The Leadership Mistake Slowing Your Business Growth

We’ve all been there. Proud of our craft, praised for our performance, and promoted because we’re “the best at what we do.” But what if the very skill that got you here is now your biggest leadership mistake, quietly capping your business growth?

Many business owners and managers fall into this trap without realizing it.

I learned that the hard way.

From Star Performer to Stretched-Thin

Let’s rewind to my first big leadership role. I’d just been promoted to lead a dozen high-performing team members in a brand-new customer service center. I was excited, determined, and honestly convinced that the best way to lead was to keep being the best at my job.

So I worked longer hours, took over every tricky task, and jumped in to “save the day” whenever something went wrong. Sounds noble, so it was a surprise that just within three months, morale had tanked, two top performers had quit, and wait times had actually increased by 40%.

My “super skills” had become the bottleneck. Instead of empowering my team, I’d trained them to rely on me. That’s when it hit me. Technical excellence wasn’t the problem, but lack of self-awareness was.

Three Simple Shifts to Start Leading Differently

Growing your business isn’t about doing more; it’s about leading differently. The best leaders I know and the kind I’ve worked hard to become build self-awareness into their daily habits.

Here are three small shifts that made a huge difference in how I lead now and how my team performs.

1. Ask before you answer.

Curiosity beats cleverness every time. The next time someone asks for help, resist the urge to jump in and solve their problem. Instead, try asking: “What options have you already considered?” That one question can turn dependence into problem-solving and build ownership faster than any pep talk.

2. Develop, don’t do.

If you find yourself saying it’s quicker to do it yourself, stop right there. Hand the task back to your team member with clear guardrails. Maybe say something along the lines of “Outline your plan. I’ll review it, then you run with it.” It’s going to progress more slowly at first, but trust me, it compounds into real freedom later.

3. Zoom out before diving in.

Set aside a weekly two-hour block where you focus on strategy first and foremost. Ask yourself: What will matter 90 days from now? This habit forces you to lead from the balcony, where you step back from the noise of the day-to-day and look at the bigger picture. This simple reflection reminds you that your job as a leader isn’t to stay busy but to stay intentional.

Fixing Your Leadership Mistake Through Self-Awareness

Here’s a story I like to tell around self-awareness for leaders.

One of my clients, an operations manager, once told me he felt like a “walking help desk.” His team depended on him for every answer, every decision, every fix. To help him see the pattern, he started tracking how often he answered questions versus how often he asked coaching questions. Within weeks, he reclaimed 25% of his calendar and uncovered a six-figure cost saving.

That’s what happens when you lead with awareness. You stop being the bottleneck and start building a culture that grows without you needing to control every move.

Three Key Takeaways

If any part of this story felt familiar, you’re not alone. Most leaders don’t realize they’re making this mistake until they’re deep in it. Here are a few lessons that helped me shift from doing to truly leading, and that might just do the same for you.

1. Being great at your job isn’t the same as being a great leader. Your technical excellence got you promoted, but if you keep doing instead of developing, you can become your team’s bottleneck.

2. Curiosity builds stronger teams than control. Ask before you answer. Guiding your team to think through problems empowers them and frees you from being the “walking help desk.”

3. Self-awareness fuels real growth. Leading from the balcony and not the trenches helps you focus on what truly moves the business forward. Awareness turns busy managers into intentional leaders who build teams that thrive without constant supervision.

The truth is, being great at your job got you where you are now, but self-awareness will take you, your team, and your business where you really want to go. So take a breath, trade answers for questions, and lead with intention. That’s how real growth begins, for you and for your team.

My Challenge to You

If you’re serious about becoming a more self-aware leader, here’s a simple experiment that can quietly transform the way you lead, starting this week.

For the next seven days, your goal is to become more aware of how you lead in the moment.

Follow these steps:

Step 1: Start tracking your conversations. Each time someone on your team asks a question, notice your instinct. Do you jump in with an answer, or do you pause to ask one back?

Step 2: Keep score. Grab your phone or a notepad and make two tallies: one for every time you answer (A), and another for every time you ask (Q) a coaching-style question.

Step 3: Review your ratio. At the end of each day, take 30 seconds to look at your As and Qs.

Step 4: Aim for progress, not a perfect score. By week’s end, try to flip the ratio so you see more Qs than As. This signals you’re leading with curiosity, not control.

Bonus: At your next one-on-one, ask your team member how they’d solve a current challenge before you offer your input. You’ll be surprised how often they already have the right answer.

Let us know your thoughts and your progress in the comments below. For more short, actionable tips on leadership development, team performance, business, and systems, tune in to my podcast here: This Leadership Mistake is Slowing Your Business Growth