The Leadership Multiplier: How Encouraging Help Drives Success

A few days ago, I spent hours trying to set up my tech stack to support my writing process. I needed a system where I could seamlessly capture insights, compile research, and organize notes before diving into writing. After exhausting all my troubleshooting ideas, I reached out to a friend.

Thirty minutes on a Wednesday call with her, and by Friday, everything was set up exactly how I needed it.

That experience left me reflecting on a time at work when I needed help but didn’t feel comfortable asking for it. Not because help wasn’t available—but because the culture made me feel like seeking help was an admission of failure.

Culture Defines Whether Help is a Strength or a Weakness

In some organizations, collaboration is celebrated. In others, asking for help signals incompetence.

I once worked under a leader who made me feel that true competence meant figuring everything out independently. As a result, I hesitated not only to ask for support but also to push back when the workload became unrealistic. When a time-sensitive project came my way, I struggled in silence—unsure whether I was expected to manage it alone or if admitting I needed help would be seen as failure. When I encountered a challenge outside my expertise, I hesitated to ask for support—not because I didn’t want to solve it, but because I knew it would be seen as a weakness. The message was clear: Asking for help could be a career risk.

Contrast that with high-performing teams, where leaders normalize support as part of operational excellence. They understand that speed, efficiency, and innovation don’t come from struggling in isolation but from leveraging collective intelligence.

Some leaders fear that making it easy to ask for help will slow down decision-making. But the opposite is true: when employees waste time struggling alone, that’s the real bottleneck. A culture that values knowledge-sharing leads to fewer delays, better decision-making, and faster execution.

The ROI of Help: 30 Minutes vs. Hours Wasted

In my writing journey, 30 minutes of help saved me hours of frustration. Imagine that dynamic in an organization:

• How much faster could teams move if they felt safe asking for guidance?
• How many mistakes could be avoided if knowledge-sharing was the norm?
• How much innovation is lost when people hesitate to tap into expertise?

One high-growth company I worked with had a culture of "figuring it out alone." Employees hesitated to ask questions, leading to duplicative work and inefficiencies. When leadership actively encouraged problem-solving as a team, execution speed increased by 40%. High-trust organizations outperform low-trust ones by up to 286% in revenue growth—because when employees collaborate freely, execution speeds up, and costly errors decrease.

Cultures that encourage problem-solving through collaboration outperform those that equate independence with competence. The strongest leaders I know create environments where people ask for and receive help without fear.

Building a Culture Where Help is a Strength

Leaders set the tone. If asking for help is stigmatized, inefficiency festers. If it’s normalized, teams thrive. Here’s how to foster a culture of productive collaboration:

✅ Model It: Ask for help yourself. When leaders openly seek advice, it signals that seeking input is a strength, not a weakness. 📌 Example: A VP at a biotech firm made it a habit to ask junior team members for insights during meetings. This simple shift led to more open discussions and faster problem-solving.

✅ Recognize It: Celebrate smart problem-solving, including when someone seeks expertise instead of struggling alone. 📌 Example: A healthcare company implemented a “Wins & Wisdom” forum where employees share lessons from challenges they solved by reaching out for support.

✅ Systematize It: Build structured ways for people to get help—whether through knowledge-sharing platforms, mentorship, or cross-functional collaboration. 📌 Example: One team made it a point for a roundtable where members discuss challenges and receive solutions from colleagues as part of the weekly meeting.

✅ Reframe It: Shift the mindset from "You should already know this" to "Let's solve this together." 📌 Example: A startup introduced “1: 1 Office Hours” with leadership, creating a safe space for team members to raise concerns without fear of judgment.

Final Thought: Leadership is the Multiplier

A single leadership decision—whether to encourage or discourage asking for help—can shape an entire company culture.

The reality? The best teams don’t waste time struggling alone. They move fast because they trust that asking for help won’t undermine their credibility.

In high-stakes situations, leaders must strike a balance between independent problem-solving and collaboration. The key is fostering an environment where asking for help is strategic—not an act of desperation.

If 30 minutes of collaboration can save hours of effort, imagine what a culture of support could do for an entire organization.

So, here’s the question: Does your culture reward struggling in silence or problem-solving through collaboration?