The Leadership Shift That Changes Everything – From Problem Solver to Condition Creator
- Brainz Magazine
- Nov 3
- 7 min read
Jonathan Rozenblit is a Professional Certified Coach (ICF-PCC), author, and podcast host who specializes in helping corporate professionals discover and develop their unique practice of leadership. His focus is on the inner work of leadership, creating conditions for people to be, bring, and do their best.
You know the answer. You could solve this problem in five minutes. You think that by solving the problem, you are helping the team. Maybe you would in the short term. Definitely not in the long term. The most profound shift in leadership is not about having better solutions, it is about creating the conditions where others discover their own. Learn how this change transforms teams from those who constantly need direction into confident problem solvers, and you from an exhausted bottleneck into an inspiring enabler.
What does it mean to create conditions instead of solving problems?
In our Leadership Practitioner work, Marlene Ziobrowski and I define a leader as "someone who creates conditions where people can be their best, bring their best, and do their best." To us, leadership is not about having a title or position. Leadership is a practice, it is about how you show up, not what is written on your business card.
Creating conditions means shaping the environment around people, like a bubble where possibilities can emerge. Instead of being the person at the front solving problems, you work all around on the environment, on the conditions, on whatever a person or team needs to solve challenges for themselves. You do not fix the problem. You create the space where people can discover and implement their own solutions.
One way to think of it is like this. When you solve someone's problem, you have helped them once. When you create conditions for them to solve it themselves, you have helped them develop capability that could last. They can learn to read situations, understand context, and find their own way forward. They can build confidence in their judgment, autonomy in their decisions, and accountability for their outcomes.
This shift, from problem solver to condition creator, is what transforms how people experience working with you. It is the difference between being needed and being valued, between creating followers and developing others.
Why do leaders default to solving problems?
Let us be honest about why so many of us fall into the pattern of being the problem solver, solving problems ourselves feels good.
First, it feels faster. You see the issue, you know the answer, you fix it. Done. Five minutes versus potentially an hour of guiding someone else to the same conclusion. When deadlines loom and pressure mounts, those saved minutes feel precious.
It feels easier too. No need to explain your thinking, break down the context, or help someone else connect the dots. You do not have to figure out what questions to ask or how to guide without giving away the answer. You just handle it and move on.
There is also that satisfying feeling of productivity. Every problem solved is a checkmark, a small victory, proof that you are adding value. You get to be the hero, the expert, the one who saves the day. That dopamine hit of accomplishment can be addictive.
Plus, it gives you a feeling of control. When you are the solver, you know the problem will be handled your way, to your standards, on your timeline. No surprises, no mistakes, no wondering if someone else will drop the ball.
Many organizations often reinforce this pattern. Many workplace cultures celebrate the problem solving hero, promote based on individual expertise, and create urgency around every issue. We are told that good leaders have answers, that expertise equals value, that being needed means being important.
No wonder the desire to solve exists. It is pervasive. It is everywhere. It feels so compelling. It draws us. It compels us. It tempts us. It seems to work, until it does not.
The hidden costs of being the problem solver
The desire to solve feels good in the moment. But the long-term costs can cripple both your team and you.
First, it creates dependency. Every time you solve someone's problem, you teach them to come to you next time. They learn helplessness, not capability. Soon, your calendar fills with people waiting for your solutions.
This dependency limits growth and innovation. When people always look to you for answers, they are no longer developing their own judgment. They stop thinking creatively. They stop taking ownership. The team's collective problem solving capacity shrinks to whatever you personally can handle. New ideas do not surface because everyone prefers yours.
Perhaps most concerning, people only learn to handle the exact situations they have solved before. Change one variable and the team is back at your door. They have not learned to read situations, understand context, or adapt solutions. They have memorized answers, not developed thinking.
And if those costs are not enough, consider this. Being the person who provides all the answers makes you a bottleneck. Needing to be that available to everyone ensures you work long hours, maybe even during vacations. The very thing that made you feel productive and in control becomes the weight that burns you out.
