Master the Art of Tai Chi
Someone suggests a simple idea? Redirect it into a series of alignment calls. Align the goals, then align stakeholders, then align on the date for the next catch-up. By the end, calendars are full, progress is nil, and nothing moves forward without you steering the ship. Whenever energy appears, redirect it into endless circles until no one remember what the original idea was.
Master the Art of Ghosting
Set up a meeting, send the invite, then disappear at the last moment. Let the team sit awkwardly until they finally ping you. Respond with “Sorry, something urgent came up” then set another meeting to hear what they discussed. Bonus points if your meeting links are locked down so only you can grant permission to record. Now they have no choice but to beg you for access. Every interaction reinforces one truth: nothing can move forward without you.
Master the Illusion of Empowerment
Tell people they own a decision, then quietly override it later for “consistency”. Praise their initiative in meetings, then shuffle priorities when no one’s looking. Insist you’re just providing transparency and quality control, while making sure no real decision can happens without your final approval. It’s like giving someone a car but keeping the keys.
Congratulations! You’ve consolidated power while maintaining the brand of a modern empowering leader.
Here is serious part:
Stop pretending empowerment is a slogan you can sprinkle in all-hands meetings. If you run endless alignment calls, ghost your own meetings, or quietly override every decision, you’re not empowering anyone - you’re just wasting talent and your people know it.
The truth is simple, if you really believe in empowerment, prove it. Hand over the keys. Let your team make decisions without you pulling strings. If that makes you uncomfortable, that’s the point, it means you’ve been clinging to control.
Executives who cling to empowerment theater will be remembered as bottlenecks. The titles, stock options, and corner offices you fight to control won’t matter when time strips them away. The money and position fade. What lasts is how people remember you.
Were you the gatekeeper who stalled progress, or the leader who trusted others and built something bigger than yourself?
Choose wisely, because in the end, legacy is all you take with you.