Inspiring leaders motivate others towards a bigger goal. I am not an inspiring leader. I have trust issues, I want things done my way, I micromanage, I give tight confines with no ability for creativity. I utterly make myself miserable when others don’t do things my way and I make others miserable by denying their humanity, seeking to treat their output like a machine.

As I face the reality of burnout I suppose I’m having a come to Jesus moment. I can’t keep doing what I’ve been doing. I need to become a better manager to grow my business and I need to empower others to make decisions.

I’m never going to be an inspirational leader. I don’t think that is my style. I think I’d rather be a good teacher. I want to help others be the best versions of themselves and achieve their goals and as a side effect help me with my goals.

I can’t work on everything at once so I’m going to work on one thing. How to give trust. How to trust others within a set of constraints. Maybe that is the real goal of a manager. You set constraints and give your people trust within a framework. You then empower them within that framework by removing all obstacles that prevent them and you from functioning well.

Not rocket science, but harder to do than writing some code.