Posted this to LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7386492126412570624/
#Leaders, let’s talk about the fear of saying “I don’t know.”
Junior employees often have no problem admitting, “I don’t know how to do that.”
But as people move up, that changes.
Many senior folks start to believe they can’t admit when they don’t know something because their credibility feels tied to always having the answer. That’s when fear creeps in. They protect their position… and ironically, create the very reality they’re afraid of.
The areas we get most comfortable in are usually the easiest to automate or replace.
As leaders, we have to break that loop.
In TV, they teach you to exaggerate emotion because when it’s received through a screen, it’s always halved.
The same applies in leadership communication. If you want your team to feel safe being curious, you have to over-communicate that safety.
So when someone says “I don’t know,” celebrate it.
That’s where learning starts. That’s where innovation begins.
Because the safest teams aren’t the ones who know everything they’re the ones who keep asking questions.
