LEARNING TO SAY “I DON’T KNOW”

Saying “I don’t know” is difficult for many supervisors. Perhaps it makes you feel vulnerable, or maybe you fear that others will think you lack knowledge or experience. The truth is that no supervisor has all the answers, and learning to say “I don’t know” can be one of your greatest strengths.

A few years ago, while working for a large government agency, I was asked to design a consolidated mail operation program. After months of planning and completing several business case analyses to justify the enormous expense of the proposed consolidation, I presented my findings to senior leadership. The good news was that I was given approval to move forward with the consolidation project. The bad news was that I had to find funding and make it available for the program. Even worse, I realized I had to tell my boss and my team that I had no idea how to reprogram funds from within the organization to support the project.

This was not my first rodeo in the government—I had successfully led many teams, projects, and programs over the course of my career. Nevertheless, I felt inexperienced and worried about how others would perceive me when I had to say those three little words … “I don’t know.” I was used to solving complex problems; rarely would I hem and haw over issues. Understanding that I had to lead a team and get the job done, I swallowed my pride and scheduled time to tell my boss about my quandary.

As it turns out, my boss had no idea how to reprogram funds either. He smiled and said “So, figure it out and tell us how it’s done.” I was relieved. Not knowing how to perform a task suddenly became less of an issue, and my focus immediately shifted to defining a path that was not well traveled.

As I reached out to others in my agency, I quickly learned that very few had successfully reprogrammed funds. I was not the only one who did not know! Some people told me we wouldn’t be able to do it. Others said that past and current appropriations acts offered few examples and none presented the same level of complexity as my project.

To make a long story short, I started out by asking my organization’s budget officer what needed to be done to reprogram the funds. Next, I talked with the budget analysis folks and our legal staff to gather their input. The path then led me to speak with people in accounting, who ultimately had to approve the reallocation of funds from several accounts into a single account. I also learned I needed to tell the organizational and sub-organizational budget officers that they were going to be directed to contribute funding to the project; we worked together to develop an algorithm for determining who would contribute and at what funding level.

I am happy to say that, in the end, my team and I carved out a path that worked. We were able to turn “I don’t know” into successfully reprogramming enough funds to allow our organization to adopt a consolidated mail program.