The Leadership Identity Crisis Every New Leader Faces
“What do I do if I’m not doing the work?”
It’s the question that echoes through the minds of countless new leaders. One day, you’re excelling as an individual contributor – the expert, the go-to person, the one who gets things done. The next day, you’re promoted to leadership, and suddenly you’re expected to succeed through others rather than your own direct efforts.
This transition to new leader represents one of the most challenging career shifts professionals face, yet most receive little to no training on how to navigate it successfully. In a recent episode of The Made Leader Podcast, this exact challenge was discussed, uncovering practical strategies for new leaders struggling with this fundamental shift in identity and responsibility.
Why the Transition to New Leader Is So Difficult
The skills that make someone an excellent individual contributor are often completely different from those required to be an effective leader. Technical expertise, personal productivity, and problem-solving abilities may have earned you the promotion, but leadership demands a new skillset focused on:
- Developing others
- Strategic thinking
- Effective delegation
- Team building
- Organizational awareness
As was pointed out during the conversation, “You now are responsible for all those people on your team. Making sure that you’re helping move them forward in both their role as well as their own goals takes a lot of time to figure out.”
12 Practical Strategies for New Leaders
If you’re facing this transition yourself or supporting someone who is, here are 12 actionable strategies drawn from our podcast discussion:
1. Take the 30,000-foot view
One of the first mental shifts required is moving from the detailed work to a broader perspective. Ask yourself:
- What is your team trying to accomplish?
- How does your department serve the larger organization?
- What would be missing if your team didn’t exist?
This higher-level thinking helps you understand your true value as a strategic thinker rather than as a doer.
2. Maintain connection to work you enjoy
Leadership doesn’t mean abandoning everything you loved about your previous role. As leadership coach, Julie Binter recommends: “I challenge leaders to say, what are the things that you really love to do, and how can you stay connected to those things as a leader?”
Find ways to stay engaged with aspects of the work that energize you, while delegating other components. (The key word is engaged and not taking on a hands-on or micromanaging role.)
3. Coach rather than solve
When team members come to you with problems, resist the urge to immediately provide solutions. Instead:
- Ask what they think about the situation
- Inquire about approaches they’ve already tried
- Get them to propose potential solutions
As we discussed in the episode, “It’s not your job to solve it for them. But how can you turn some questions back to them?”
4. Create processes and documentation
Standardize repeatable tasks and encourage documentation so work can continue smoothly without your constant involvement. This might include:
- New hire onboarding procedures
- Common customer interaction templates
- Decision-making frameworks
Even creative teams benefit from having structured processes for routine aspects of their work. That way the repeatable tasks are on autopilot, freeing up your team’s creativity.
5. Understand each team member individually
Effective leadership isn’t one-size-fits-all. Take time to understand:
- What motivates each person?
- What are their career goals?
- How do they prefer to receive feedback?
- What are their strengths and growth areas?
This individual approach builds trust and enables more effective coaching. Don’t try to remember all this and think you’ll be able to hold it in your head with the rest of your “to-do’s”. Instead, create a document, spreadsheet, or system to capture what matters to each of your team members.
6. Be an advocate for your team
When legitimate resource needs arise, be their voice to upper management. This might mean:
- Making the case for additional headcount
- Securing necessary tools or technology
- Advocating for training opportunities
- Protecting the team from unreasonable demands
Your willingness to fight for what your team needs builds loyalty and demonstrates your commitment to their success.
7. Build peer relationships
Leadership can be lonely. Intentionally build relationships with other leaders across the organization to:
- Combat isolation
- Share leadership challenges and solutions
- Gain organizational insights
- Increase your influence and effectiveness
As discussed in the podcast, “After you’ve caught your breath and you feel somewhat like, alright, I know what I’m doing now. Going out to collaborate with peers, just getting to know them and what they do and their job functions.”
8. Allow for observation time
Don’t rush to make changes when you first take on a leadership role. Take time to:
- Understand the existing processes
- Learn why things are done certain ways
- Identify what’s working well before changing it
- Build trust with your team
As we emphasized, “Wait. Be an observer first because there’s nothing that breaks trust like a new leader going in thinking they know what’s going on and just changing everything.”
9. Highlight team contributions
In meetings with your leader and peers, take opportunities to:
- Recognize team members doing exceptional work
- Share successful projects and outcomes
- Advocate for growth opportunities for high performers
This not only increases your team’s visibility but creates pathways for their advancement.
10. Practice self-reflection
Regularly assess your leadership approach:
- What’s working well?
- Where are you struggling?
- Whose leadership do you admire and why?
- What aspects of their approach could you adopt?
Ask yourself, “Who do I want to be as a leader?” and revisit this question regularly.
11. Foster innovation appropriately
If you’re able to get out of the weeds of tasks your team can do, you can revisit that 30,000 view and think through ways to improve and/or innovate. If thinking out of the box is not your strength, encourage creative thinking while respecting different working styles:
- Identify team members who naturally think outside the box
- Create space for innovation and experimentation
- Balance creative approaches with practical implementation
- Value both innovative and process-oriented team members
12. Work toward making yourself “unnecessary”
The ultimate sign of leadership success is a team that functions effectively even when you’re not present:
- Develop your people to make decisions independently
- Create systems that don’t rely on your constant input
- Document key processes and knowledge
- Build redundancy in critical skills
As Julie put it, “Your goal in your role is to help them get to a place where they can run things without you.”
The Leadership Wake You’re Creating
Perhaps the most powerful concept we discussed was what Jen called the “leadership wake” – the impact you have on others through your leadership approach.
“You are making an impact whether you think you are or not. And so how do you want people to be treated around you? What’s your leadership like?”
This awareness that every interaction shapes your leadership legacy can be transformative. It moves you from reactive management to intentional leadership.
From Doing to Enabling: The Heart of Leadership
The transition from individual contributor to leader is fundamentally about shifting your focus from doing the work yourself to enabling others to do their best work. This doesn’t mean you no longer contribute – rather, your contribution comes through:
- Creating the conditions for team success
- Removing obstacles that impede progress
- Developing your people’s capabilities
- Connecting team efforts to larger organizational goals
When you embrace this enabling mindset, you’ll discover that leadership isn’t about having all the answers – it’s about asking the right questions and creating the space for your team to thrive.
Your Leadership Journey
Remember that becoming an effective leader is a continuous learning process. As Julie noted, “You’re never going to be perfect as a leader because the next thing’s going to come along and it’s going to challenge you in a different way.”
This growth mindset – the recognition that leadership development is ongoing – allows you to approach each new challenge as an opportunity to expand your capabilities. It’ll take time to find your style and own brand as a leader, so keep trying new things, evaluating the impact, and make adjustments.
For more insights on navigating leadership challenges, listen to the full episode of The Made Leader Podcast: Leading the Way: Transforming Your Role from Player to Coach and subscribe for regular leadership wisdom designed specifically for middle managers.
About The Made Leader Podcast: Leadership isn’t about who you are—it’s about who you choose to become. The Made Leader Podcast provides actionable leadership development strategies for middle managers seeking to enhance their professional skills through expert interviews, real-world leadership stories, and practical advice.
