When a client is unhappy and the deadline is tonight, we call the person we trust most.<\/p>\n
Often, that person already has more than enough to do.<\/p>\n
As founders, the decision makes sense. We need someone who understands the situation, takes ownership and gets it done. There is a customer relationship to protect.<\/p>\n
So we ask.<\/p>\n
They deliver. The client is happy. We move on.<\/p>\n
Until the next emergency, when we call the same person again.<\/p>\n
Each decision solves an immediate problem. Repeated often enough, those decisions create a different one.<\/p>\n
The person who misses commitments gets less responsibility. The person who keeps commitments gets more work.<\/p>\n
Eventually, our most dependable employee may start wondering:<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy does doing my job well mean I keep getting more work than everyone else?\u201d<\/p>\n
We love hearing, \u201cDon\u2019t worry, I\u2019ll handle it.\u201d<\/p>\n
It takes pressure off us. We need to notice where that pressure goes.<\/p>\n
Because when someone keeps absorbing the consequences, the underlying problem can remain untouched. The deadline gets rescued, but whatever caused the emergency is still there.<\/p>\n
Try this in your next leadership meeting.<\/p>\n
Look at the last three emergencies your team handled.<\/p>\n
Who rescued them? Whose responsibility was the work originally? What did the person helping have to postpone?<\/p>\n
And what changed to prevent another rescue being necessary?<\/p>\n
That last question is our responsibility as founders.<\/p>\n
If the same name keeps appearing, that person deserves more than another thank you.<\/p>\n
The people we depend on most deserve a team they can depend on too.<\/p>\n
Krishna Lakamsani | Serial Entrepreneur | Investor | I write at the intersection of AI, capital, and the future of the human job market,\u2028sharing my life lessons, reflections, and honest takes from the founder-investor’s seat.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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