Being a Force Multiplier

[nelsonic]

https://substack.com/home/post/p-165651243
via: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44264362

Aside: Encouraging to see that it's still possible to reach the top of HN with a handful of upvotes.

Snapshot:

Force Multipliers don’t scale themselves. They scale their teams.

Early in my career, I thought being a good manager meant being everywhere.
Saying yes. Filling in gaps. Trying to please everyone.
It was exhausting, ineffective and unsustainable.

Eventually I realised a simple truth: The best managers aren’t the most visible. They’re not heroes. They’re catalysts.

They don’t grab the wheel. They fine-tune the engine.

You won’t get much credit. That’s fine. If the team is moving faster and smiling more, you’re doing something right.

So how do you become a Force Multiplying manager?

You don’t obsess over one thing. You move lots of little things forward. No grand initiatives.
No reorg. Just constant, low-key, under-the-radar nudging in the right direction.

I’m still surprised when an engineer tells me they acted on something I said weeks earlier.

One said a small comment I made in a 1:1 helped them navigate a tricky team debate.
It wasn’t magic, just one nudge in a long series of nudges.

That’s what Force Multiplication looks like up close: small, cumulative signals that shift how people see themselves and their work.

Here’s what it looks like in practice.

The Difference in the Details

Consider two managers. Neither is terrible. But only one is a Force Multiplier.
Let’s break it down by the areas where Engineering Managers spend most of their time.

Individual Support

Good Manager

• Scheduled regular 1:1s to get and give updates

• Asked people how they were doing, mostly to tick the ‘caring’ box

Great Manager

• Used 1:1s to give targeted feedback: one strength, one area for growth

• Set regular, small stretch challenges to push comfort zones

• Asked people what they want to talk about in their 1:1s

• Helped an engineer frame their next career step, not just their next task

Why it matters

The first manager is showing up. The second is showing up with intent. 1:1s aren’t project check-ins, they’re your best opportunity for coaching and nudging. This is where change happens.

Team Dynamics

Good Manager

• Facilitated planning and assigned owners

• Intervened when interpersonal issues surfaced

Great Manager

• Encouraged a junior engineer to run a knowledge-sharing session

• Set up a safe-space session for the team to provide candid feedback to each other

• Intervened when the team was bikeshedding (again!)

Why it matters

The first manager is orchestrating. The second is empowering, growing team capability.

Stakeholder management

Good Manager

• Escalated team frustrations to leadership when needed

Great Manager

• Said no to a stakeholder who wanted “just one quick thing” mid-sprint

• Helped the team to agree on what we were looking for in a new hire

• Asked “Why?” instead of defaulting to “When?”

Why it matters

One manager acts as a conduit. The other as a shield. Protecting focus is one of the most impactful things you can do.

## Ownership

Good Manager

• Took on Epic planning responsibilities personally

Great Manager

• Empowered an ambitious engineer to lead the next Epic

• Invited someone to attend another team’s stand-up to broaden context

• Delegated real decisions, not just tasks

Why it matters

If you’re always the bottleneck, nothing scales. Growth comes from giving things away, and backing people when they stretch, cheering from the sidelines. As Sting once blathered, “If you love somebody, set them free.” Holy crap, 1985.

Culture building

Good Manager

• Go for drinks with the team on a Thursday occasionally

Great Manager

• Organised a free team lunch

• Celebrated small wins at the end of the week

• Helped the team set its own short- and medium-term goals

• Invited people to think about how their work fits into the bigger picture

Why it matters

This is what makes people want to stay. It's not about beer and ping pong. It’s feeling seen, trusted, and being part of something that matters.

The Compound Effect

None of the Great Manager actions are hard. They don’t require exec buy-in, strategy decks or all-hands announcements. But they add up. These are your 1% gains. Repeatedly. Relentlessly.

And the result? A team that hums. A team that solves its own problems. A team that’s not dependent on you to function, but visibly better because of you.

That’s what it means to be a Force Multiplier.

Final Thought

Force Multipliers don’t chase credit. They don’t need the spotlight. But their fingerprints are everywhere.

Want to start? Pick one small thing this week. It doesn’t have to be clever. Just slightly useful. Then do it again. And again.

Let the compound effect take it from there.