How to manage projects with trust instead of control

I used to think micromanagement was normal. Even had a boss who needed to control everything. My former boss told me: "I want to review every email before sending." I assumed this was normal. Can you imagine having to: 🚩 Share my entire to-do list 🚩 Fill out 6-minute timesheets 🚩 Submit daily progress reports All for normal administrative work?! One hour of my day was spent just tracking my other hours. Then I switched companies. On my first day, I asked my new boss when he wanted to review my emails. His response floored me: "Why would I do that? I trust you to handle this." When I mentioned sharing my to-do list, he said: "How you manage your time is up to you. My job was making the right call in hiring someone I trust." That's when it hit me: A leader's job isn't to control. It's to enable. To support. To mentor. When leaders micromanage their team, they're sending a clear message: "I don't trust you." Micromanagement isn't just careful supervision. It's a confession of failed leadership. I learned this the hard way. Now, as a leader, I try to empower my team. Here’s how: 1. Set clear goals, then step back. 2. Focus on outcomes, not process. 3. Celebrate my team's initiative, not my control. 4. Build trust through action, not just words. 5. Let them find their own way to success. 6. Focus on growth, not just mistakes. And I couldn't be prouder of them. Leaders, your team is capable of more than you imagine. But only if you let them prove it. Give them a chance. ♻️ Find this helpful? Repost for your network. 📌 Follow Amy Gibson for practical leadership tips.

What broke my projects wasn’t complexity. It was control. I learned this the hard way managing a 300-person project team. Every approval through me.  Every decision waiting on my calendar. Projects stalled.  Teams frustrated.  I became the bottleneck. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆: You can't scale yourself.  But you can scale your systems. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗳𝘁: From control to guardrails. Instead of managing people, I built systems that managed 𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘴: 𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗜 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗺 ↳ No more "who's responsible for this?" 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗱/𝘆𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄/𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗱𝗮𝘀𝗵𝗯𝗼𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀 ↳ Issues surfaced before they became crises 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗲𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱𝘀 ↳ Teams knew exactly when to involve leadership 𝗪𝗲𝗲𝗸𝗹𝘆 𝗽𝘂𝗹𝘀𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝘃𝗲𝘆𝘀 ↳ Real-time team health without micromanaging mood 𝗞𝗲𝘆 𝗯𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵: Decision authority maps.  Every team member knew their $30K, $100K, and $250K boundaries. Below their threshold? Move fast. Above it? Escalate with context, not questions. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘀: Projects delivered faster. Team morale scores soared. My meetings dropped by half. But here's what surprised me: Teams felt 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 supported, not less managed. Clear boundaries created the confidence to act. 𝗦𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺𝘀 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁. They enable trust to scale. 💬 What's one management task you could systematize this week? ♻️ Share if you've hit the micromanagement wall. Image by Roberto Ferraro

Project Management is not about control; it’s about influence. The other day, I spoke with someone who wanted to become a Project Manager because they thought it meant controlling everything. If that’s your goal, let me be honest, this is the worst profession for you. Sure, as a PM, you control many things: →  Schedule →  Tasks →  Budget →  Quality → Communications → Logistics But here’s the reality: →  You don’t control the people (resources). Picture this: You're tasked with leading a critical project. Your team is diverse, spread across departments, and doesn’t report to you directly. How do you inspire them to give their best? →  They don’t report to you. →  You don’t manage their performance. →  And the final accountability for their work doesn’t rest with you. So, how do you lead when you don’t have authority? Here are key strategies to master this art: / Build trust through transparency / Communicate the 'why' behind decisions / Listen actively and empathetically / Create a shared vision for the project / Recognize and celebrate team contributions Being a Project Manager is about more than just managing tasks; it’s about leading without authority. Your role is not to dictate but to facilitate. When you focus on removing obstacles for your team, your productivity will soar. When you master these skills, you’ll stop controlling and start leading. Remember, leadership in project management isn’t given, it’s earned. PS: What’s your experience with leading without formal authority? Share your insights below.

