If you lead others, there is a good chance that you also struggle with leadership derailers. Actually, every leader does. The question is not whether they have potential derailers but whether they know what their derailers might be.
Derailers are behaviors, words, actions, or responses that prevent us
from acting maturely as leaders. For
instance, the CEO who does not like to be challenged and responds defensively
when they are, shutting down critical discussions that senior teams need to have, is dealing with derailment behavior. His/her defensive behavior is a derailer. The behavior is immature leadership, which could threaten their ability to lead well.
Leaders who do not accept and even solicit feedback from others exhibit
derailing tendencies. Their lack of receptiveness to the input of those they
work with prevents them from seeing themselves clearly and the state of the
organization they lead. Their inability to listen to others and accept feedback
creates a toxic environment because candid dialogue cannot be had, and real
issues cannot be addressed.
Ironically, it takes the input of others to help us understand our
derailing tendencies, where our leadership is coming from immature emotional
intelligence rather than mature. It highlights the importance of leaders
being inquisitive about their own emotional intelligence, receptive to feedback
from others, and committed to addressing the derailing tendencies that
negatively impact their team members.
Here is something to consider. Most derailers are not about competency but rather about the emotional intelligence of the leader and how their EQ hurts their leadership, the organization, and those they work with.
It is relatively easy to recognize the derailers in other leaders because we have experienced them. It is often harder to see them in ourselves because we are used to our tendencies. This is where we need people around us who we give permission to speak into our lives and leadership.
Leadership derailers can be simple, such as the tendency to not solicit feedback from others or ask the kinds of questions that would give us insights into what is truly happening in the organization or team we lead. They can also be more complex, such as narcissistic tendencies that elevate our own leadership at the expense of others. In either case, it comes down to an EQ issue where we have a needed growth opportunity. Derailers hurt our leadership, and they hurt those we lead if not recognized and addressed.
When I led teams and
organizations, I would periodically ask my associates if I did anything that
really irritated them. Is there anything I am doing that you think others
should do? Is there anything you wish you could discuss with someone, but haven't felt free to do so? In this way, I was being proactive in
soliciting feedback and permitting them at the same time to speak candidly.
In the Intelligent Leadership coaching of the John Mattone Global
organization, we help leaders understand their leadership styles' relative
maturity or immaturity to move toward healthier leadership. This is achieved
through a combination of healthy discussions, testing, 360-degree feedback,
personal development plans, and a coaching process designed to foster the
learning of new behaviors.
The challenge for anyone who leads others is to give permission and opportunity for those around us to speak candidly with us about potential derailers in our leadership. It could make the difference between a highly successful leadership tenure and one that comes off the tracks prematurely.
