10 Leadership Blind Spots to Avoid

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10 Leadership Blind Spots to Avoid

Valuing Being Right Over Being EffectiveValuing Being Right Over Being Effective

By getting defensive about your “correct” decisions and stopping people in mid-sentence, you close yourself off to the possibilities of better strategies.

Overlooking the Price of VictoriesOverlooking the Price of Victories

When your IT teams adopt a win-at-all-costs mindset, it can lead to destructive patterns.

Thinking the Present is the PastThinking the Present is the Past

If your radar is tuned to only familiar patterns and processes, you won’t recognize emerging possibilities.

Avoiding Important IssuesAvoiding Important Issues

It’s easy to lapse into a routine in which you only address operational and administrative needs. But true leaders prioritize these duties behind the more impactful—and tougher —strategic challenges.

Enabling Weak Team MembersEnabling Weak Team Members

If you don’t address these employees, you’ll forever limit the potential of your teams. And your top contributors will resent the situation—and possibly leave.

Not Developing a SuccessorNot Developing a Successor

You won’t be in your position forever. Identify rising, internal stars who aren’t merely capable to filling your role, but have the potential to expand it.

Failing to Capture Hearts and MindsFailing to Capture Hearts and Minds

You have to do more than get people to do what you ask. When they actually believe in their mission, they’ll take ownership of their roles.

Not Connecting With the Front LinesNot Connecting With the Front Lines

Within any organization, the front liners get a first-hand read on how customers feel. Tap into this knowledge and adjust your strategies accordingly.

Treating Opinions as FactsTreating Opinions as Facts

Distinguish statements that are based upon personal perspectives from those that are grounded in credible, authoritative resources. Even allegedly “sourced” information can be altered as it gets passed around.

Dismissing Internal PoliticsDismissing Internal Politics

While it’s nice to think that no one “plays politics here,” it’s also entirely unrealistic. You have to know where influencers are—at all levels of your organization—and earn their allegiance.

Dennis McCafferty Avatar