This is part 9 of a 10-part series on my 3-month sabbatical during the summer of 2024.  This series has two purposes— 1) to motivate and equip others to take a restorative break from work, and 2) to share insights I gained during my time away.  To start at the beginning of the series, go here.

A Hole in the Canopy

I love trees.   Branch and leaf growth patterns fascinate and delight me.  Such awe-inspiring variety and adaptation within the arboreal family.  The sheer size of redwoods, the rustle of palm branches, a soft bed of acidic pine needles, thirsty sycamores beside streams and rivers, the jazz-hands of aspen leaves in the mountain breeze.  I come by it honestly.  My mom (a master gardener) once said if she weren’t a Christian, she’d likely be a druid.  I too feel that pull.

I recently read The Overstory, a novel by Richard Powers.  It is about humans.  But also about trees.  And it got me thinking.

When a mature tree falls in a forest, it creates space in the canopy, so new growth can occur.  Saplings can now access more water, sunlight, and wind (necessary to grow strong roots).  Over time, the youngsters start filling in the gap left by their elder.  The old tree’s material degrades into humus, so new trees have a head start with nutrient-rich soil.

Sabbatical forced a hole in the canopy.  At least for a season, my Kairos teammates stepped in to fill the gap.  (I’d like to think I’m an enormous redwood in this analogy, but I’m actually probably more the size of an adolescent sugar maple.  My absence didn’t leave that big a hole.)  They experienced the autonomy, challenges, and empowerment required to flourish in new areas.

As I came back, I reinserted myself, taking up some of the space again, but I’ve seen that it works better when I don’t fill up the entire sky above them.  Since the team stepped up, they now own more.  Andrew runs invoicing and content strategy.  Christin leads our CEO event series (The Forge) and leverages others’ convening power to expand our network.  Alyssa trains the Kairos team and owns solution delivery.  Nikki manages talent acquisition and leads an engagement team with full independence from me.

In our various improvement initiatives and in our regular workflow, I’m intentionally withholding my voice and sitting on my hands more.  I try to not be the first to answer an “all play” question.

To be a member of the Kairos team, it is essential to have a bias for (and track record of) catalyzing others’ maturational journeys.  In addition to that high bar, each member of the team has unique strengths.  Nikki is the best I’ve ever seen at ushering clients into a peaceful and centered frame of mind, and she encourages us all to play.  Alyssa’s structure, discipline, and masterful diagnostic skills ensure the highest quality outcomes.  Andrew brings his machete to navigate uncharted territory, and he brings a scalpel to separate fact from fiction.  Christin makes people feel safe (even during the hardest conversations) and her systemic and holistic thinking generates lightning bolt insights that shift hearts and minds.

When to Take Up Space?

Where this gets tricky is that we’re a small team, and I also have some unique gifts I contribute to our work.  I essentialize.  I sell.  I attract attention.  And goshdarnit, people like me.  Some aspects of our success are very dependent on me.  That’s suboptimal for our long-term prospects.

It’s a precarious balance.  The team needs my skills for the business to grow, and I need to get out of the way so my colleagues can level up.  I’m committed to trying to find ways to thread that needle.  I’m learning a few approaches that seem to be helping:

1. Take others with you. For tasks that only you do, let others come along so they can see how you do it.  They’ll likely pick up some pointers, and you can debrief afterwards so they can understand how you thought through the challenges in the moment.

1. Push team members out onto the high wire, with or without a net. If the risk of catastrophe is low, ask someone else to perform some aspect of “your” job, even without a ton of training.  You likely hire people who are clever enough to figure it out.  You can provide whatever level of support you think helps them grow the most (anywhere from none to plenty).

1. Write down how you think about and perform the work. There are areas of your work where you are unconsciously competent.  In these areas, take the time to interrogate your own intuition and work process.  What do you actually do, and why do you do it that way?  What factors are most important to consider?  Getting it on paper starts good conversations with those you’d like to step up.

1. Be clear on the mission, and don’t specify the method. For a few aspects of the business, you may actually need others to do it the same way you do.  But for most aspects, the method is much less important than the outcome.  Others will need to find an approach that best suits their personality and gifts.

1. Provide feedback, but only the most important feedback. First, you need to actually provide feedback on how they’re doing with their new responsibilities.  It’s impossible for anyone to read the label from the inside of the bottle.  But if you overwhelm them with suggestions, they won’t know where to focus.  Invite their attention to the big items where they need to improve.

Reducing the organization’s dependence on me is my #1 long-term priority.  We’re making progress; it’s just harder than I thought it would be.

Summary

1. When a large tree falls, it creates space in the canopy, so younger trees experience conditions that invite growth.  Sabbatical forces a hole.
2. Now, I’m intentionally withholding my voice and my hands more.
3. Balancing “my unique gifts on this team” with “leaving space in the canopy” is not easy, but there are a handful of approaches to make it easier.

Next:  Part 10 (last one in this series) – Abiding

If you have any thoughts on this topic, feel free to engage with it over on LinkedIn

Chip Neidigh is Founder and CEO at Kairos, where he and his colleagues help CEOs build elite executive teams.  Want to be notified when we post articles that invite a journey into more courageous and selfless leadership? Sign up for The Kairos Moment, our monthly(ish) email alert.