Why Comparing Yourself to Others Can Ruin You as a Leader | Matthew Littlemore

 

The old adage that comparison is the death of joy exists for a reason. Both Mark Twain and Theodore Roosevelt were right when they cautioned against this way of thinking. Comparing oneself to another can have multiple negative consequences, especially if the other person is in a leadership position. Presenting confidence is a crucial factor when interacting with others, and making comparisons can undermine anyone’s performance in that regard. Leadership takes a particular skill-set that requires communication. Working well with others can stimulate the brain in multiple directions. Comparing ideas and comparing people are two very different perspectives when taking the next step forward.

What Is A Leadership Role?

Leaders exist in a variety of roles. Being the leader of a family, for instance, may have different duties than leading a company, but the expectations are relatively the same. A leader guides one or more people through an obstacle safely and efficiently. One trait many successful leaders have is the ability to think independently. By trusting one’s gut, a leader can follow through despite what anyone else has previously accomplished. Blazing one’s own trail is a way of learning new techniques while getting the job done. This cannot happen if a leader compares themself to others.

The False Comparison Trap

How others present themselves to the outside world may not be the same as what’s happening behind closed doors. Many people have social media accounts where they can scroll through pages of photos from friends and colleagues. These photos typically consist of birthdays, holidays, exotic vacations, or beautiful houses. It can be easy to compare one’s life to what is presented on the screen, even if it’s inaccurate. This can also occur when somebody of a much younger age compares their successes to somebody who has retired. No two people have precisely the same circumstance, and because of this, comparisons can misrepresent somebody’s life or lifestyle.

Leadership Takes Confidence

Making comparisons can reflect poorly on one’s self-esteem. When constantly comparing goals, lifestyles, and accomplishments, others may sense insecurity. How a leader views others can say more about them than the person they are judging.

Confidence usually stems from experience. While not every leader will have experience in the same quest they’re taking on, they most likely will have experience in handling an uncomfortable situation. By staying calm and rationally breaking a problem into manageable pieces, teamwork can solve most issues.

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How Leaders Can Encourage Open Communication

Leaders need to establish an environment where their team can communicate. After all, if people feel like they can’t say what they want to say, then this can lead to problems within the business. Here are some key ways that a leader can encourage open communication.

Avoid Judgment

When people feel judged, they close off and become fearful of opening their mouths. You don’t want this to happen within your team, always avoid judging your team members when they say things or make suggestions. Instead, encourage their comments and be kind.

Always seek to get something positive out of any comments that your team makes. If someone has an idea, point out the good aspects of it. This will encourage them to talk and to speak up more often.

Give Credit

Many people love to receive recognition for their words and their ideas. If you give people credit for their ideas and make it clear that you recognize them, then they will want to communicate. After all, people love it when you recognize the good that they do and the excellent ideas that they have.

Gaining recognition allows members to feel good about themselves. Not only that, but their colleagues see the recognition, which inspires those colleagues to communicate as well. This can encourage your entire team to openly communicate as they seek out that credit and recognition.

Ask the Right Questions

You want to ask open-ended questions and for feedback. When you ask open-ended questions, you encourage your team to throw out ideas and to consider different options. This leads to open communication and giving people the opportunity to share their ideas.

As for feedback, you put yourself in a vulnerable position, which is a good thing. Your team sees that you want to improve, that you value their input and that you care. By showing your willingness to hear the truth and to gain feedback, you encourage them to do the same through communication.

Conclusion

Open communication can provide a variety of benefits to a business. By encouraging your team and showing appreciation for their comments, you can create an environment where people feel safe to communicate their ideas.

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The importance of teamwork for a successful business

Within the past few years, it has become increasingly more apparent that the companies who are good at boosting the idea of teamwork are standing out as more successful than ones who focus on a few key players. Much like in sports, if the team serves as one cohesive unit with a common goal, they will go further than one with a few heroes who get all the attention. There are several reasons why teamwork is encouraged.

Communication is a key element to any successful team. It’s important to remind your staff that they should not only offer assistance and helpful guidance to each other, but you are also available to mentor or assist with any issues they may be having. Teams who respect their leaders will have a much higher chance of succeeding.

Brainstorming sessions are defined as spontaneous ideas offered back and forth by a diverse group of individuals. Ideas can be bounced off others or be expanded on. It is a free-flowing, creative environment that reinforces the fact that there are no bad ideas. This leads to an abundance of suggestions and a higher likelihood of a solution to a problem. Brainstorming only works within a trusted group that is willing to share information with each other. Cooperation is key if working on a team. 

