I have to be an expert in all things concerning my product and the competing products if I am a salesperson.  I have to be an expert in accounting if I am an accountant.  I have to be an expert in commercial lending if I am a commercial lender.

What about leaders?  If I am leading salespeople, accountants or commercial lenders, do I need to be as up to date as my people?

Be An Expert in Leading

After a few years trying to keep up, once I was in leadership, I determined the # 1 subject I needed to be an expert in was leading.

Too Focused On Technical Expertise

I came from a sales background that required a high level of technical expertise.  Our customers all had advanced degrees.  To communicate with them, it was imperative to be current on all the latest literature and data in our industry.

When I got promoted, I believed I needed to remain as current as my people in the trenches were.  I would take hours out of my week to do research and study.  I prioritized this time because I had always prioritized expanding my technical knowledge.

Once in leadership, my responsibilities grew to include finance, marketing, corporate compliance, human resources, etc.  There were experts in the company in each one of these areas.

I knew I could count on them for answers to questions beyond my abilities.  I did not feel compelled to have the same level of expertise as they did in those areas.  I just need to be fluent in the language they spoke.

Why did I feel I had to still be better than my salespeople with my technical knowledge?  Two answers:

  • Comfort Zone:  I had always been the “go to guy” among my peers in technical expertise.  I was sure it helped me get promoted. I was comfortable doing it.
  • Ego:  I wanted to set the example for my team.  Or, that is what I reasoned.  In actuality, I still wanted to be recognized as the best in technical expertise.  It was about me and my psyche, not about doing a better job.

A Leader Is A Generalist – In The Technical

I realized that to be a good leader, I had to give up on the idea that I was still the technical expert.  I didn’t get promoted to leadership to wow my team with my technical knowledge.

Once I realized I was focusing too much attention on doing a job I was promoted out of, I began to focus more on becoming a better leader.  There were two areas where I needed to be the expert.  Until I became an expert in those areas, I could not be an expert at leading.

A Leader Is An Expert – In Strategy

As a leader, I had to learn to think bigger than the people I led.  I started out with a mindset similar to them, because I had just been one of them.  A more experienced and wiser peer told me that I needed to stop doing my old job at a higher level and begin learning my new job as a leader.

As a result, I began my quest to grow as a strategist.  I began reading business books outside of my current expertise in order to become more well rounded in business.  I even got an MBA, though many of my superiors and peers thought it was unnecessary to do my job.

What I gained from reading those books and getting that degree was a broader perspective on business.  That allowed me to see the bigger picture as I developed strategies.  As time went on, I would often have those same peers and superiors rely on me for strategic input.

For the team I lead, I am the only one who has to be an expert in strategy.  Just like the past technical expertise I developed at the previous level, becoming an expert in strategy was a never-ending quest that took time and effort.

A Leader Is An Expert – In Their People

As a salesperson, I was selling a product.  As an accountant, I would have been crunching financial data.  As a commercial lender, I would have been evaluating commercial loan applications.  As a leader, I lead people.

When I was promoted to leadership, I was not hired to lead spreadsheets, financial reports or marketing pieces.  I was hired to lead people.  To be an effective leader, I needed to become an expert in my people and how to positively influence them.

This was another area that I gained insights from books.  One that really set me on the right path was John Maxwell’s 21 Irrefutable Laws Of Leadership.  I have read hundreds of books on leadership, communication, coaching, and personality styles since then.

As a leader, I was the only one required to be an expert in my people.  I began to put the same effort into knowing them as I did into knowing the technical aspects of my previous job.

By being an expert in my people and continuously filling my head with the latest information on leadership, l became an expert.  Just like any other expertise, if I do not continue to grow in this area, my knowledge is in danger of becoming obsolete.

For another lesson on leading and coaching people click and read:  A Bad Start Can Lead to a Great Career.

The Bottom Line:

Once I moved out of the trenches and into a leadership role, my job requirements changed.   To be an effective leader, I needed to become a generalist in both my old areas of expertise, and in the areas where I had access to experts.

But as a leader, I had to become an expert in both strategy and in my people.  My desire to remain the technical expert held me back becoming the leader my people deserved to have.

I was promoted because I did my old job well. However, now it was time to do my new job even better.  I was responsible for people now.  I soon found that being an expert in helping others reach their potential was much more fulfilling than stumping a customer with my technical expertise.

Question:

What area do you need to build your expertise in, strategy or people?