Being a good leader: what does it mean and what does it cost?

Sharing insights has helped me on my way to becoming a design leader.

Image of young Napoleon on horseback. Illustration from a computer game.

I got my first taste of power 10 years ago when I became a leader of a small design team. There were 3 designers reporting to me at the time. However, my job was limited to pushing a button: “approve vacation”, occasional 1:1 meetings, and assigning tasks. I was too young and inexperienced to be a real leader, but I took my first step into management.

I spent the next few years of my career learning more about technology, mastering the art of creating digital products and their interfaces, and honing my hard skills. That all changed a few years ago when management responsibilities began to take up at least half of my time. I started to invest more in soft skills, communication, conflict management, psychology, etc.

So I dove deep into learning everything I could about management and leadership, trying to become good at both. And the very first thing I discovered is that being a good manager is not the same as being a good leader. This may seem obvious to some of you, but it’s usually not so simple for new design leaders.

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