We had just burned $3 million and had nothing to show for it.
No growth.
No product enhancements.
No market penetration.
We were a ship lost at sea. Rudderless.
Our crew dutifully followed orders.
They were working hard, and they cared.
Yet, sails flapped aimlessly in the breeze.
We were taking on water and getting nowhere.
What was going on?
We had to admit a harsh reality — we had turned our teams into passengers.
Every move required an order. Every course change needed a command.
Initiative dried up. Creativity withered.
We thought we were leading.
In reality, we were controlling.
And that control had quietly killed our momentum.
That’s when we realized — growth doesn’t come from tighter control.
We needed to stop steering every move—and start letting people run.
Executive Decisions
Years ago, a CEO I once worked with told me that he felt “the five of us” (the executive team) could make every decision for the company. We were a large global business with thousands of employees. And while I believed we could make that happen, the thought terrified me.
Not because of the responsibility of making hard, impactful decisions.
But because of what such a structure would do to an organization.
Top down organizations can work.
Yet, I don’t think they produce the best possible results.
They don’t get the most out of us.
When we can only do as we are told, we are limited.
We need permission to do more.
Let People Run
When I first became a CEO, one of the first leadership lessons that truly stuck with me was this: Let People Run.
It was a simple phrase, shared by someone I respected.
When I first heard it, I have to be honest — it didn’t hit me like a lightning bolt.
I didn’t jump out of my chair and shout hallelujah!
Instead, it made me pause.
What did this really mean?
Overall, the concept is relatively simple: give people the trust and opportunity to succeed and magic will happen.
Is it really that simple?
I will give you an answer you may not be expecting: No!
More than Freedom
Early on, I thought Let People Run was merely about giving people freedom.
Simply release the shackles of micromanagement and strict controls and replace them with trust and opportunity.
Surely, the magic would follow.
But I had to learn the hard way: freedom on its own is inadequate — and, in fact, focusing on freedom alone can backfire.
For example, imagine we read a blog post somewhere, feel enlightened and grant freedoms to our team.
We feel proud — I’m a great manager, we tell ourselves.
The team is happy and life is good.
But then…something goes wrong. We get burned.
Wait! What? How did that happen?
We quickly blame freedom and pull back.
We implement more oversight, more micromanagement, and more controls. Maybe even someone gets fired.
And now we are worse off than when we started.
I thought freedom was supposed to be the answer.
What’s the problem?
It wasn’t the freedom.
It was that we needed more than freedom.
F.A.R. Framework
If we want real ownership, strategic momentum, and growth that lasts—we need more than just freedom.
We need a foundation to support it. A structure that ensures it doesn’t become chaos.
That’s when it clicked for me.
We needed a framework.
Something simple. Memorable. Actionable.
And it came down to three elements:
- Freedom – the space to move.
- Alignment – the shared direction.
- Responsibility – the weight of ownership.
Together, they form the F.A.R. Framework—a system to ensure that when we let people run, they actually move the organization forward.
Leave one out, and we risk dysfunction.
But when all three are present? That’s when real momentum builds.
Author’s Note: Each of these factors deserves deeper exploration. And I’m excited that over the next few posts, I will delve deeper into each of the elements of this framework.
Let People Run at Work
But before I leave you to ponder this framework further, I wanted to provide an everyday example.
Imagine this:
A major client calls in—furious. Something critical has failed, and they need a solution — now!
The support rep has the knowledge and the ability to fix it.
The question is:
Would they feel empowered to act?
Would they run with it—bringing in the necessary resources and solving the problem before leadership even knew there was a fire?
Would the solution be aligned with the company’s mission or a one-off Hail Mary?
And, would they even feel responsible to solve the issue?
Or would they escalate it up the chain, wait for approvals, follow the orders — all while the client’s ire explodes in a potentially irreparable outcome?
How we forge a culture rooted in freedom, alignment, and responsibility determines the answer.
More than Words
These tenets aren’t just concepts to ponder. They are the conditions that unlock real growth.
Freedom gives people the space to move. Alignment gives them a shared direction. Responsibility gives them the weight—and the pride—of ownership.
Without all three, even the most talented teams can drift, stall, or break apart.
But when they come together? People run.
They move faster. They solve bigger problems. They carry the organization forward—not because they were told to, but because they chose to.
And when people run, the ship doesn’t drift. It’s moving with purpose.
