There are plenty of good leaders and plenty of bad leaders in this world. I know for a fact that I have been both – and likely I have been both in the past week. As I have reflected on a handful of things in the past few weeks one thing has become abundantly clear to me as certifiably being leadership malpractice. It is a simple practice that takes no skill to remediate, but is still pervasive in both corporate and educational settings.
Leaders who say one thing and then behave in a contradictory manner absolutely paralyze their people.
There are worse, unethical behaviors that a leader may exhibit. But, nothing that I have ever seen stops people from moving forward quite as much as someone who acts in contradiction with their words. Words are meaningful, but behavior never lies. If you want to grind all forward progress in an organization to a halt, it is simple, just confuse people by not acting in accordance with what you say you value or believe.
To aide in understanding, I will provide three quick examples of how this frequently plays out:
- The leader announces they want open and frank conversation then punishes anyone that challenges them.
- The leader is steadfast in the organization’s need for innovation, but refuses to approve any forward-thinking changes.
- The leader speaks of the virtues and values of the organization and then lives a life without integrity.
When this occurs, progress is ground to a full-stop as employees are stuck in a position to figure out whether to believe the bosses words or their actions. If you are a leader, this must absolutely be the first-level of your self-analysis. If you are unsure if this is you, the few people that you have absolute trust in will be a great asset in this exercise.
As a bonus nugget, this is just a reminder that we are ALL leaders in our family. So, preaching one thing to your loved ones and acting in an opposite manner has the same impact.
REFLECTIVE QUESTIONS TO GUIDE SOME THINKING
- What are the three things you believe your WORDS (written or spoken) communicate you value the most?
- What are the three things you believe your behavior communicates that you value the most?
- As a parent, spouse, or partner do you think your behavior matches what you say matters to you in your relationships?
- When has the behavior of a leader previously led to you not being able to act quickly or with confidence? Do you work hard to ensure you do not do the same for your team?
THE BEST THING I READ/WATCHED THIS WEEK
Neil DeGrasse Tyson Explains the Tides
This is not a leadership related YouTube video, but I still love learning. This made my understanding of tides EXPLODE in my head. I found it fascinating and think that there are a myriad of potential educational uses for this video so I thought I would share.
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