“I’m Just Trying to Be a Servant Leader…”

I hear this all the time from early career leaders. They pour their energy into supporting their staff, making sure everyone has what they need, solving problems, and putting out fires. On the surface, this sounds noble—what leader doesn’t want to be known as someone who serves their team?

But here’s the problem: many new leaders fall into the trap of over-serving, mistaking constant problem-solving for leadership. Instead of leading with vision and Clarity, they become the firefighter, the fixer, and the go-to person for every issue—ultimately burning themselves out and limiting their team’s Growth.

This isn’t servant leadership. It’s survival mode.

The Misconception: “Servant Leadership Means Doing Everything for Everyone”

The phrase “servant leadership” comes from Robert Greenleaf’s work, which emphasizes empowering others, fostering growth, and putting the needs of the organization ahead of personal power. Nowhere does it say that a leader should carry the burdens of everyone around them or solve every problem themselves.

Yet, this is exactly how many new leaders interpret it. They believe:
“If my team struggles, I should take the workload off their plate.”
“If someone has a problem, it’s my responsibility to fix it.”
“If I say ‘no,’ I’m failing my staff.”

This thinking, while well-intentioned, quickly leads to unsustainable leadership. Instead of leading with clarity and focus, these leaders get stuck reacting instead of directing.

The Dangers of Over-Serving

When leaders take on too much, it doesn’t just hurt them—it hurts the entire organization. Here’s how:

1. You Create Dependency Instead of Empowerment

• If every issue funnels back to you, your team never learns how to problem-solve on their own. Instead of developing others, you become their crutch.

2. You Become Reactive Instead of Strategic

• Firefighting mode keeps you stuck in the weeds—responding to problems rather than proactively leading with vision and purpose. Over time, this causes frustration because you’re always busy but not making real progress.

3. You Burn Out—Fast

• Carrying everyone’s burdens is exhausting. Leaders in over-service mode work long hours, answer emails at all times of the night, and struggle to find time for high-impact leadership work.

4. Your Team Loses Trust in Your Leadership

• Ironically, trying to serve everyone can make you seem ineffective as a leader. A team that constantly relies on you to fix things may start to wonder if you have the vision to guide them forward.

Shifting from Firefighter to True Servant Leader

If you find yourself in firefighter mode, it’s time to shift your approach. Here’s how:

Empower, Don’t Enable – When someone brings a problem to you, don’t automatically fix it. Instead, ask: “What do you think we should do?” Encourage them to find solutions.

Set Clear Priorities – Not everything is your responsibility. Get clear on your high-impact leadership actions and delegate the rest.

Say “No” with Purpose – Boundaries are a form of leadership. Saying “no” to the wrong things allows you to say “yes” to what truly matters.

Teach Problem-Solving – Build capacity in your team by guiding them through issues rather than always giving answers. Your goal is to make them independent, not dependent on you.

Lead with Vision, Not Just Reaction – Servant leadership doesn’t mean serving at the expense of strategy. You serve best when you focus on what will move the organization forward, not just what’s urgent in the moment.

The Bottom Line

Servant leadership is about empowering, not rescuing. If you find yourself stuck in firefighter mode, it’s time to step back and realign with strategic leadership. Your team doesn’t need you to fix everything—they need you to lead.

So ask yourself: Are you leading, or are you just reacting?

Let’s lead with clarity. Let’s serve with purpose. And let’s stop mistaking over-service for true leadership.

Darrin Peppard Dr. Darrin Peppard

Dr. Darrin Peppard is an author, leadership coach, consultant, and speaker focused on organizational culture and climate, and growing emerging leaders. Darrin is the best-selling author of the book Road to Awesome, and is the host of the Leaning into Leadership podcast. As a ‘recovering high school principal’, Darrin shares strategies and lessons learned from 26 years in public education to help leaders gain clarity, find joy in their work, and walk in their purpose.