Helping with Adventurer Party Management - Chapter 397

And so, the new officials finish presenting their plans.

There’s not much more I need to say.

“Well done. Your efforts and progress over the past few days have been remarkable. To be honest, I’m amazed.” I praise them sincerely—because they truly have made tremendous strides.

But the better a plan is, the easier it is to fall into certain traps. That’s something they’ll need to be careful about.

“But a plan is just a plan. As your investigation progresses, you’ll often be forced to revise it. When that happens, don’t cling to the plan. If the facts and the plan diverge, then the facts are correct—and the plan is wrong. Plans must always be adjusted to match reality.”

Plans are elegant. Reality rarely is. So, the plan must change to reflect the world—not the other way around.

I gesture toward the boards laid out on the floor and address them.

“This arrangement of planks is the product of your hard work and intellectual effort, but it’s also just a symbol—a snapshot of your current thinking. You may take notes of your plans, but you are not allowed to submit them as formal reports. Feel free to revise and rewrite them as often as needed. From now on, I expect you to develop the ability to think for yourselves, consult with those around you, and take initiative in planning and execution. Specifically, I want you to start by using me.”

It’s not every day a lord invites others to make use of him.

The officials look confused, so I give them a concrete example.

“Of course, I’m still the lord of this territory, and I’ve laid out the overarching policies. But you’ve spent more time than I have thinking about how to move development forward. So I want you to tell me what to do. Tell me who I should meet, what negotiations I need to conduct, how much budget we need, and how much we’re aiming for. Tell me what kind of personnel we need, and by when. I may be your boss, but in this territory development project, I’m just one member of the team. I want each of you to keep that in mind and keep pushing forward.”

With that, I finish my speech. “So—what’s my assignment?”

There’s a reason I’m trying to cultivate the leadership skills of these new officials through a hands-off approach.

It’s because I don’t want to repeat the mistakes I made with the shoe business.

Back when I launched the shoe business, I had to take full control.

The risk was high, and I was the only one with a clear vision of the future.

Others helped, of course, but I did everything myself: technology development, fundraising, system design, production planning, delivery inspections, and sales channel development.

As a result, I never trained anyone to fully take over.

Anne now handles sales, and Sara manages routine production. But it’s still not something I can walk away from.

That’s fine—I intend the shoe business to be a lifelong pursuit.

But my role as governor of this territory is different.

The governorship is a temporary position. I’m expected to pass on the know-how gained from territory development throughout the kingdom and beyond, via the Church.

If I fail to transfer that knowledge, I’ll be the one who pays the price.

As governor and development consultant, I could end up being dragged around managing development forever.

Some people might enjoy that kind of life.

But I’m not one of them.

I’d rather teach someone who likes dealing with complications how to handle them—and let them take over.

“Giving orders to the governor is outrageous!” Shion exclaimed in horror.

But that kind of attitude is exactly what worries me.