This painting adorns a local restaurant near our offices where a similar succession plan is underway. The heir to the throne is both scared and stoic. The future triggers both anxiety and excitement. She must display both authenticity and confidence. The nagging nudge of imposter syndrome is real. She isn’t sure she can navigate the future but has no choice.
At some point, we’re all thrown into the deep end of the metaphorical pool, and it’s up to us whether to sink or swim. All versions of performance anxiety tell the same story. We feel like imposters because we are imposters – until we’re not.
The next generation of leaders should spend as little time as possible under the wings of their mentors. The knowledge and experience to be learned has already been bestowed. The real learning happens by doing. Make some mistakes. Screw up something with big consequences. That is how true growth unfolds.
It’s always an option to bubble-wrap your successor. But you can only cushion so many falls. Eventually, we all need to learn how fall and then, how to get back up. Accommodating uncultivated skills only prolongs skill development. Struggle is the best teacher.
