Sample Leadership Tip: If You Want To Kill Trust In You Organization, Do This!

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"I'll have to ask the board."

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This was a standard answer and I was tired of hearing it.

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"You have to ask the board, why can't you just make a decision?" That was the question that I always had in my mind, but never quite had the courage or nerve to ask until some time later.

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So around and around we went every time I had a request that could potentially be denied.

It certainly did not help that my manager was using the board intentionally to be the "bad guys" when the decision wasn't what I wanted to hear.

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How do I know that? After endlessly going around the "I'll have to ask the board" carousel, I looked at my manager and asked, "Is it possible that you are deferring decisions that you should be making to the board because you want a decision made that is not in my favour and you do not want to be the bad guy?"

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The words that came out of his mouth next would erode trust for the rest of the time I was involved there. "Yes, I asked the board if I could use them to be the bad guy when a decision was needed that you would not like."

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From that point on it was hard to know and trust whether my manager was telling me the truth or not about many things.

If you are a manager, a leader, or on a board, do not fall prey to that trap. You may think that you are trying to preserve relationships but in actuality, you are avoiding being responsible and accountable for the authority and autonomy that you have.

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If you are looking at becoming a high-performance team, a mentoring leader, or leveraging your team's strengths then we over at DC Leadership Training & Consulting want to do business with you.

 

E-mail me  directly at Don@DCLeadershipConsulting.ca

 

Don Cruickshank, MALM (Masters in Leadership & Management)
*Certified in Team Leadership
*Leading From Your Strengths Certified Trainer, Coach, Consultant

www.DCLeadershipConsulting.ca

- Empowering individuals and organizations towards creating successful futures

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