Leader not Caregiver : a case for distancing from team

A random tweet caught my attention this morning - 'the most important part of #leadership is caring about other people'. Counter-intuitively this did not get my complete buy-in. The word caring conjures up the picture of a nurturing leader. The kind who looks after her/his team and goes on an overdrive on engagement and fun activities. He would , typically, rush in to pick up the cudgels with other functional teams, in the belief that his own team gives kudos points for a Boss who 'fights on their behalf'.

There is something very paternal and top-down about this term. There is also a gender bias, here, as many readings on women leaders seem to support this 'caring' quality. The tweet did force some introspection on this Sunday morning - the weekend immediately following a financial year closure.

While the Corporate euphemism is 'stretch targets', there are times when teams have to take (what I call) 'put you on the stretcher' targets. Many leaders believe that in such moments they have to roll-up-the-sleeves and plunge into the centre of action. Some go on an overdrive with textbook messages of 'you realise what you visualise' kind. Other caring bosses call for impromptu treats and promises of a drink-binge on achieving targets.

At the heart of all this lies a basic truth - nothing gives individuals a greater high than a goal well-achieved. It is knowing that you delivered at the time the Company needs more than your 100%. These moments are when a leader must actually step back and let the team be. So, let me redefine the statement, my way :

"The most important part of #leadership is caring enough to help others to achieve"

When a company faces challenging targets, the delivery lies in the dynamics between functional teams. Teams that might actually be working on conflicting goals. The Manager, most times must wear the hat of a diplomat or become an Internal Community Manager - just facilitating cross-functional communication. 

Distancing, somewhat like a lighthouse, is viewing the larger picture, picking up ahead the disaster signals and helping the team to navigate. Caring and distancing, to some extent, sounds like an oxymoron. Just a caring manager might become too close and protective of his team. 

Good leaders are performance catalysts amongst peers and subordinates. They understand the importance of mobilising a larger Organization, to help a collective set of individuals to sense personalised achievement.