Could the bad leader be… you?

As a leader:

  • I like to rule by fear… I don’t want to hear about anything that doesn’t make me feel good

  • If people don’t respond to me instantly, I assume they never work properly at all

  • I prefer organisational systems and culture that prioritise busy work over results

You may have heard the oft-quoted statistic that 80% of drivers think they are above average. This illusory superiority bias applies to most of what we do - including leading. Could it apply to… you?

It’s easy to point the finger at other leaders who seem to operate poorly. Yet no-one would describe their own leadership philosophy as being what’s in the bullet points above. So who are the leaders who are creating these dysfunctional cultures? They seem oddly hard to find. Could one of them be… you?

I wrote recently about the importance of creating time and space for deep focus in your work day. The feedback was interesting – people yearn to be able to do that, but so many lament the fact that they are in a work culture which makes it difficult or impossible. Where instant availability is expected at all times, where long meetings produce nothing but fatigue and resentment, where instant messaging, managing bureaucracy and political jockeying takes hours from their day leaving them cognitively and emotionally depleted. Who is creating these dysfunctional cultures? Could it be… you?

As a leader, it is critical to be able to take an honest assessment of how you are contributing to your organisation.

As the saying goes, you’re not stuck in traffic… you are traffic.

Take care of yourself and others,

Madeleine

PS Are you a lawyer who spends your weekends and holidays compulsively checking your email “just in case”? If you are (or if you know a lawyer like that), and you’d prefer your energy to be going on the things that will actually help you, Thriving as a Lawyer is a private one:one program to help you achieve just that. It’s now open for April applications. Send me a message to enquire, and please share with anyone you think may benefit.

I work with clients from executive leadership teams to the front line, helping them to make clearer decisions about what they want, and adapt faster and more easily to change and transition. I use deep purpose as a key to unlock powerful thriving in work and life.

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Madeleine Shaw