How to Get Things Done

One of the hardest lessons I had to learn in life and leadership is this: you cannot grow if you insist on doing everything yourself.

I was told this many times before, but it never sank in until I practiced it. For a long time, I carried the anxiety of seeing things not done exactly my way. That anxiety often turned into frustration and anger. I thought the only way to ensure quality was to do the work myself. But that was not leadership—it was simply being a worker.

When you are trying to build and grow an organization, you must learn to be a coach, not just a doer. Coaching is not about giving orders. It is about asking the right questions. The right questions help people begin to see what you see. And when they finally see it with their own eyes, that moment is the eureka moment—the instant when ownership is created.

But here’s the challenge: why do they not see what you see right away? The answer is simple—because they come from different life experiences, different backgrounds, and different earning levels. They have lived life differently and therefore value different things. For example, you may see cleanliness as the top priority, but someone else may see new clothes as more important. Both are valid in their world.

You don’t say, “Do this.” Instead, you ask, “What do you think is the right solution? What are the options? Which one should we go with?” And then you let them own it.

This process is slow. It requires patience. It often takes more time and effort in the beginning than if you had just done the job yourself. But that’s the only way people grow. And if your people don’t grow, your organization cannot grow.

And here’s another truth I discovered: if everyone is doing your job, then what is your job? Your real job as a leader is to use the position you have—not to control, but to gather. To get people’s attention, bring them into the same room at the same time, and make them talk to each other. When you are not there, they don’t talk, they don’t collaborate, and they continue to see each other as workers rather than teammates.

Your job is to make them feel that we are one team. To break the silence. To create conversations. To make collaboration possible. And yes, it sounds ridiculous at first—but that’s what leadership really is.

The real challenge is not changing others—it is changing yourself. If you are used to being the one who fixes everything, you now have to train yourself to step back and let others step forward. That’s uncomfortable. That’s tough. But over time, you realize that this discomfort is exactly what transforms you from a worker into a leader.

Today, I understand that leadership is not about control. It is about multiplication—multiplying skills, multiplying responsibility, and multiplying leaders. And the only way to do that is to stop doing everything yourself and start teaching others to carry the weight.

It is not easy. But it is worth it.