---
title: Ladder of Leadership
synced_from_vault: true
vault_source: 03-living-docs/patterns/Ladder-of-Leadership.md
public: true
type: pattern
category: leadership
tags:
  - pattern
  - leadership
  - intent-based-leadership
  - delegation
created: 2026-02-21T00:00:00.000Z
origin: 'L. David Marquet, Turn the Ship Around; Harrison Metal MGMT 01'
---

| | |
|-|-|
| **Category** | Leadership |
| **Origin** | L. David Marquet, *Turn the Ship Around*; used in Harrison Metal MGMT 01 |
| **Surfaced in OS** | Feb 21, 2026 |

---

## Core Concept

A seven-rung ladder that maps the spectrum from total dependence ("tell me what to do") to full autonomy ("I've been doing"). The leader's job is to push people UP the ladder — and your questions should match the rung they're on.

| Rung | Worker Says | Leader Asks |
|------|------------|-------------|
| 7 | "I've been doing..." | "What have you been doing?" |
| 6 | "I've done..." | "What have you done?" |
| 5 | "I intend to..." | "What do you intend?" |
| 4 | "I would like to..." | "What would you like to do?" |
| 3 | "I recommend..." | "What do you recommend?" |
| 2 | "I think..." | "What do you think?" |
| 1 | "Tell me what to do." | "Do this." |

---

## How to Use It

**Diagnose the rung:** Listen to how someone frames requests. "Can I...?" = rung 1-2. "I'm going to..." = rung 6-7.

**Match your response:** Don't give rung-1 answers to rung-5 people (it undermines their growth). Don't give rung-7 freedom to rung-2 people (it sets them up to fail).

**Move them up one rung at a time:** The goal is to get everyone to rung 5+ ("I intend to...") where they state intent and you just confirm. This is intent-based leadership in practice.

---

## Why It Matters to Me

This is the operational mechanism behind "make myself irrelevant." The ladder gives you a diagnostic AND a development tool. It connects directly to:

- **"Last to speak"** — if you speak first at rung 1, you've trained everyone to stay at rung 1
- **Competence + clarity** — Marquet's prerequisites: people need BOTH to move up the ladder safely
- **The Marquet test** — if you leave for 6 weeks and things fall apart, your team was stuck at rung 1-3

---

## Where I've Seen It

- A capable engineer can sit at rung 5-6 in their core domain (e.g., iOS work) while still operating at rung 3-4 on architectural decisions. The gap tells you where to invest in their growth.
- A counter-pattern: leaders who pull people back DOWN the ladder by retaining authority and giving rung-1 instructions to capable people.

---

## Related Patterns

- [Right vs Effective](/patterns/right-vs-effective) — sometimes you let someone stay at rung 4 even when you'd prefer rung 6, because pushing too fast backfires
- [Manager as Interface](/patterns/manager-as-interface) — the ladder describes the interface between manager and report

---

## Cross-References