Image credit: AndreyPopov
Every Monday at 3 PM, I died a little inside.
Not because I hated Mondays. But because that’s when 30 of us would file into a conference room at Chase Manhattan for our weekly, two-hour “status meeting.”
Two-hour status meeting.
Every.
Single.
Monday.
The format was simple: Go around the table. Each team gives a 5-minute update. Everyone stays informed. Leadership gets visibility. Efficiency at its finest.
Except it wasn’t.
What those two leaders saw as an efficient way to manage a complex project, the rest of us experienced as 115 minutes of soul-crushing irrelevance punctuated by 5 minutes of actual work.
I stopped feeling guilty about zoning out the day I noticed my boss literally falling asleep during someone’s update. (Pro tip: When your direct report is catching Z’s in your meeting, it might not be the collaborative masterpiece you think it is. Bonus tip: When they start snoring, it most definitely is not…)
The Seductive Trap of Leadership Convenience
Here’s what nobody tells you about leadership: The things that make your job easier often make everyone else’s job harder.
Smart leaders fall into this trap all the time.
Why? Because when you’re drowning in responsibilities, that life preserver labeled “efficiency” looks pretty tempting (nevermind that it's made of lead and has "Titanic Approved" stamped on the side).
One meeting instead of ten. Everyone in the office instead of scattered. All your direct reports in one place instead of multiple check-ins.
It’s not malicious. It’s human.
But here’s the kicker: What’s efficient for you might be destroying your team’s effectiveness.
The Hidden Cost of “Efficient” Leadership
My friend just returned from a company-wide meeting where the CEO announced a mandatory return-to-office starting January. Two people quit before the day ended. My friend is updating his LinkedIn profile as we speak.
Was RTO efficient for the CEO? Absolutely. Easier to manage, better visibility, simpler communication.
Was it effective for the team? Well, losing your top talent before lunch suggests the answer is no.
This is the efficiency trap in action: Leaders optimize for their own workflow without realizing they’re creating friction for everyone else.
Think about it:
- That all-hands meeting that could have been an email? Efficient for you. Time suck for them.
- Making everyone come to the office? Convenient for you. Productivity-killer for them.
- Status meetings where everyone reports in? Great for your visibility. Mind-numbing for your team.
- That open floor plan? Great for you. Nightmare for anyone trying to actually get work done while Sheila on their left makes a sales call and Gus and Sigmund on their right chat it up about their fantasy football teams.
The “Yes, And” Test for Leadership Decisions
Here’s where improv comedy saves the day:
Before implementing any change that affects how your team works, try the “Yes, And” test:
Step 1: Acknowledge the objections
When someone says “This meeting wastes my time,” don’t defend. Listen. Yes, you’re hearing that concern, AND what would make it valuable?
Step 2: Build on their perspective
Yes, getting everyone together is challenging, AND how could we achieve the same goal in a different way?
Step 3: Make your partners look good
In improv, we have a golden rule: Make your scene partner look brilliant. In leadership, your scene partners are your team members. Every decision should help them shine, not dim their light.
Questions Leaders Should Ask (But Usually Don’t)
Before your next “efficient” initiative, ask yourself:
- "What’s the highest and best use of my team’s time?" (Hint: It’s probably not watching their colleagues give updates about projects that don’t affect them.)
- "If I were on my team, how would I feel about this?" Better yet, ask: “How would Sarah feel? How would Marcus react? How would the remote team experience this?”
- "Am I solving my problem or our problem?" There’s a difference between making your life easier and making the work better.
- "What’s my real goal here?" If it’s visibility, there are better ways than held-hostage meetings. If it’s connection, boring presentations aren’t connecting anyone to anything except their phones.
The Leadership Jiu Jitsu Move
My friend Alex at a Fortune 100 company led a merger of two large departments. The efficient move? Announce the structure and move on.
Instead, he spent weeks in conversations, gathering input, incorporating feedback. Was it efficient for him? Absolutely not. Was it effective for the organization? The smooth integration and zero turnover suggest that the answer is yes.
That’s the jujitsu move: Sometimes making your life slightly harder makes everything dramatically better.
How to Escape the Efficiency Trap
1. Roast your own ideas
Before rolling out that new initiative, imagine the water cooler conversation about it. What would the snarky version sound like? That’s your blind spot talking. (Hint: If it involves comparing your leadership style to a specific circle of Dante's Inferno, maybe reconsider. I suppose it depends on which circle though…)
2. Use humor to open dialogue
Instead of “How’s the new meeting format working?” try “So, on a scale of root canal to vacation, where does our Monday meeting fall?” Humor creates permission for honesty. (If you get answers like "colonoscopy" and "waiting in line at the DMV" you a) are doing it right with the humor culture and b) have a problem with the meeting format).
3. Separate input from votes
You’re not running a democracy, but you are leading humans. Gather perspectives, acknowledge what you heard, explain your decision. People don’t need to win; they need to be heard.
4. Test for actual achievement
Going through the motions isn’t the same as achieving goals. That community-building all-hands might be building resentment instead.
The Bottom Line for Leaders Who Want Brilliance, Not Compliance
Your team isn’t apathetic. They’re exhausted from initiatives that make their jobs harder while making yours easier.
Want to transform apathy into excitement? Want to unlock the brilliance that’s currently checking email during your meetings?
Stop optimizing for your convenience. Start optimizing for their effectiveness.
Because here’s the truth: When you make your team’s life easier, your leadership becomes more effective. When you make only your life easier, you get compliance at best, resignation letters at worst.
The choice is yours, but choose quickly – your competition is already figuring this out.
P.S. If you're reading this during a status meeting, I see you. And I support you. May your phone battery last and your camera "mysteriously" malfunction. Just make sure you stay awake. And don’t start snoring!
Ready to transform your next leadership meeting from dental appointment to actual engagement? I help organizations escape the efficiency trap through humor, improv techniques, and practical tools that make change feel less like punishment and more like possibility. Let’s talk about your next event!