Blind Spots: A Leader’s Obligation to Address
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Every leader has a blind spot or two. When they are revealed, a leader has a choice to work to eliminate them while acknowledging to his or her team the shortfall to ensure that behaviors are being addressed and corrected. When the leader knows their blind spots, and refuses to address them, the workplace culture and his or her impact is jeopardized because uncorrected negative behaviors limit opportunities and success.
Common leadership blind spots include:
Leading up well, leading down poorly: Impressing senior management or a board of directors while contributing to team silence, high turnover, or ignoring direct report needs.
I got this on my own: Refusing to ask for help or relying on an "I know" attitude that alienates other team members and ignores their insights and contributions.
Hitting goals while hurting the team: Driving an unsustainable pace that breeds hidden burnout and resentment within the team.
Conflict avoidance: Dodging tough conversations or feedback loops until minor issues turn into major crises.
Micromanagement: Failing to trust or delegate properly, which eliminates team ownership while feeding a sense escalating mistrust in the workplace culture.
When any of these behaviors are in play, a leader is harming and not helping the organization and his or her team of employees.
The goal of leadership is to harness the collective skills and talents of the team to ensure organizational success is captured and a sustainable positive impact is secured. A leader’s blind spots prohibit that effort and contribute to employee turnover, a compromised workplace culture, reduced commitment to team’s productivity, and an overall casual sense of care for the mission, vision, and values of the organization by everyone.
Three ways to address the leader’s blind spots:
Participate in a 360-review process where all segments of the business provide feedback to the leader. Those results are reviewed, a summary shared with other leaders in the organization, and a plan to address feedback is followed to seek improvement.
On going, a leader should be seeking feedback from his or her leadership team to ensure that more than lip service is being paid to the improvement plan. It is important to acknowledge what has changed, what improvements have been made, and what is yet to be accomplished.
Another way to eliminate a blind spot is to ensure that hiring of future team members have specific skills that counterbalance the leader’s shortfalls. This strengthens the leadership team and shores up when support is needed within the organization.
Just be aware that when we address behaviors early on, we limit the negative impact on the team and the organization. Unchecked behaviors do not change without intentional efforts and when brought to your attention as a leader, you are better off welcoming the feedback than denying the opportunity to address your shortfalls. Just remember, your ego often lies and when you are told the truth by a trusted colleague embrace those times to do and be better.
You owe it to your team and yourself to address your blind spots. That is an obligation that makes the work of leadership one of personal passion with a reflection on attributes that need improvement. Perfection is not possible. Ongoing efforts to address your shortfalls is within your control and is worth your time and effort.
