What should I do if I want to be a leader?

I felt confident as a developer, so I thought it was time to become a team lead. I took the role, and suddenly the focus shifted from coding to juggling deadlines, people, processes, and crises.

We were badly behind schedule, three code reviews were waiting, and two of my developers were in a serious conflict.

My heart was pounding, and I felt like I was carrying a huge backpack. I got up from my desk, went into the hallway, and ran up and down the stairs twice to catch my breath. Each step felt like a hammer hitting my chest.

Back at my desk, I skimmed the reviews and gave quick instructions to fix my comments. Because of the deadline pressure, I ignored the developers’ conflict and worked a lot of overtime.

Of course, the problems didn’t go away, they just kept getting bigger and bigger.

Where did I go wrong?

First, I neglected the human side. I chased code and deadlines and didn’t have the time or energy to address the developers’ growing conflict, which only got worse.

Second, because we were constantly firefighting, we never improved our working methods. I kept a huge to‑do list instead of setting clear priorities, which led to more confusion and mistakes.

Third, occasional overtime can help meet urgent goals, but endless overtime harms health, cuts productivity, and drags morale down, creating a downward spiral of exhaustion.

Small steps that could have saved me

If I had taken on a few smaller tasks before becoming a lead dev, I could have learned the needed skills without the huge pressure. The team would have run smoother, and I wouldn’t have made so many mistakes.

Own a feature

Pick any feature—big or small—and be the person responsible from design to launch. Besides writing code, you learn to speak with stakeholders, set realistic deadlines, and balance technical work with business needs.

Lead a sprint

Run the daily stand‑up, track progress, and remove obstacles for the team. This shows you how to keep everyone focused and organized without feeling overwhelmed.

Mentor a junior dev

Mentoring is the fastest way to help a junior grow. Meet weekly, give clear, simple feedback, and help solve problems. Clear communication is the key trait of an effective leader.

The lesson I want you to take away

Don’t jump into a leadership role with zero experience.

Take small, focused steps first.

Leadership is a set of skills—listening, planning, delegating—that you can learn gradually. Trying to master them all at once usually ends in chaos and stress for you and your team.

Try it this week: pick one of the small steps above and give it a go. You’ll see how quickly confidence builds and how much smoother the work becomes.