In episode 4 of the Bespoke Careers podcast, Forth Bagley (Principal at KPF) described the toughest part of his career: the moment you're expected to lead a team while still doing the work yourself. That difficult in-between — managing others, but still on the tools.
We put the question to our panel of global leaders in architecture and design. How do you lead with confidence when you're still learning?
There is a solid relationship between strength and vulnerability.
I've learned that honesty about what I don't yet know can build more trust than pretending to have it all figured out. I try to be transparent, ask questions, and show that learning is part of leadership. There is a solid relationship between strength and vulnerability.
It's often the greenest staff members who have the most inspiring ideas.
I invite the team into the conversation. It's often the greenest staff members who have the most inspiring ideas. Perhaps not buildable, but those that spark solution-making in all of us.
You don't need to be the best to bring out the best.
Perhaps don't pretend you know everything and listen to those you lead. Leading isn't about knowing all the answers but providing the construct for people around you to feel heard, supported and encouraged — with clear expectations and a clear path. Like a football coach, like the conductor of an orchestra, you don't need to be the best to bring out the best.
Managers want authority. Leaders take responsibility.
My approach to leading our business changed the day I heard Seth Godin say "Managers want authority. Leaders take responsibility." Whenever I'm faced with a tricky business decision, I ask myself what level of risk am I willing to take responsibility for if it goes wrong? It's a sure-fire way to light the path for whatever I need to do next.
The confidence is transparent, and your team will feel and see that.
Understand the objective, goals, or metrics. What are you tasked with accomplishing? Once you know where you need to go, you can develop a plan on how to get there. You never have all the answers or information, so you have to make decisions based on the information you have available at the time.
You will certainly need to fill in blanks as you go. As long as you keep checking your plan and making incremental adjustments, you can feel confident in the direction you're going. The confidence is transparent, and your team will feel and see that.
Confident leadership means being credible, self-aware and open — leading through uncertainty without pretending to know it all.
I lead with honesty and calm, even when I don't have all the answers. I believe people value transparency, clarity, and a sense of direction more than perfection. I'm comfortable saying, "We're still working through this," while staying focused and involving others to help shape the way forward. Confident leadership means being credible, self-aware and open — leading through uncertainty without pretending to know it all.
Success is not built on your own perfection, or predicated on you having every detail figured out.
As an architect, if you ever think you've got things "figured out", you might as well hang up your hat. Continued learning and personal growth are essential for long-term success as a leader, in any business. Be transparent with your team, communicate clearly, and cast an inspiring vision everyone can rally behind.
Develop the confidence to know that success is not built on your own perfection, or predicated on you having every detail figured out. Stay inspired, and focus on building a self-motivated and unified team, committed to the collective mission.
Nobody is infallible — we are all a team, pulling towards a common goal.
Confidence in oneself and their abilities stems from an understanding that we don't always get it right, that we are still all learning something new, that we are still challenging ourselves — but more importantly that we know when to admit that we got it wrong.
Leading a team from the front cannot happen when we still allow ourselves to remain stuck in the weeds. It takes a certain amount of trust in the team, trust in our instincts, letting go of tasks we are used to and comfortable with, and taking a leap of faith. But more importantly, recognition that nobody is infallible — we are all a team, pulling towards a common goal.
Building trust and working towards a common objective that everyone believes in will result in resilience, but also in forgiveness when we don't get it right. Most of all, maintain a level of humility and humanity, as we are all people working with people and for people.
Leadership isn't about certainty — it's about motion.
You don't need to know everything to lead — but you do need to be awake. Awake to complexity, to shifting ground, to the signals that others miss. Leadership isn't about certainty — it's about motion. The ability to move with purpose even when the path isn't fully visible. To read silence. To act before things become urgent.
Experience doesn't make you louder. It makes you sharper. It trains your attention, refines your sense of risk, and builds that quiet discipline of anticipation — the kind that separates instinct from impulse.
I don't lead because I have all the answers. I lead because I've learned to navigate ambiguity without losing direction — and to create momentum where others wait for clarity. That's what makes the difference: not control, but presence. Not reaction, but foresight. Not authority, but trust earned through consistency, awareness, and intent.
Most leaders discover that it's hugely rewarding to subtly mentor and lead others in their own careers.
Most leaders discover that it's hugely rewarding to subtly mentor and lead others in their own careers. This creates a growth environment for everyone, plus it ultimately contributes to your bottom line.
Good leadership is about knowing the right questions to ask, not having all the answers.
Good leadership can be about knowing the right questions to ask, not having all the answers. The best answers are usually found from within teams — so being honest and authentic, asking the right question demonstrates you are on top of the issues but reflects that you don't, and can't, always have the answers.
Confidence becomes less about certainty and more about courage.
Leadership isn't about having all the answers — it's about creating clarity and momentum even in moments of uncertainty. Leading with confidence while still learning means embracing humility, being transparent about what you know and what you're still discovering, and surrounding yourself with capable people whose insights you trust.
You build confidence by anchoring yourself in strong values — like integrity, accountability, and purpose — and by showing consistency in how you communicate and make decisions. It's okay to say, "Let's work through this together," as long as you remain decisive when it counts and stay focused on the bigger picture. Confidence, in that context, becomes less about certainty and more about courage.
Ask questions, and then the follow-on questions, so you can understand the bigger picture.
By applying common sense and curiosity. Ask questions, and then the follow-on questions, so you can understand the bigger picture.
The ability to stay calm in the face of adversity is a leadership superpower.
The ability to stay calm in the face of adversity is a leadership superpower. Calmness breeds confidence and most organisational behaviours stem from the top, both good and bad. As a leader you have a duty to make yourself visible to the team and to model the behaviours that you would like to see adopted. In the design profession we are often under extreme pressure to deliver — and maintaining consistent, positive behaviours will build trust and integrity.