Balancing Autonomy and Alignment

In a _Company of One, providing autonomy to your team is crucial. However, autonomy without alignment can lead to chaos. It's a false dichotomy to think that you can only have one or the other. The key is to find the right balance between the two.

Autonomy is about giving your team the freedom to make their own decisions and to do their work in the way they see fit. This leads to greater creativity, innovation, and engagement.

Alignment is about ensuring that everyone is working towards the same goals and that their work is consistent with the company's vision and values. This is achieved through clear direction, shared processes, and common goals.

The role of a leader is to provide the alignment, and then get out of the way to allow for autonomy. This means:

• Setting a clear vision and goals.
• Providing the necessary resources and support.
• Establishing clear processes and systems.
• Trusting your team to do their best work.

Too much guidance can create a bottleneck and stifle creativity. Too little guidance can lead to confusion and duplicated effort. The sweet spot is in the middle, where high-performing teams can thrive.