⚙️ The At Work Tune Up #39: Stop rescuing. Help them help themselves.

ISSUE #39 | July 13, 2026

Welcome back to the At Work Tune Up, your insider’s playbook with practical, quick, tips on how to keep things healthy and productive at work.

We spend a lot of time at work. We should love it.

Let's get started.

This week's tip for your toolbox:

If you are always the one with the answer, your team will always need you to have the answer.

Stop me if you know this one:

Someone brings you a problem
You solve it.
They come back tomorrow with another one
You solve that one, too.

Here is the rub: that is not leadership. That is rescuing.

It feels helpful. It is fast.

And it creates the cycle where they rely on you instead of on themselves.

But we know they are capable!

They are smart!

Let's help them help themselves. Fast.

Keep reading. ⬇️

This week's tune-up:

The next time someone comes to you with a problem, do not solve it.

Ask this instead:

"What do you think you should do?"

Then stop talking. Wait for the answer.

I bet they already know, or can get there pretty fast.

Show them that:

They are equipped to know what to do
You trust them and their thinking
They don't need to come to you for every decision.

Are there times when they should? Yes, sure. But let's get them thinking on their own first to move things forward.

These are some of my favorite questions to move things forward:

What needs to be true for X to happen?
What's at stake if we move forward?
What's at stake if we don't?

Start with 1 or 2 of these this week.

Small actions make big changes.

If you start asking these questions regularly, you will build a culture of getting things done, without relying on you to answer every question that comes up.

Bonus points: Here's my Top 10 list of questions to drive things forward. (I call them Driving Questions.) Take a look, and try them on for size.

Try it. Let me know how it goes.

Follow me on Instagram for more tips on happy, healthy teams.

You'll be happy you did.

If this newsletter resonates with you, here are three more ways I can help:

Follow me on LinkedIn or Instagram for bite-sized tips throughout the week (free).
Work with me for 1:1 executive coaching or strategy consulting. Hit reply and I’ll send you a few questions to see if we’re a fit.
Book me as a retreat facilitator or speaker. You won't regret investing in time away from the office to reset. I'd love to work with you. Please reply to this email or email me directly.

I’m a teacher at heart, and love helping people get better at what they do.

Miriam

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