Some teams are winners. Others never quite make it. Pundits debate the reasons endlessly. For me, the main factor is leadership style.

Like many parents, I watch my children playing sport. When kids are young they need lots of advice. Most coaches start off with a directive style.

As kids get older they understand the game better. They know what they should be doing. However, some coaches continue to be very directive, often causing confusion and having a negative impact on performance.

Recently I observed an unusual phenomenon – the ‘silent coach’. This coach gives instructions before matches and again at half time. He remains silent during play. He allows the kids the freedom to play with flow. This appears to instill confidence and improve their performance.

I was reminded of this while reviewing a client’s Business Growth 360 report. A common theme was that the CEO was too directive and hands-on. He was stilting the team’s initiative. Even small things had to be approved by him.

Are you managing your team with too much direction and not enough flow? Why not allow them more space to make decisions and play with ‘flow’? This might just improve performance.