Being a leader isn’t easy. You can’t expect everyone to be born to become a boss. In order to become a good one, it requires years of experience and self-evaluation. If you turn out to be a lousy boss or leader, you’ll eventually always be on the hunt to find new employees. Because there is an old saying that is considered valid, “employees leave managers, not companies”.
If you began searching for management theories and styles, you’d find piles of data compiled by the top influencers of the world. However, without determination, you can’t expect to understand any of the past studies.
We agree with the fact that no one is perfect. However, there is always room for improvement. Without further ado, here are a few leadership weaknesses that you may see in yourself, and how you can fix them.
1. Trust Issues
One of the primary reasons that lead to failure is taking up too many tasks or responsibilities on your shoulders. You have to realize that you are a human being and there is a limit to how much you can do. Well, then why do leaders do this? Because they have trust issues with their employees.
Lack of trust for employees is what halts a leader from delegating his tasks to his team members. Well, this usually happens when leaders mistake themselves as someone who knows everything. A true leader is one who understands his team’s strengths and weaknesses and uses them by delegating tasks. By doing that, you can focus on more important areas which include the planning and analyzing of performance. Therefore, trust your team members and develop a better relationship with them by sharing valuable information with them. – Trust on both sides can boost the performance of the team as a whole!
2. Dream to Become the Hero
Leaders are humans, and it’s pretty natural to have a wish of being liked by everyone in the workplace. In addition, being praised is also something every manager or leaders wishes. Well, this dream can take you in to underperforming.
A common mistake new managers make is that they make decisions that are more popular than beneficial. Why would someone do that? Merely to get in the good books of their team members! Though such decisions may generate a good following for you in the office, they might ruin your career by leading to failure. No one will remember you for the good that you do before leaving an organization. However, one wrong move can destroy your reputation within the industry. Therefore, no matter how harsh a particular decision may be, if it’s for the benefit of your company then take it.
3. Static Nature
All great leaders face the problem of getting trapped in their usual ways. That means they aren’t willing to change and eventually become static in their methods of performing tasks. One well-known example of a leader who fell from the top of the mountain of success rapidly is the CEO of Nokia. Nokia was once the biggest and most successful mobile producer and supplier in the world. However, failure to evolve with a changing industry led the CEO to leave the company on a sad note, admitting his mistake of not considering the changes in trends.
Therefore, if you don’t want your B2C or B2B platform to end up like Nokia, then it’s better that you start planning ahead. In addition, always be light on your feet, as you never know when you’ll have to change your style of leading your team and performing tasks. Also, always consider taking time out to study the market.
4. Authoritarian Leader
This style of leadership is always considered toxic to a business. Though some may find success in acting like a dictator, as time goes on employees get frustrated. In addition, you’ll also see a high rate of employee turnover under such managers.
An authoritarian leader is someone who says “do what I say, not what I do”. That means, they are never open to ideas, nor are they willing to develop good relationships with their employees. All they love to do is enforce orders and make people work. As a staff member, you can’t walk up to them to share an idea. In such circumstances, the element of respect is always missing.
If you want your team to respect you, you’ll have to set a good example for them. For instance, they should be able to see you follow all the rules, be punctual, and even hold yourself accountable for all failures. The day your inferiors look up to you as an idol, you can consider your leadership a success.
5. Failure to Explain Actions
If you just sit and give orders to your staff, they’ll never know the reason behind their efforts. By sharing your targets and goals, you’ll be able to motivate your team members. The happiness of achieving a goal will then be shared amongst the whole team.
To start, you can assign specific tasks and goals for those you lead. In addition, you should also highlight what you expect from them and how their efforts will contribute to the final output. As a successful leader, you have to guide your team and show them the path to walk on. Give them advice and share your experience with them to boost their morale.
Wrap Up
A successful leader can play a vital role in helping an organization grow. On the other hand, a weak leader also has the power to destroy a company’s reputation and even lead it towards a shutdown. Therefore, if you don’t want your company to end up going out of business, then consider the factors we’ve mentioned above and try to improve yourself as a leader.
