Four Steps to Becoming a Less-Terrible Leader

Any boss can easily imagine themselves to be doing an awesome job when things are going smoothly. The true test comes when things don’t go according to plan.

Suppose someone misses a deadline. What should a boss do? Certainly the employee needs to be held accountable. Missed deadlines have real consequences – frustrated teammates, slower project progression, and perhaps even lost business. But how should one address the issue?  Do nothing? Review the technicalities? Yell and berate the individual?

Some options are obviously better than others. But once a boss has decided to do something, the details matter a lot.

As Joel Hilchey, author of The 6-and-a half Habits of Highly Defective Bosses explains, when a boss is quick to blame, anger, and point the finger, that boss is doing everyone a disservice. “It’s a disservice to the employee because it’s causing needless pain and shame; it’s a disservice to the company because assigning blame doesn’t actually solve any problems; and it’s a disservice to the boss themself because alienating employees and failing to solve a problem is a less-than-optimal use of time and energy,” Hilchey says.

Now you might be thinking, “But if the person who missed the deadline doesn’t get in trouble, how will they know that what they did was unacceptable?” This is actually the justification for most forms of punishment.

Except it doesn’t work. The research on punishment shows that making someone feel pain doesn’t change behavior in the long-term. “Generally, people want to do well.” Hilchey says. “When they don’t, it’s because they are lacking the skills essential for success. Since punishment doesn’t teach a skill, it’s unlikely to create better results. An effective boss will focus on helping the team solve problems. That means they need to identify the weak spots and then coach people to do better.”

Hilchey says there are four key techniques to being a less terrible boss:

Share Your Philosophy of Leadership  

The underlying philosophy here is simple: You look good when your team looks good. Do not present yourself as the hero of your own story who must continually save the day and clean up the radioactive fallout from the nitwits who work for you. Instead, share the credit with your team. Give accolades where they are deserved. Don’t worry – you can still take responsibility for your role!

Even bosses who don’t intentionally steal the credit might still miss opportunities to shine the spotlight on people’s contributions. Make yourself a plan where you recognize people regularly.

Get Good at Coaching  

A coach does not jump onto the basketball court during the final quarter or lace up her skates between periods. Coaches don’t do the work for the players; they help the players be better. Be like an excellent professional coach: It’s your job to help people be better than they could be without you. Bad coaches may point fingers and berate their players, but you can do better than that.

Start Taking Responsibility  

When things don’t go well, start your conversations by taking responsibility for your part in things. When you lead by example, two good things happen: You increase the odds that other people will take responsibility for their parts and you create a culture where everyone admits errors more readily. “You don’t have to take responsibility for everything, but by demonstrating that you are comfortable accepting some portion of the responsibility, you make it safer for everyone else to do so, too.” Hilchey explains.

Focus on “What now?”  

To avoid blaming, keep your mental antenna tuned to the question: “What now?” Obviously questions of who dropped which balls and why are important. It’s usually helpful to know what went wrong so we don’t make the same mistakes again. But those questions should always be asked in service of the more important question: “What should we do now?”

The aspiring less-terrible boss employs a strategy of empowering and supporting their staff. They generously share the credit for successes. When things go awry, they model great communication, they shoulder responsibility for the failures, and they help people solve problems without making things personal. “Everyone wants to feel recognized for their efforts and achievements, and they want to feel supported even when they make mistakes,” Hilchey writes. “Being a ‘blame-y’ finger pointer never solves problems or gets the best from your team.”

Don’t be a highly defective boss. Simply put, share the credit when things go well. Take responsibility when things don’t. 

Written by Joel Hilchey. Have you read?
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