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Why Protecting the Team Can Be Helpful or Harmful
How to find balance with this complicated behavior
We stood in a room that looked more like a cozy living room than the office of a growing startup. We were chatting after grabbing hot drinks — chai for me, coffee for them. I was mentoring a group of leaders, many of them in their first role. We were talking about the role of a leader.
“The biggest part of my job is protecting the team. I’m like a bouncer.” one of them said with absolute certainty. Others nodded their head.
I remember where I was standing. I remember breathing deeply, assessing how to respond. I understood the instinct. I also saw complexity in this behavior.
Many managers and leaders, especially when new, see a big part of their role as protecting others. I understand the impulse. The intentions are well-meaning. It can have also unintended consequences or come from a less than healthy place. It’s not that leaders want to cause harm — it’s the opposite. We see protecting the team as a way to help, of eliminating harm. While it seems like we’re using our power to help, it can actually unconsciously demean or disempower. There is a place for protecting the team — we just need to be aware of why we’re doing it and the unintentional second order effects that may result.
