Most new leaders focus on managing their team. Then wonder why they're still struggling. At Amazon, I learned the hard way: Great leadership requires managing in four directions simultaneously. 1. Managing Your Team → Clear expectations and context → Development paths that build capability → Performance systems that scale This is where most people focus 100% of their energy. It's necessary. But insufficient. 2. Managing Up → Keep your boss informed without overwhelming them → Manage expectations proactively → Build trust through consistent delivery Your boss's success depends on you. Make their job easier. 3. Managing Out → Stakeholder alignment across functions → Resource negotiation for your team → Collaboration that multiplies impact You can't succeed in isolation. Build the right partnerships. 4. Managing Yourself → Self-awareness of triggers and patterns → Stress management and sustainability → Continuous learning and adaptation You can't lead others effectively if you're burned out. Most leaders excel at 1-2 spheres. The missing ones are where your bottlenecks live.
Gregor Purdy This is spot on. The real complexity of leadership begins when you realise it’s not just vertical — it’s multidirectional. Managing across, up, down and within yourself requires constant recalibration. That’s where true transformation begins.
Excellent breakdown Gregor Purdy! Leadership today truly happens in every direction. In my work at N-BAC with organizations, I’ve seen that many leaders focus on managing down but true alignment only happens when they also manage up and across. That’s the core of what I explore in my book, The Art of Managing Up; helping leaders develop the emotional intelligence and strategic awareness to manage up.
This one really hit me, Gregor. You’re so right — most leaders focus all their energy on managing down and wonder why they’re exhausted. The truth is, emotional intelligence lives in all four directions — up, out, down, and in. That “managing yourself” piece is the one most of us skip until our body or burnout makes us stop. Love how clearly you laid this out. 👏
So true and managing yourself is probably the biggest area where managers are negligent. This is evident in the global state of the work from Gallup leaders need to fuel themselves so they can drive the culture in their teams.
Brilliant breakdown of true leadership dynamics. Managing in all four directions creates balance, alignment, and resilience. Many leaders overlook managing themselves and across teams — yet that’s where long-term impact is built. This framework is a reminder that leadership is about influence, not just oversight.