> OP was talking about managing, you are talking about leading. These are two very distinct skills.

Everything I've experienced in my professional life has taught me this: managers who can't lead can't manage, and leaders who can't manage cannot lead. Never once have I worked for a manager who didn't see themselves as a leader, and never once have I met someone who called themselves a leader who wasn't management.

I've met all kinds.

People who are stellar managers, have extremely high empathy and EQ, understand their engineers, prop them up, help their career, guide them toward both professional and personal growth. They also did not have a single ounce of leadership or charisma in them, very low technical chops, no vision, and not interested in providing team leadership.

I've also met stellar leaders, visionaries, who inspired, entranced teams with every single word that came out of their mouth. They provided short and long term directions, technical and product guidance, motivation. And they were absolutely terrible human managers. Could not place themselves in other people's shoes. Didn't really care about managing the career or growth of people on their teams. Were only focused on matters that did not involve any human feelings.

These kinds of people both have their places and they complement each other wonderfully.

And sometimes, you find these two very distinct, polar opposite qualities, in one single person. But like I said, this is much more the exception than the rule.

And of course, the reality is that most people lie on a spectrum between these two extremes.

You have provided a wonderfully elegant description of the two ends of this spectrum. Spectrum is a perfect term to use becasue technical leaders who become managers exist on that spectrum in very dynamic ways. Everyone is surrounded by 360 degrees of team members who have different perspectives, expectations, needs, wants, etc. No one can be all things for all people at all times. For my own experience, depending on who you ask - my peers, my leaders, my reports, they will all have varying opinions of how I land on that spectrum and what it means to them. And if you ask this month and ask again next month their perspective may change both positively and negatively. You have to keep trying and growing and learning. You also have to be agile and flexible. Let go of the past and focus on the future. Assume best intentions about everyone. There is no perfect. Its all about the journey.

Thank you for the kind words, and I totally agree with your perspective.

Leading and managing are two separate skills there are plenty of tech leads who neither have to nor want to deal with managing people, 1x1’s, worrying about others career development, etc.

A leader can lead initiatives just via building relationship and having expertise without role power or any reports.