Let Go. Plan Well. Move More.
On why leaders need to give up control, how to prep for high-stakes meetings, and the simple secret to productivity.
Every Sunday I share three useful ideas in the pursuit of a rich life.
This week:
Let Others Take the Torch - Why the best leaders give their ideas away and let others own them.
Know the Range Before You Walk In - How mapping your best and worst-case before any meeting prepares you for success.
The More Time I Take for Me, the More I Get Done - The paradox of slowing down in the morning to speed up the rest of your day.
I am a part of Zero1 by Zerodha, a curated network of high quality storytellers that build what this generation needs and not what it needs to be sold. You can also find all past editions here. Also check out my Master of the Deal podcast and the M&A This Week newsletter.
Let’s dive in 👇
(1) Let Others Take the Torch
I’ve taken many initiatives in multiple roles. And in each case, I’ve been happy to give others credit for the work they’ve done because all I care about is increasing the probability of our joint success.
When reading From Barista to Billionaire, I came across three simple management principles from Andrew Wilkinson that stuck with me. He runs Tiny, a portfolio of companies with a few billion under management. His leadership approach is surprisingly hands-off. But it works.
First, he said: “People don’t like doing things that are not their idea.”
People are less motivated to execute when they don’t own the idea, especially when it comes to building something special. The metaphor he used was brilliant:
You hire a jockey not to hold the reins for them while they race, but to let them run the race. You might be paying for the horse, the hay, and the vet bills, but at the end of the day, they’re the ones in the saddle. Your job is to pick the right rider and trust them.
Second: “Allow flesh wounds, not mortal wounds.”
Mistakes are inevitable. If you want people to move fast and take ownership, you have to let them get a few things wrong so long as they don’t blow up the business. Of course, this kind of freedom must be earned. It’s not for everyone. But when people prove they can think and act independently, give them room.
Third: Wilkinson noted that this kind of delegation - trusting your VPs, CEOs, and teams with both the freedom and responsibility - gives you more bandwidth. You can focus on bigger-picture moves: acquiring companies, setting long-term strategy, or simply doing more of what you’re best at.
This hit home for me. I’ve learned that when I surround myself with smart people and invest in making them shine, everything compounds faster.
Give your ideas away. Let others own them. Stay behind the scenes. If you do this consistently, people will take the torch of your mission and carry it much further than you ever could on your own.
(2) Know the Range Before You Walk In
Years ago, I walked into a meeting with the founder of a company we wanted to partner with. I’d done no prep. No mental mapping. Just assumed we’d “figure it out in the room.” Ten minutes in, I realized I didn’t know what I really wanted from the conversation, or what I wasn’t willing to accept.
We shook hands. Smiled. Nothing came of it.
Since then, I’ve made it a rule:
Before any high-stakes meeting, I write down the best-case and worst-case outcome.
The best-case is my dream scenario — what would make me walk out smiling. The worst-case is what I absolutely won’t accept — where I’d politely walk away. That range becomes my frame. It sharpens my questions, it gives me confidence, and most importantly, it prepares my mind for anything in between.
I once saw a video of Raghuram Rajan, former RBI Governor, explaining that clarity of mind is more valuable than brilliance. Because most meetings are not won by intellect, they’re won by preparation. When you’re clear on what you want, and what you won’t tolerate, you stop fumbling. You start leading.
In sales, this shows up as knowing what pricing you’ll walk away from. In hiring, it’s knowing what tradeoffs you won’t make. In partnerships, it’s defining the kind of terms that protect your upside and your downside.
A prepared mind is halfway to success. And nothing prepares the mind better than knowing your range.
(3) The More Time I Take for Me, the More I Get Done
It’s a strange paradox.
When I give myself time to exercise in the morning, I get more work done during the day. When I don’t move, I get less done. You’d think taking time away from work would reduce output. But in my experience, it does the opposite.
This past week was the perfect example. Every day that I woke up at 7 AM, had a cup of coffee, and went for a run - I had clear, focused, productive days. I felt sharp. Present. In control.
Then came Thursday.
I had an early 8:30 AM work call. So I skipped my run. Skipped my quiet time. Went straight from bed to meetings. That day turned out to be the least productive of the week. Not because I had more to do, but because I wasn’t fully there. My body was sluggish. My mind was foggy. I was reacting to everything instead of driving everything.
This lesson keeps repeating: The first 2–3 hours of the day should be ME time.
Move your body. Breathe. Think. Plan. This is the foundation. It’s what allows the next 14 hours to be strong. You might think you’re being productive by jumping straight into work but what’s the quality of that work? How long can you sustain it?
You don’t get more done by doing more. You get more done by starting better.
Take care of yourself first so that everything you touch after that is touched by a better version of you. If you conquer the morning, you will conquer the day.
👋 I’m Harsh. I build businesses and share useful ideas in pursuit of a rich life - full of good health, rising wealth and loving relationships. Read by 7500+ CXOs every Sunday. If you’re curious about what I’m building, here’s where I spend most of my time:
Ideals VDR - We are the world’s most secure and highest rated Virtual Data Room provider. Used by investment banks and companies to share confidential documents. Here is a short demo.
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Harsh Batra (Connect with me on LinkedIn)