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Imagine joining a conversation in a language you only partly understand.
Someone can translate the words. They can summarize what was said and explain the conclusion.
But something may still be missing.
The nuance. The context. The significance of a particular phrase. Even what was left unsaid.
Perhaps leadership has a similar tension.
As responsibility grows, more of the organization is experienced through translation: specialists, dashboards, presentations and recommendations.
That is necessary. Leaders cannot be experts in everything.
But there is a difference between relying on expertise and relying entirely on its translation.
Sometimes an outside perspective sees what insiders miss. Sometimes deep knowledge reveals what a summary cannot.
Perhaps good leadership requires enough fluency to know the difference.
How much of the language do we need to understand before we can judge what is being said?