Another reason that a team is more successful than an individual is the concept of perspective. The old adage ‘there is no reality, only perception’ holds true because everybody has different ways of seeing the world. The more perspectives and points of view you can aim at a problem, the more well-rounded picture you will have. Studies have shown that more diverse teams bring more perspective and creativity to a business than ones who hire only one demographic.

Another way that people differ is by their skillset. Each of us has talents in certain areas. The more we match the right person to a task, the more productive the team will complete a project as a whole. In addition, each team member will feel a sense of accomplishment for being able to do work they are good at. This, in turn, increases morale.

This article was originally published on http://matthewlittlemore.com/

The Main Differences Between A Manager and a Leader

Overseeing a set of employees is a massive task that can be very difficult. An organization often has strict policies and procedures in place and employees are expected to abide by these at all costs. Organizations hire managers to ensure that these policies are followed and that employees do their jobs efficiently. However, being a manager does not necessarily mean that this person is a leader. Here are some of the main differences between the two.

Short Term vs. Long Term Tasks

Leaders in the workforce are attentive to the future goals of employees as well as the organization as a whole. They care about where the organization is headed and focus primarily on how to evolve employees to reach those future goals. They are interested in employees’ wellbeing and wish to develop skills and abilities within each employee. Managers, however, are more focused on short-term problems such as solving day to day issues that arise, dealing with conflict among employees, and reprimanding employees who are not doing a respectable job.

The Status Quo Vs. Innovation

Leaders desire to come up with creative solutions to problems using processes that the organization has never used before. They seek to find answers that make the flow of the organization run better and they anticipate future problems that may arise while working to find a better path for the organization. Managers, however, desire to keep the organization as is without much disruption. They work to maintain how the organization is already running.

Minimizing Risk Vs. Risk-Taking

A manager seeks to minimize risk within the workforce as much as possible. They are given a task to manage a set of employees and they train employees to follow rules and policies set by the organization. Leaders, on the other hand, take more risks in hopes that greater outcomes will come of it. They want employees to use their creative minds and seek to find better ways to do things. Leaders see success as being attainable beyond its current state while managers see success as keeping things just the way they are. Managers play it safe.

Responsibility Vs. Accomplishment

When asked what one does for a living, how they portray this to others shows whether they are a leader or a manager. A leader describes their job in terms of what they want to accomplish not only on a day to day basis but for the future as well. A manager describes their job based on who and what they oversee on a daily basis.

People often confuse managers and leaders thinking that they are one and the same. However, a person can be a manager but not a leader if they are more focused on the short-term, daily issues that arise and focus more on ensuring employees are following rules rather than working on developing them for future endeavors. Leaders seek creativity and innovation in the workplace while managers want things to remain the same.

This article was originally published on MatthewLittlemore.com

How Good Leaders Deliver Bad News

Delivering bad news is never an easy thing for a leader to do or for their team members and colleagues to receive. However, it’s one crucial responsibility of a good leader. Thus, there isn’t any way to avoid these kinds of interactions when the issue needs to be addressed. Bad news may need to be delivered as it pertains to demotion, letting go of an employee, or addressing an employee’s behavior on the job.

Take Responsibility

Leaders should always take responsibility for the news they are about to deliver. Pointing fingers and blaming others will only make delivering the news less palatable for the receiver. Therefore, it’s important for good leaders to always take accountability for their mistakes and apologize for them. This demonstrates personal courage.

Be Considerate

There’s not really any correct way to receive bad news. This news may come as a complete shock to the employee. Good leaders also consider the implications of delivering the bad news and the impact that this bad news will have on the employee. Leaders should also offer reassurance and emotional support while their employees process the news.

Don’t Rush It

Leaders should schedule a time to have a discussion with their team, especially when delivering bad news. It wouldn’t be ethical to simply dump bad news onto a person and then leave the scene. Make time for employees to ask questions and also provide them with constructive feedback that they can use to make improvements.

Brace for Reaction

Depending on the magnitude of the bad news and the person, employees may react differently. Unexpected bad news can provoke very deep emotion. So, prepare for the worst and expect the best.

Listen

Employees still have the right to voice their frustrations or disdain to the leader. Not all disagreement constitutes an argument. Good leaders allow their employees and colleagues to ask questions. By listening to one’s concerns, leaders can accommodate better for their employees and find areas where they can improve in their leadership.

Speak Up

Some people have a hard time speaking up especially to tell a person something they may not want to hear. It’s vital that leaders do not tiptoe around the topic or dismiss the issue. This will only prolong the problem and create further dilemmas in the workplace.

This article was originally published on MatthewLittlemore.com