Process won’t save a team that’s afraid to speak up. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a process girl through and through. It’s my bread and butter. It brings rhythm, clarity, and focus. But I’ve seen teams build beautiful workflows that still fall apart. Automations. Templates. Status rituals. All clean on paper. Under the surface? People were second-guessing. Avoiding conflict. Afraid to raise risks. Because culture eats process for breakfast. No tooling can fix a team that doesn’t feel safe. No standup can replace trust. No framework can overcome fear of being blamed. If your retros are quiet, your risks are hidden. If your 1:1s are surface-level, your blockers are buried. If your team looks “on track” but nobody’s pushing back, you’ve got a silent failure in progress. So what can you do as a PM? ✅ You fix the fear. ✅ You lead the trust. Here’s how: ▶ In 1:1s, ask real questions: “What’s something you’ve been holding back?” “What do you wish we’d talk about more as a team?” ▶ In retros, model vulnerability: “I hesitated to speak up about X last sprint. I want us all to feel safe raising things earlier, even if they’re messy or unpopular.” ▶ In meetings, reward truth, not timeline: If someone raises a delay, thank them publicly. Normalize speaking up. ▶ When there’s tension, don’t smooth it over. Get curious. Silence isn’t alignment, it’s fear with a filter. Fix the fear, not just the Jira. Visibility = creating clarity where others stay silent. Leadership = creating space for others to speak freely. 👉 If you're still managing tasks and tools, but not trust, you’re not leading yet. Tag a PM who gets this. ♻️ Repost to help others lead teams with trust 🔔 Follow Elizabeth Dworkin for more like this

How I learned to “let go” and what it taught me about leadership Years ago, when I was just starting out as an HR leader, I made a big mistake. I micromanaged a project, checking every detail, following up constantly, and redoing work my team had already done. I told myself I was aiming for excellence. But the truth was, I was afraid. Afraid the project would fail. Afraid it would make me look bad as a young leader. Ouchhhh!!!!! Then, one day, a team member asked me: “Do you trust us?” That question stopped me in my tracks. I realized I wasn’t helping. In fact, I was holding the team back. They felt frustrated and, worse, they didn’t feel trusted. I knew I needed to change. Instead of overseeing every detail, I focused on setting clear goals. I asked open-ended questions, offered support when needed, and most importantly, I stepped back. To my surprise, ouchhh again, the team exceeded my expectations. They came up with creative solutions I hadn’t even thought of. The project succeeded, but even more rewarding was watching my team grow in confidence and ownership. I learned that leadership isn’t about controlling everything, it’s about monitoring progress and providing support where and when it's needed. It’s about making decisions quickly, moving with speed and decisiveness, and empowering others to succeed on their own. So, my advice is simple: Let go. Trust your team. And when in doubt, ask yourself: Am I leading with fear or trust? When we lead with trust, we don’t just build stronger teams, we build stronger leaders. #Leadership #Trust #Empowerment

I've led teams of engineers, clinicians, and researchers for 15 years. The pattern I see everywhere: brilliant people performing below their potential. Why? The control paradox. Medical training teaches us that details matter. Lives depend on precision. So we bring that same mindset to leadership. Result: we suffocate innovation. Here's what I learned building a 75-person healthcare team: The 4 leadership principles that changed everything: 1/ Hire for judgment, not just expertise ↳ Smart people can learn new skills ↳ Good judgment is much harder to teach ↳ Give them problems, not solutions 2/ Default to trust, verify through outcomes ↳ Set clear expectations upfront ↳ Measure results, not hours worked ↳ Intervene only when performance drops 3/ Create psychological safety for failure ↳ Healthcare punishes mistakes harshly ↳ Innovation requires safe experimentation ↳ Celebrate learning from intelligent failures 4/ Lead with questions, not answers ↳ "What do you think we should do?" ↳ "What's your recommendation?" ↳ "What would you need to make this work?" The result? Our team became significantly more productive. Turnover dropped substantially. Innovation projects flourished. The irony: giving up control gave me more influence. The lesson for healthcare leaders: Your job isn't to have all the answers. Your job is to create conditions where the best ideas emerge. ⁉️ What's the best leadership advice you've received in healthcare? ♻️ Repost if you believe trust beats control 👉 Follow me (Reza Hosseini Ghomi, MD, MSE) for leadership insights in healthcare

A junior project coordinator once asked me: "What's the secret to leading successful projects?" I told them it's not about control. It's about enablement. Most project managers get this wrong. They think their job is: • Creating complex Gantt charts • Micromanaging tasks • Being the "boss" But here's what actually drives results: 1. Clarity of vision. Make the destination obvious. You've failed if your team can't explain what the final goal is. 2. Leverage your resources. Give your people the tools they need, then get out of their way. Micromanagement kills creativity. 3. Secure stakeholder alignment. Your job isn't to do the work. It's to ensure everyone rows in the same direction. 4. Prevent problems. The best project managers solve issues before they become problems. They're proactive, not reactive. 5. Focus on value. Every meeting, task, and decision should drive business impact. If it doesn't, cut it. In summary: Enable > Control Trust > Oversight Results > Process Want to level up your project management game? Print this out. Review it daily. Watch your impact as a project manager multiply.

