Leadership is a lot like coffee. The same order won’t work for everyone, and if you try, someone’s going to be jittery, disappointed, or asleep at their desk. Some people need a triple-shot cappuccino of guidance and structure. Others just want you to slide them a plain black coffee and get out of their way.
Stage 1: Early-Career (a.k.a. “Help, my email signature is longer than my résumé”)
For these folks, leadership needs to be strong, structured, and frequent. They need a mentor who models how to work, not just what to work on. The best leaders in this stage help people build Skills and Networks without making them feel like every question is silly. Think teacher-meets-coach, with a dash of cheerleader.
Stage 2: Mid-Career (a.k.a. “Has a favorite slide template and will die on that hill”)
This group does not want micromanagement. What they want is trust, stretch assignments, and leaders who know how to edit without rewriting. The best leaders here are part sponsor, part air traffic controller: pointing out gaps in Knowledge, handing over bigger projects, and getting out of the way before someone throws a stapler.
Stage 3: Highly Experienced (a.k.a. “Could run the meeting, but is stuck in it anyway”)
They don’t need “coaching moments.” They need you to clear the bureaucratic nonsense so they can actually do their jobs. The best leaders here are bulldozers: moving obstacles, shielding them from politics, and saying their name in the right rooms. If you try to “manage” them, you’ll just look like a mall cop telling Beyoncé to move along.
And this is where many leaders get it wrong; trying to lead everyone the same way. Too much oversight for the veteran feels insulting. Too little support for the newcomer feels like abandonment.
The truth is: leadership isn’t about consistency. It’s about calibration.
The best leaders flex to the stage someone is in, knowing that careers shift, people grow, and what worked yesterday won’t always work tomorrow.
So yes, bring the coffee… but be sure your paying attention to what people actually need in the cup. That’s the difference between teams who survive and teams who thrive.
I’m curious, where are you right now… early, mid, or seasoned… and what’s the worst leadership style/move someone’s ever tried on you? (I need the stories.)
