Three Leadership Mishaps And How To Avoid Them
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"There are many qualities that make a great leader. But
having strong beliefs, being able to stick with them through popular and
unpopular times, is the most important characteristic of a great leader." Rudy
Giuliani - Former New York Mayor
There's
good news and bad news about being a leader. The good news is that good leaders
can be made the bad news: bad leaders are hard to change.
There are five leadership mishaps that can sabotage the best
efforts of any leader. The mishaps and how to avoid them are:
Mishap #1- Too much ego
Great leaders need egos a good leader does not eliminate their ego but instead
recognizes when their ego is getting in the way of a wise decision that would
benefit the company and the team. Signs of too much ego: defensive to input and
ideas from others, belligerent or pushy with what they believe needs to be done,
making a hasty decision without consulting anyone, taking full credit for team
success and over sensitive or insecure about loyalty of team. How to avoid the
trap of too much ego? Check in with yourself when feeling defensive or resistant
to input and ideas. Ask yourself, "Why am I resisting this?" and "Is this about
me?" Remember that leadership success is reliant on team output, recognize your
success as a result of your team's success and contributions.
Mishap #2- Ignoring the Problem
Employee
Leaders can often inherit an employee that had never been disciplined or dealt
with because it was too much work or because others said, "This is the way
he/she has always been" and the offending employee has gotten away with ill
behavior. Not dealing with problem employees is one of the biggest de-motivators
in the workplace. When the rest of the team sees that that person has always
gotten away with poor behavior and has never been dealt with they become jaded
and cynical. How to avoid this trap? Deal with unacceptable behavior as soon as
it happens. Do not delay conversations or coaching opportunities to improve
performance. Be courageous and take the steps needed to deal with this difficult
issue.
Mishap #3- Underestimating the Power
of Praise
The trait that most great leaders have is that of output. They are able to push
through large amounts of work at great speed and effectiveness. Many leaders
don't expect consistent praise themselves due to their driver type
personalities. Study after study has shown that the simple act of consistent
praise increases employee productivity, job satisfaction and loyalty to their
leader. To avoid the trap of underestimating the power of praise consider the
following: schedule in your Palm or Blackberry a special recognition moment of
each week, take the time to personalize and specify the praise to the individual
or to the team as a whole. If possible provide rewards for recognition of
efforts such as taking the individual or team for lunch or give a gift
certificate to Starbucks, Tim Horton's or a restaurant. Make a mental note to
'look for opportunities to praise' and set a personal daily goal to recognize at
least one person a day.
These are a few mishaps that can sabotage even the best
efforts in other areas of leadership. Attention to each of these will leverage
the other things you do as a leader for increased results overall.
About the Author
Cheryl Cran, CSP President of Synthesis at Work Inc. works with organizations
in significantly increasing productivity and profitability through communication
strategies that improve employee performance, leverage team synergy and build
extraordinary leaders. Many of Synthesis at Work's clients are award winning
industry leaders. www.cherylcran.com
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Article Published/Sorted/Amended on Scopulus 2007-08-22 23:52:30 in Personal Articles
