in a technical context. This mindset stands in the way of effective leadership for several reasons:
Impact comes from action
"It's not about predicting the future - it's about surviving it!" Tom Koulopoulos describes a learning attitude. Doing so has another advantage: it works. Action brings progress, brings realisation, brings momentum.
Anyone who sails knows the metaphor: a stationary boat cannot be steered. Sometimes you have to set off in the completely wrong direction in order to be able to steer as soon as the rudder works again.
Being right consumes a lot of energy
Of course, discussions are important. They are the cheapest prototypes of reality. They are created very quickly, but are extremely imprecise. And the blind spot is another thing: everyone knows that it exists. But it's not bad that you can't see anything at the blind spot (that's not true either, we don't see two black dots). The bad thing is that you can't see what you can't see. The brain completes the image in the blind spot. We think we are seeing reality. We don't see anything, and the brain adds to it.
--> Discussions therefore need an emergency exit. It's called: "And now, what are we actually doing to get one step further?"
The difference between theory and practice is smaller in theory than in practice.
Bertrand Piccard describes this impressively: "We are often convinced that the limit of what is possible is here." He points to a spot on the floor and walks towards it. "But when we try it out, we realise. It's not here at all. Perhaps here, one step further? "Piccard takes step after step from one presumed border to the next. Somewhere you find the limit, of course. However, the focus is on looking for them, on learning (and on protecting yourself to the extent that the actual boundary does not hurt you).
Such bosses have a restrictive effect
It is difficult to let employees find their own way. But often much more effective. Overly strong convictions about how something should be done create a management climate of narrowness.
5. And behind all this lurks the expert trap
Conclusion
Effective leadership is a mindset, an attitude. The direct way to do this is to sort out your needs and values. Here you can reflect on your own hierarchy of needs.
PS: Leadership is a service. There is little room for ego in leadership. Here is an Arte programme on exactly that: How to get rid of arseholes. (Available until March 2026)
Sources
Much of what is described here is from the perspective of innovation. But it also works in a reproducing context. Even in perfectly quality-assured production, there are more coincidences than many a quality assurance guru would like. Quality assurance makes an enemy of chance. The above mindset makes use of chance. A lot more about this and further sources can be found in the chapter on knowledge work and innovation by Stefan Heer in the book Psychology for Managers.