When Your Team Thinks You’re Not Doing Enough — How To Help Them Understand What They Don’t See

Aug 11

Written By Mara Ergas

You may be experiencing this if:

Your team says, "Nothing ever changes."
People assume leadership isn't listening or taking action.
You spend hours advocating for your staff behind the scenes, but they never see that work.
It feels uncomfortable to talk about what you're doing because you don't want it to sound like you're asking for credit.
You find yourself wondering why people don't seem to understand everything that's happening outside their view.

Leadership becomes increasingly invisible as you move away from the front line.

You're no longer caring for patients directly.

You're building relationships, negotiating resources, removing barriers, and representing your team in rooms they don't enter.

It's meaningful work.

But most of it happens where no one can see it.

Many leaders believe that talking about their work sounds self-promotional.

So they stay humble.

They solve problems quietly.

They let results speak for themselves.

The key insight is this: Making your leadership visible isn't about getting credit. It's about creating understanding.

When people can't see what their leaders are doing, they don't leave that space empty.

They naturally fill in the blanks.

They begin telling themselves stories like:

Those stories aren't usually created by cynicism.

They're created by incomplete information.

Share the journey, not just the outcome
When something important is happening behind the scenes, don't wait until everything is finished before talking about it.
Help people understand what it takes to create meaningful change.
For example:
- Instead of saying, "Good news, we finally got approval for the new equipment."
- You might say, "Over the past few weeks, I've been meeting with Finance, gathering additional patient safety data, working with physician leaders, and strengthening our proposal. We're making progress, and I'll keep you updated as we move forward."
The goal isn't recognition.
It's context.

Notice when your team needs perspective more than information
A helpful question to ask yourself is: "What story might my team be creating right now?"
When progress feels slow…
when frustration is building…
or when people can't see what's happening…
that's often the moment to strategically pull back the curtain.

Replace assumptions with understanding
You don't need to give a play-by-play.
Share just enough for people to understand:
- what you're trying to accomplish
- what obstacles you're navigating
- why progress sometimes takes time
That small amount of context can replace frustration with perspective and cynicism with hope.

Shape the narrative before someone else does
One of my favorite examples is the leader who stopped opening staff meetings by reacting to criticism.
Instead, she started each meeting by sharing one important issue she was actively working on and where things stood.
Over time, something changed.
People no longer had to guess what leadership was doing.
They understood the journey, and the tone of the meetings shifted.
Sometimes the most effective way to respond to a negative narrative is to create a more complete one first.

Remember what transparency is really for
Strategic transparency isn't about making yourself look good.
It's about helping people make sense of a complex system.
Every time you help your team understand how change actually happens, you're doing more than explaining your work.
You're helping them become better partners in solving the challenges you face together.

Leadership isn't just about solving problems.
It's also about helping people understand what it takes to solve them.
When you intentionally pull back the curtain, you aren't asking people to admire your work.
You're giving them the context they need to trust the process, stay hopeful, and become part of the solution.

Mara Ergas

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