How Micromanaging Can Undercut Team Growth, According to Cicely Simpson

In a recent LinkedIn post, Cicely Simpson discusses how leaders can unintentionally undermine their teams by stepping in too quickly. This article examines Simpson’s argument and the advice she shared; it is journalistic coverage of her post, not an article written by Simpson.

“Almost every leader who micromanages does not mean to.”

Simpson describes micromanagement as something that can feel like care, high standards or a desire to help. She also acknowledges feeling the impulse herself: when she is impatient or in a hurry, she wants to “take the paddle.” Her metaphor frames leadership as a balance between offering direction and allowing team members to steer.

When help takes away practice

According to Simpson, leaders may limit development through small, well-intentioned interventions. Answering questions that employees could work through themselves can keep things moving in the moment, she argues, but may also teach them to seek a manager’s answer before forming their own.

She identifies several other patterns: joining meetings simply to listen, preparing so thoroughly that no one else has to think through the problem, and stepping in as soon as someone struggles. In Simpson’s view, each can reduce opportunities for employees to build judgment and solve problems together.

“The more you do for them, the less they grow.”

The post’s central claim is that people develop through doing, including making mistakes and working through difficult questions. Simpson cautions that a team protected from every struggle may not learn to solve problems independently. She adds that the consequences can reach the leader, too: “And eventually, neither do you.”

A question that returns ownership

Simpson offers a practical alternative to immediately supplying an answer: ask, “What would you do?” The question, she says, gives a leader a chance to understand how an employee is thinking. Over time, she argues, it may encourage team members to arrive with a proposed solution instead of only a question.

Making room for judgment

That approach does not mean withholding all support. Rather, Simpson’s post emphasizes noticing when support has become taking over. A leader can remain engaged while leaving space for an employee to assess options, make a call and learn from the outcome.

“A team that’s never allowed to struggle never learns to solve anything on their own.”

Simpson closes by inviting readers to consider what they stopped doing for their teams that helped them grow stronger. The question reflects the post’s broader message: leadership may sometimes mean resisting the urge to take the paddle and giving others room to row.