When you add value to someone else’s plan, you decrease their commitment. Do this instead.

“This is a super game plan, Allie, but you should change this and add that, and the other thing.”

I meant to be supportive and help make Allie’s online retreats even more appealing.

Allie deflated. She made the changes without enthusiasm. A plan she owned 100 percent and was committed to executing was now partly my plan. Her commitment dropped accordingly.

It’s a mistake I didn’t realize I was making, so I kept repeating it. When you add a little extra value to someone’s plan, you improve it a little, but your employee’s commitment drops significantly.

President Trump’s well-intentioned call to the FIFA president to review the questionable red card on Team USA star Folarin Balogun reminded me of this lesson. FIFA overturned the controversial red card, and Balogun was allowed to play against Belgium.

The soccer (football) world exploded in drama. People were outraged by what appeared to be strong-arm tactics and political influence. The issue added fuel to Team Belgium’s fire and probably robbed Team USA of some righteous indignation. Had Team USA prevailed, it would have been a victory for President Trump’s intervention rather than an underdog triumph.

In the event, an inspired Team Belgium trounced a lackluster Team USA 4-1.

I learned from the school of hard knocks that ownership and commitment to success go hand in hand, and as a leader and advisor, you want to strengthen rather than diminish them.

What if you see places where the plan could be improved? Don’t leaders have an obligation to point that out?

The way forward in this dilemma is to ask questions rather than give answers. I could have said to Allie, “Tell me more about this part of the marketing plan. If it were possible to strengthen it, what would that look like? What could you do to address this concern people might have?”

You are coaching your employee to make the changes on their own rather than implementing your advice. Their commitment remains at 100 percent, and you’ve helped them improve their thought process for future events.

What if they don’t make the changes and the plan fails? You’ve learned something important about your employee and will learn something more depending on how they respond to the outcome. You can consider it as tuition on employee growth or fitness for the role.

This process also reduces dependency. After a few value-adding interventions, employees will expect that you’ll come to the rescue. The quality of their work will diminish – why apply the extra effort when you know the boss is going to make a bunch of changes?

It’s another difference between service-centric leadership, which promotes growth, and servant leadership, which creates dependency.