Adding too much value

A classic challenge, one that I experienced myself many times when leading talented people is “adding to much’ value. This appears, especially for leaders with a technical background (engineers) a common pitfall.

How can you add too much value?
Imagine you are going to your leader with a great idea. Your leader recognizes it’s a great idea and it stead of just saying “great idea” it’s followed by something like “𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘥𝘥… 𝘰𝘳 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘢 𝘣𝘪𝘵…?

Although the added value may make the idea 5% better, it’s most likely to decrease the commitment from the person with 50%. It’s no longer her/his idea but it became YOUR idea.

Effectiveness is a function of the “quality of the idea “times “the commitment” to make it work.

So the next time you are tempted to add value, think if your suggestion will increase or decrease the commitment? These few seconds of reflection will have big impact on your effectiveness as a leader.