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Enemies of Leadership |
Mistrust
We know now there are two types of trust: cognitive and affective. One quality that is critical to team behaviour, effective outcomes and results is trust. Building trust takes time, perception and delivery, however, ruining that trust can be completed instantaneously. The degradation and erosion of trust can take time, but ultimately stems from the trustee's behaviour - get this wrong, or damage those cognitive or affective trust levels one too many times and it is a very long, difficult path to regaining it.
We know now there are two types of trust: cognitive and affective. One quality that is critical to team behaviour, effective outcomes and results is trust. Building trust takes time, perception and delivery, however, ruining that trust can be completed instantaneously. The degradation and erosion of trust can take time, but ultimately stems from the trustee's behaviour - get this wrong, or damage those cognitive or affective trust levels one too many times and it is a very long, difficult path to regaining it.
Indecision
The single biggest threat to credibility and integrity in a leader is indecision. Being unable, or unwilling to make a conscious decision toward the team, goal or outcomes harms your leadership position, your organisation and more importantly, your team. One often overlooked aspect of indecision is the constant changing of priorities - what is the hot topic of Monday may change by Wednesday, then again by Friday. Ensuring you keep a weather eye on what you determine as a priority ensures your team's confidence that what they are delivering has an end, rather than many open threads waiting for termination.
The single biggest threat to credibility and integrity in a leader is indecision. Being unable, or unwilling to make a conscious decision toward the team, goal or outcomes harms your leadership position, your organisation and more importantly, your team. One often overlooked aspect of indecision is the constant changing of priorities - what is the hot topic of Monday may change by Wednesday, then again by Friday. Ensuring you keep a weather eye on what you determine as a priority ensures your team's confidence that what they are delivering has an end, rather than many open threads waiting for termination.
Conviction
When you analyse and legitimise your decisions you must do so with haste. Leaving your team open to your lack of conviction results in mistrust, loss of credibility, confusion and chaos. Making a timely, considered decision enables your team to plan their actions, plan resources, create functional working areas and begin to deliver. When you make tardy decisions, you must expect the team outcomes to be sub-standard, under-budgeted and over-schedule.
When you analyse and legitimise your decisions you must do so with haste. Leaving your team open to your lack of conviction results in mistrust, loss of credibility, confusion and chaos. Making a timely, considered decision enables your team to plan their actions, plan resources, create functional working areas and begin to deliver. When you make tardy decisions, you must expect the team outcomes to be sub-standard, under-budgeted and over-schedule.
Cancellation
If your team can make time to provide feedback, demonstrate a concept or attend a meeting - so can you. Cancellation is the fuel for confusion and frustration. Minimising what you cancel and with who allows for team productivity, and when you do attend, enables better demonstration and increased effort in delivery.
If your team can make time to provide feedback, demonstrate a concept or attend a meeting - so can you. Cancellation is the fuel for confusion and frustration. Minimising what you cancel and with who allows for team productivity, and when you do attend, enables better demonstration and increased effort in delivery.
Micro-Management
Those leaders who focus on the minuscule and the unimportant elements of their own team's work create mistrust, frustration and outward anger amongst their staff. As a leader you must remain focussed on providing vision, clarity and strategy to enable others to deliver. Micro-managers are control-freaks; they require all of the information, all of the time, no matter how insignificant. They want to be CC'd into every email, be briefed on work strands by the hour and take a working toward approach to their team. They stifle creativity, innovation and efficiency, but enable poor work ethic, sustain departures and issue unsustainable goals.
Those leaders who focus on the minuscule and the unimportant elements of their own team's work create mistrust, frustration and outward anger amongst their staff. As a leader you must remain focussed on providing vision, clarity and strategy to enable others to deliver. Micro-managers are control-freaks; they require all of the information, all of the time, no matter how insignificant. They want to be CC'd into every email, be briefed on work strands by the hour and take a working toward approach to their team. They stifle creativity, innovation and efficiency, but enable poor work ethic, sustain departures and issue unsustainable goals.