Are you holding on too tightly to the reins of your organization? In this episode of Future Fit with Friska, I explor the paradox of control—a leadership trap that often feels like strength, but can quietly limit innovation, erode trust, and stall transformation. The truth? The more control we seek, the less agile and empowered our teams become. I share real-world stories, research, and personal reflections to unpack: 1. Why letting go isn’t weakness—it’s a catalyst for growth. 2. A 5-step roadmap to shift from control to empowerment 3. How leaders can build a culture of collaboration (not micromanagement) 4. Case studies of companies that thrived by loosening control 5. Powerful questions to help you reflect on your leadership style If you're ready to lead with trust, flexibility, and long-term impact, this episode is for you. Listen now here https://lnkd.in/gpw5RvcD Have you ever let go of control and seen things turn out better than expected? I'd love to hear your story 👇 #FutureFitWithFriska #LeadershipDevelopment #EmpoweredTeams #AgileLeadership #TrustOverControl #WorkplaceCulture #TransformationalLeadership #LetGoToGrow #ModernLeadership #PodcastForLeaders

If I could give one piece of advice to every first-time manager: Forget about control and start to build trust. It sounds simple. But it’s the hardest thing for new managers to get right. When you’re new to leadership, it’s tempting to over-direct. To prove yourself. To try and “manage” every outcome. But teams don’t follow titles. They follow leaders they trust. Here’s the simple leadership truth I’ve seen across 16+ years: Lead by example when you can — and listen when you can’t. Building trust starts here: ✅ Show up consistently ✅ Listen without an agenda ✅ Model the behaviors you want to see ✅ Communicate openly — even when you don’t have all the answers ✅ Coach for growth — not just for outcomes Industry stats show 60% of new managers fail in their first 24 months. I’m proud that at Zywave, our leadership team has consistently beaten those odds. But it didn’t happen by accident… → It happens through constant coaching. → It happens through daily accountability. → It happens through leadership by example. I had the chance to share more of these lessons in the eBook “Stress in Tech: The First Time Manager Crisis.” You can download it in the comments. First-time leaders reading this → remember: Build trust first. The rest will follow. #Leadership #Trust #FirstTimeManager #Coaching #Culture #SalesLeadership #ChangeManagement

𝐓𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐬. 𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞𝐭𝐲. We once had to shut down four city blocks in downtown Phoenix for a private Macklemore concert. On the surface, it sounds like logistics. In reality, it was about trust. It took a month meeting with city departments, knocking on doors, and listening to city employees who mostly wanted to help the public, get a paycheck and benefits, plus not lose their job. Each had their own concerns: safety, traffic, liability or what would their boss do to them. Instead of pushing my agenda, I focused on their pain points and showed that I understood what mattered to them.  After the month of planning, we started at 2:15 the morning of the concert, to set up - they would not let us close the roads, then I convinced them it was okay, after the bars closed. That’s how you move big, complicated projects forward. Not with pressure. Not with shortcuts, instead - by giving people confidence that you see them, hear them, and will protect their interests (if nothing else, that they won’t get fired, their kids will be okay and life will be good). The principle is simple. 𝐈𝐟 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝, 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲’𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐝𝐨𝐨𝐫𝐬. 𝐈𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐫 𝐮𝐧𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞, 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲’𝐥𝐥 𝐜𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦. Whether you’re closing a deal, running a campaign, or trying to get four blocks of a city to shut down, the foundation is the same: trust built through listening. What’s one way you’ve built trust in a tough negotiation? #Trust #Negotiation #DealMaking #TILTTheRoom #MediaLaw #Macklemore Christopher Voss Kwame Christian, Esq., M.A. Alexandra Carter Dr. Robert Cialdini Scott Tillema