The short version
Trust grows leadership, fear buries it.
“Why are you not moving faster?” I asked a friend in a leadership position. Her answer surprised me. In the midst of a leadership transition, she confessed her fear of making a decision that would move her team forward. Although many years have passed, I’m struck again by the power of old stories to help us gain insight in how we might move forward. Imagine that a promising employee has been given the resources to lead an important project in a time of uncertainty. You see the potential, but they also see the risk. What they do next lies at the heart of the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25:14–30.
The Parable, Paraphrased
In the story, a landowner leaves on a journey and entrusts three workers with different amounts of money. A “talent” was a large unit of currency, not a personal skill as the word is used today. Two workers put the money to use and produce a return. The third, afraid of losing what he received, buries it.
His choice protects the original amount, but nothing grows.
Before You Continue
Which response sounds most like your leadership practice?
- I give people meaningful responsibility before they feel completely ready
- I delegate work but remain involved in every decision
- I hold onto important projects because mistakes could be costly
- I wait until someone has more experience before expanding their role
Keep your choice in mind as you read.
Match Responsibility to Readiness
As you see in the parable, the workers do not receive equal amounts. Each receives an assignment suited to his/her ability.
Good leaders recognize the same differences on a team. One person may be ready to lead a major initiative. Another may need a smaller project with clear checkpoints. Fair leadership does not require identical assignments. It requires thoughtful opportunities to grow.
I have found that people often discover what they can do only after someone trusts them with work that matters. It can be invigorating for the right person who receives the trust, which is more valuable than whatever the “talents” are. As a person who has served in a leadership role, and a person who has been a follower, I know what the responsibilities entail.
That trust should include support. As a leader, you set expectations, provide needed resources, agree on checkpoints, and make room for questions. Then step back far enough for the person to take ownership. A friend of mine taught me this when he delegated work to me. Within the boundaries of a project, this was mine to do with as I saw fit aligned to the standards set. If I failed, I owned it. If I succeeded, I owned that as well, but my supervisor got a chunk of that success because he was wise enough to put the trust out there.
But imagine if I held onto the responsibility, never trusting that person with the “talent.” Or if I had, as the person receiving the talent, done nothing with it.
Fear Can Bury Potential
The third worker acts from fear. He avoids loss, criticism, and uncertainty by doing nothing.
Leaders can make a similar choice. They may delay a new idea, avoid delegating visible work, or keep decision-making concentrated at the top. The result may look stable, but stability without growth becomes stagnation.
The same problem appears when employees fear making mistakes. People who expect punishment for every misstep learn to hide problems, avoid initiative, and return only what they were given.
Try It
A capable team member wants to lead a high-profile project but has limited experience managing deadlines.
What would you do?
- Keep the project yourself
- Give the person a low-risk task unrelated to the project
- Let the person lead with clear milestones and regular check-ins
- Delay the opportunity until formal leadership training is complete
What do you think is the best response?
Option three balances opportunity with support. The employee receives real responsibility, while milestones make progress visible and reduce unnecessary risk.
Leadership capacity develops through supported practice, not endless preparation.
Entrust Something That Matters
Think of one responsibility you, as a leader, are holding tightly. Who could take ownership of it? What support would that person need? When could you review progress without taking the work back? Leadership is measured partly by what you accomplish. It is also revealed by what grows in the people trusted to carry the work forward.
For me, there’s nothing so frustrating as seeing someone paralyzed by risk. I know, I’ve been there myself. You have to move forward and trust others.