Lies Bosses Tell Themselves: I Have to Know Everything

Always Compete, Gaining an Edge, Get Better, Go Full Speed, Goal Setting, Growth, Motivation, Personal Mastery, Problem-Solving, Professional Development

You should have known that!

Why did that happen?

As a new supervisor in the Navy, back in 1995, I heard this all the time.  The Command I was serving at was one of the most dysfunctional I’d ever seen.  Everyone blamed everyone else for anything that went wrong.  It was very frustrating to have to deal with something that happened even when I wasn’t around.  Worse, I was expected to have superhuman abilities to know everything about everything all the time.  I told myself I failed, after all, I felt like a failure.

I lied to myself.  I didn’t have to know everything.  I couldn’t know everything.  It’s physically impossible.

Are you lying to yourself about this?

As The Boss, you are certainly responsible for anything that happens on your watch.  But knowing everything?  It won’t happen.  If you think you can, I promise you’ll start doubting yourself and your stress level will skyrocket.  Instead of telling yourself this lie, try the following:

  1. Realize when higher-ups confront you about a situation and appear unreasonable, it’s probably because they just got their ass chewed by their own Boss.  Don’t feed into that.  Listen to them vent and then when they leave, MOVE ON.
  2. Know as much as you CAN know.  Frustration isn’t an excuse to just give up.  Spend time each day getting status reports but don’t drive yourself crazy trying to know and memorize everything.
  3. Surround yourself with a team that knows what you don’t.  Only a fool gets into a bar fight without some backup.  Make sure your team backs you up and keeps you abreast on what’s going on.
  4. Prioritize tasks, focusing on the high-value tasks (the ones that get you in trouble if they fail). Don’t allow your Boss or people higher up dictate your schedule based on a whim.
  5. Communicate as much and as often as you can.  Expect the same from your direct reports.  Establish visuals that show results and status in real time.

There are plenty of lies you’re telling yourself that undermines your ability to succeed as The Boss. We’ll uncover them one-by-one but it’s up to you to quit lying to yourself.  You’re better than that!