A very common, albeit often unconcious, human behaviour is tossing the ball.  Also known as releasing the hot potato, back at you or in the case of organizational behaviour – delegating upwards.

I see this behaviour in many forms, for some people it is a habitual behaviour while for others it is just a natural sub-concious reaction like flight or flight.

A strong leader with a solid foundational understanding of management (getting things down through others) typically has the skills to prevent this type of behaviour (and uses them).

I am amazed

It never ceases to surprise me how many persons in position of granted authority do not have the ability to counter the passing of the ball back to them (maybe an okay practice in rugby or international football, but organizationally, I wonder!)

More suprising still, is how many jobs are advertised for with the need for a “self starter” or “evidence of strong personal initiative”,  yet settle for less.  It is clearly recognized these beviours form the underpinning of a high performing team yet somehow accepted they are rarely found so settling for the best available is okay.

As I have noted in the past, an exceptional leader does not actually lead from the front in the traditional sense, but rather guides and facilitates the team to act for themselves.

A highly motivated team enables the leader to guide, adjust and support while enabling the most qualified to actually complete the work.

So take a look at yourself, do you toss back at your leader/manager or steam ahead with confidence and belief that you can do it better? It can be a very satisfying approach ( or you can just say “ not my job” and relax.  .