As corny as it may sound, the saying “Great leaders don’t tell you what to do. They show you how it’s done” makes a lot of sense. Good leaders inspire, motivate, teach, and know how to get the most out of their employees. Bad leaders usually aren’t even aware that their leadership skills are poor. That’s why holding up a mirror for them is the only way to make things right. Examine your leadership from time to time, and identify potential traps and pitfalls of being in such a demanding position.
Mr. Know-It-All
Such leaders have a very high opinion of themselves and feel threatened whenever there’s someone too smart in their team. They’re almost immediately under the impression that their position as a leader is jeopardized. If you notice that you always feel an urge to be the most brilliant person in the room or the one who’s always right, that should be a red flag for you to change your attitude. Good leaders are always happy to learn something new that can help them grow and develop.
Bossing Around
Many people falsely believe that a good leader has to be autocratic and in charge of everything. However, once they encounter a bossy and authoritarian leader, they change their mind. This type of leadership is not far from mobbing and abuse, and instead of improving productivity, bossy leaders create a toxic atmosphere and damage efficient teams. If you want to create a productive team of highly motivated people and earn their respect, this is not a way. Treating your employees as if they were slaves and degrading them makes you a horrible boss. Being authoritarian is the worst method of trying to earn respect.
An Indecisive Boss
There are many ways to be a bad leader, and a weak-kneed boss can be equally damaging as an autocrat. For example, a person who is always ready to compromise and rarely takes a stand definitely lacks confidence. This indecisiveness is usually confused with flexibility. However, it’s one thing to be open to any suggestions while not having your own opinion is something totally different. This is usually followed by a certain reluctance to make decisions, which is something that can seriously affect their business. If you frequently can’t make up your mind and if your opinions are easily changed, you should try and come to grips with your leadership.
The Importance of Gratitude
Bad leaders fail to express their gratitude and show that they appreciate the efforts of their employees. Maybe this doesn’t seem as a fundamental problem, but it can affect employees’ productivity and lead to a significant slump in their motivation. Poor leaders are also cheap leaders as they don’t want to invest in their employees, although that doesn’t have to cost them a pretty penny. In case you want to prevent this from happening to you, and if you truly want to appreciate your employees and show them that they matter, practical gift from Corporate prepaid gift cards are a great way of saying “thank you for everything you do.”
A Communication Failure
Communication is essential for any productive and efficient team. When a leader isn’t familiar with this ancient skill, the whole thing turns into a hot mess. Of course, this can have a severe impact on productivity, efficiency, and morale within the team. Not to mention that a failure to communicate properly can cause conflicts and tensions. Great leaders never shrink from taking the bull by the horns and discussing everything with their team. If you believe that an email a day is enough to keep your employees informed, you need to think twice. Being open to hearing different opinions, even a criticism, is a characteristic of a good leader.
Lack of Empathy
The inability to see things from another person’s point of view or to demonstrate empathy, compassion or humility is something that many bad leaders have in common. In fact, empathy is a crucial characteristic of strong leaders. It’s instrumental in building trust because if you’re empathic and capable of appreciating your employees’ feelings and beliefs, even if you don’t agree with them completely, they’ll be able to drop their guard and express their opinions and ideas freely. Emphatic leaders empower their employees, which strengthens their mutual relationship, increases collaboration, and improves productivity.
Great leaders know what their strengths and weaknesses are, and this insight puts them in a position to try and improve their critical skills.
