The leader’s impact on their team is crucial for success today. With many people working flexibly and with no fixed place of work, the influence of the centrally positioned person in the face of the leader has become more critical than ever before. Leaders build but also can destroy teams’ morale, attitude, and values. The more the leader negatively influences their team, the more opportunities they create for failure outside the team.
As stated in an SHRM published research from 2022, thirty-two percent of the people interviewed declare that their direct leader negatively impacts their motivation and engagement toward challenges and goals at work.
Imagine one-third of your workforce is feeling frustrated and not as productive as you need them to be to secure the company’s future. In the fast-paced world we live in, this is a high percentage that can cost not only the company’s short term results but also long-term results.
Often, leaders, blinded by their understanding of themselves and the world and creating a circle of people who are uncomfortable giving feedback, do not see how their behavior is destroying what once worked well.
Here are five things many leaders do inconsonantly that harm not only team performance but also disturb team morale.
Leading with unclear expectations
This happens so often that fifty-eight percent of the people answered that such behavior has become a norm for them and the team. Imagine you want something to be achieved, but the clear image of success is only in your head. You give instructions, everyone says that they have understood it, and then the result is tragic. Typical for leaders who position themselves as scarier for the team, this frustrating behavior confuses everyone. Not clearing up all expectations often leads to poor results. Poor results create frustration in the leader and those who must hear how their work and efforts are not corresponding with the leader’s expectation, unfortunately often clear only in their head. If you are a leader and want to confuse your team, give them unclear instructions, and do not try to ask them how they have understood your idea or expectations. And now, you will have a mess that has come out not from your team members’ poor performance but from your frustrating behavior of not giving enough information on the topic and desired results.
Talk more than listen carefully.
Now, we are created to talk. And in many situations, that is a valuable technique that can save us. Unfortunately, when you are in a leadership role, this has more negative impact than creates positive outputs. You know that team member who always comes with questions or logic that has obvious, at least in your head, answers. And there is no time to lose and listen to everything. You need to speak right away and give the answer to move forward. It’s an entirely wrong strategy, according to Academia. The EU Labor Agency published a report from 2021 that fifty-nine percent of leaders use that strategy “to save time.” This often frustrates team members. People need to be heard and understood. Nowadays, most people are convinced that they can deliver results, but they need to validate the path chosen and the development required with someone responsible for them. Interfering with a person’s way of thinking creates, at the same time, low confidence and low engagement in the tasks and projects assigned. What the leader thinks is a good and fast solution is often frustrating and leads to demotivation on the other side. You want a solution for this one. Stop talking and listen to the end. Then, ask if the person wants feedback on what they think to do or only needs validation. If it is the second, then approve it and let the person go their way to deliver exceptional results, relying on their capabilities and feeling supported in every step they take.
Hold back recognition and appreciation.
“Why say thank you to all the small things that are happening? After all, people get regular feedback in a structured way, and that can be included in the feedback session.”
Heard This way of thinking from the CEO of a multinational company with more than forty-five thousand employees worldwide. At first, it was surprising for me. But then, after researching the topic, forty-plus percent of CEOs think the same way. And this is not even disturbing for them. On the other hand, employees want to see recognition on the spot when change has happened, and success has been achieved. This discrepancy often leads to lower engagement levels toward company, CEO, and personal goals, or at least these goals move in another direction and even another company.
Stay away from the work floor.
Had it, and most people had it – the boss who stays away from the operational floor because their role is “way more strategic.” Separating from the place where things are happening and leading from a distance not only discourages employees but also makes them think of their contribution as insignificant. And this, in the long term, damages the results and stability of company growth plans. Being there where people struggle, even if not intending to help them, leads to higher engagement and self-confidence, based on the understanding that the individual contributor’s work is seen with all their wins and struggles, and that the leader/CEO knows how hard results were to be achieved. This pushes morale and efforts toward a positive and desired outcome.
Ignore signs of discrepancy.
According to a McKinsey material published in 2020, the higher the leader is positioned in the hierarchy, the lower the number of details about the company they own. Most leaders live comfortably with this stage because it saves them a lot of headaches in the short term. However, this is not a sustainable strategy overall. Seeing that the leader above does not interview their problems, conflicts, and discrepancies, people often discourage themselves and turn from positive and energetic into weak and slow. The more involved the leader is with what is happening and the faster they react to situations, the better they lead and the more sustainable results they can guarantee in the long term on a company level.
IN CONCLUSION:
The variety of companies on the market has created a database of cases and behaviors that may be acceptable or unacceptable, depending on the type of organization and leadership approach. However, suppose leaders identify and respond to discrepancies created by their behavior. In that case, this may lead the organization in the right direction with less stress and a higher level of internal engagement and organizational attachment from employees.
The Human place 