Hey there Young Tim with a lot more hair,

I know you are excited about being a new design lead and that means that you are now the one who gets to make all of the calls and be the smartest person in the room. But listen, it won’t work out for the greater good of the team and the game. The team needs to have ownership over their work. They still need clear direction and decision making in the end, but you need to let them have ownership over their part of the game and be clear with them that they are also accountable for that work. THEY will be empowered, engaged and more excited about the game and their work. If you let go, YOU will feel a sense of excitement from seeing people succeed (and safely fail) and grow AND the game will be much better for it.

Yours truly,
Old Bald Man Tim