The mindset shift: From solver to enabler
The shift from problem solver to condition creator starts in your mind. It is not about learning new techniques. It is about changing how you think about your role and value.
In our coaching sessions with individuals wanting to make this shift, we explore how mindset shapes everything, one’s perceptions, one’s choices, one’s impact. Your beliefs about a situation, combined with your values and principles, create the lens through which you see every interaction. Change the lens, change what is possible.
Consider these shifts:
From "I need to have the answer" to "I need to help them find their answer." You do not abandon your knowledge. You use it differently, to ask better questions, to guide exploration, to create an opportunity for others to think.
From "My value is in my expertise" to "My value is in developing others." Your worth is not diminished when others grow. It multiplies. Every person who develops capability becomes evidence of your true impact.
From "Success is solving this quickly" to "Success is building their capability so that they can solve challenges quickly." In the long term, sustainability matters more than speed.
From "They need me" to "They need to develop." Being needed feels good but keeps everyone stuck.
From "I know best" to "They know their context best." Their insights, combined with your guidance, can create better outcomes than your solution alone.
From "Control ensures quality" to "Trust builds ownership." Letting go feels risky. But people rarely own what they did not help create.
These shifts do not happen overnight. They require practice, patience, and compassion for yourself as you learn a new way of showing up.
How to create conditions instead of solving challenges
Creating conditions starts with questions. Not just any questions, questions that help people think, explore, and discover their own insights.
Why do questions work? When you ask rather than tell, you signal respect for their capability. You create space for them to process, connect dots, and build confidence in their own thinking. You help them develop the muscle of figuring things out, which serves them long after your conversation ends.
The key is asking questions that build three things, confidence, autonomy, and accountability.
Here is what this looks like in practice:
Instead of "Here is what you should do" try "What options do you see here?"
Instead of "The issue is obviously" try "What do you think is really going on?"
Instead of "Let me tell you what worked when I" try "What have you tried before in similar situations?"
Instead of "You need to fix this by" try "What would success look like to you?"
Instead of "That will not work because" try "What might happen if you tried that?"
What do you notice is the difference?
One approach makes you the expert they depend on. The other builds their expertise. One creates followers who need you. The other develops thinkers who can handle whatever comes next.
The magic is not in having perfect questions. It is in genuine curiosity about their thinking, patience as they work through ideas, and trust that they can find their way.
Making the shift: Start where you are
You might be wondering where to begin. What if you started with just one conversation today?
Pick a moment when someone comes to you with a challenge. Notice your first instinct, probably to solve it. Pause and ask yourself, “How do I use this opportunity to create conditions? What question could I ask here?”
You could start small. When someone says "I do not know what to do about this," you might respond with "What have you already considered?" Just one question. See what emerges.
It might feel awkward or uncomfortable. That is OK. You might also get a look back because there may have been an expectation of you responding with the answer. Then they might struggle. You might struggle watching them struggle. Consider trusting the process anyway.
Keep notes about what you notice. What happens when you ask instead of tell? How do people respond? What are you learning about their capabilities? What are you discovering about your own assumptions?
As with many other aspects of leadership, the shift from solver to condition creator is not a destination. It is a practice. Some days you will default to solving, notice it, learn from it, try again. What matters is not perfection. What matters is continuous practice refinement.
The next conversation waiting for you might be the perfect place to begin.
Read more from Jonathan Rozenblit
Jonathan Rozenblit, Professional Development Coach
Jonathan Rozenblit guides corporate professionals through their journey of discovering and developing their unique practice of leadership so that they can create conditions for themselves and others to be, bring, and do their best at work. Jonathan holds Professional Certified Coach credentials from the International Coaching Federation, is the co-creator of the Leadership Practitioner program, a program that equips individuals with practical tools to inspire trust and cultivate collaborative cultures where people can bring their best selves to work every day, co-host of the Leadership Practitioner podcast, and co-author of 'The Essential Leadership Practitioner: A Framework for Building a Meaningful Practice of Leadership'.
