Trapped in the Leadership Maze – When Hard Work Fails to Create Real Value
It’s late evening and Sarah, an ambitious and successful CEO, is still at her desk reflecting on the day. The darkness outside mirrors her thoughts. For quite some time, she has felt that her team is stuck in a maze, constantly running into dead ends. Everyone is motivated and getting things done, but real results remain elusive — and it frustrates her deeply.
When she shared her worries with me a week later during a coaching session, I quickly recognized the issue: “Are you and your team truly focused on value creation?” I asked. Sarah hesitated. “Well, we do want to achieve something, if that’s what you mean.”
I explained, “Do you focus mainly on activities and processes, or on the outcomes — the measurable value created for customers, employees, and the company?” The question hit home. Sarah realized that this focus had been missing.
Results and What Really Matters – Building a Solid Foundation
Focusing on value creation sounds simple but is one of the toughest leadership tasks. Heavy workloads, constant distractions, unclear priorities, weak delegation, poor self-management, and vague goals often pull leaders and teams off track — just as Sarah’s team experienced.
I encouraged her to ask two guiding questions:
Are we using our resources optimally?
Do the main activities of our team deliver the highest value to the organization?
Working to Work or Working to Create Value?
Weeks later, Sarah reported that she was trying to prioritize results and essentials but still saw little change among her employees. I explained that many team members feel responsible for completing tasks — not necessarily for creating value. Their focus may remain on routines rather than on what truly drives business success.
As a leader, it’s your job to connect daily tasks with their contribution to organizational value and to make sure anything without clear impact remains a side product.
Four Golden Nuggets for More Value Creation
To help Sarah sharpen her team’s value focus, I gave her these four key actions:
- Lead by example – demonstrate how to create value.
- Eliminate the unnecessary – cut out activities that don’t add value.
- Unburden the team – encourage balanced workloads and focus on what matters most.
- Review progress regularly – ask, “What have you done in the last two weeks to streamline tasks and focus on key goals?”
Do you face a similar challenge — lots of work but few measurable results? Strengthening your ability to focus on value creation may be the key.
You can find more insights, practical steps, and reflection questions in my book The Hero’s Journey of a Leader – How to Become the Best Version of Yourself as a Leader, available on Amazon, Orell Füssli, Wiley, or directly from the author.