There’s a piece of leadership advice I hate: “Don’t come to me with problems unless you also bring me solutions.”

I think it’s completely misguided.

I want the people on my team to bring me problems.

I want to know what isn’t working. Where customers are frustrated. Where a process is breaking down. Where we’re wasting time. Where two teams aren’t aligned. Where someone sees a risk I haven’t noticed.

I want an accurate pulse on what’s actually happening in the business.

And the last thing I want is for someone to sit on an important problem because they haven’t figured out how to solve it yet—or worse, to feel like they’re alone in trying to solve it.

There’s another flaw in this “only bring up problems with solutions” advice:

The person who identifies the problem isn't always the person best equipped to solve it. In fact, that's one of the reasons leaders exist.

As a leader, you often have context your team members don't. You work across more functions. You have a broader view of the company's priorities and goals. You know what else is already in motion.

You may know that another team has already solved something similar. You may know who has the expertise to help. You may be able to provide context, resources, guardrails, or connections that dramatically change the solution.

That doesn't mean your job is to solve every problem someone brings you.

You can ask:

Sometimes they'll have the solution.

Sometimes you'll find it together.

Sometimes you'll realize someone else should solve it entirely.

But first, you need to know the problem exists.

💡 The Vault Insight: Don't make having the solution the price of admission for raising a problem.

When leaders say, “Don’t bring me problems without solutions,” they may think they’re teaching ownership.

But they may actually be teaching their teams to keep problems to themselves.

And that's a much bigger problem.

—Ashley Walton, CMO & Treadmill Desk Advocate

What could you do to build trust with your team, so they’ll be honest about problems they’re encountering, even when they don’t have the answers?

I'd love to hear your response. Just hit reply—I read every one.