You Trained Your Team to Depend on You…Now What?

What do you do when a team member comes to you with questions all day long?

In this mini episode of People Are the Worst, Lindsey and Lucy unpack a frustrating but surprisingly common leadership challenge: employees who rely on their manager for every decision.

Leaders often accidentally train this behavior. Every time a manager immediately answers a question, they reinforce the pattern. Over time, the employee learns that the fastest path forward is simply asking their manager instead of thinking through the problem themselves.

The solution is shifting from directing to coaching.

Instead of giving answers, Lindsey walks through a simple coaching framework leaders can use to help employees develop their own problem-solving skills: the GROW model. By asking questions about the goal, the current reality, possible options, and the way forward, managers guide their team members to think through solutions on their own.

It takes more time and patience upfront. But the payoff is powerful. Employees gain confidence, managers stop becoming the “human answer machine,” and teams start bringing solutions instead of just problems.

If you feel stuck answering the same questions every day, this episode offers a simple shift that can change how your team operates.

Want to Ask Us a Question? We’re taking real questions from real managers and people leaders. Email us at dearlandl@elevateleadership.com, and we just might feature yours in a future episode.

Learn more about our solutions at https://www.elevateleadership.com/

Connect with Lindsey on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindseynehls/

Connect with Lucy on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucy-georgiades-84933622/

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