Small Insights: "Top 10 Mistakes Leaders Make"

These are the less-obvious 7 of 10...

1) The Top Down Attitude (Military): “I’m in charge here, and the sooner you figure that out the better.”

• It's traditional, it's the most common, it's the easiest, it comes naturally, and it reflects the evil in all men.

2) Putting Paperwork Before Peoplework: Task-work is more important than "idle" talk; Relationships don't fit our "deadlines."

• People will never care how much you know until they know how much you care.

3) The Absence of Affirmation: "I don't have time for thank you notes."

• We wildly underestimate the power of the tiniest personal touch of kindness.

• Organizational researchers have been telling us for years that affirmation motivates people much more than financial incentives.

4) No Room For Mavericks: “We tried something like that before, and it didn’t work.”

• “I’m looking for a lot of men with an infinite capacity for not knowing what can’t be done.” - Henry Ford

5) Dictatorship in Decision-making: “I've been doing this the longest, so I know all the answers.”

• Push decisions down to the lowest level they can be made.

6) Semi-Delegation: "I'm the only one that can do it this way."

• The four questions every follower asks: 1) What am I supposed to do? 2) Will you let me do it? 3) Will you help me when I need it? 4) Will you let me know how I am doing?

• "The best executive is one who has sense enough to pick good men to do what he wants done, and self-restraint enough to keep from meddling with them while they do it.” -Theodore Roosevelt

7) Communication Chaos: "'Values' are pretty impractical."

• Never assume that anyone knows anything!

• Preach the vision to the insiders as much as you do to the outsiders.

Sources:

Top 10 Mistakes Leaders Make-Hans Finzel
21 Qualities of a Leader – Dr. John Maxwell
Leadership Defined – General Alexander Haig & Sharon McGee
I Quit, But Forgot to Tell You – Terri Kabachnick
Presentation to Southwest Purchasing Conference by Karen McGee