4 Signs your Leadership Style is Failing 

Leadership title is not a crown on your head, rather it’s a set of responsibilities that emerge from it. It’s all about growing your people by inspiring their imagination and unleashing their true potential. As a leader you have to make the choice to create an environment of opportunity, inclusion and growth for you and your team.

The problem is when leaders develop a know-it-all attitude and consider themselves infallible, they miserably fail. The misuse of the chair to gain popularity and satiate the thirst for power is what further brings them crashing down. In this article, we run you through warnings signs that your leadership is leading you into derailment and exclusion from the role.

Striving for popularity over excellence

Leadership is not a popularity contest. Playing favorites, making easy decisions and avoiding confrontation on pressing issues is a sure route to letting yourself and your team down.

Even when you are tested and judged as a leader, your true mettle lies in how you take a stand on matters and continue to behave ethically and consistently. This will win the appreciation and trust of your team in the long run.

Thirst for power

When you use your position to get undue benefits and rights for yourself, you become a self-centered leader. Prioritizing your needs over those of the team is a huge red flag on your leadership style.

Instead of focusing on your self-promotion, your true strength lies in how back your team and help them cross hurdles. Seeing your people grow securely under your wing and confide in you for advice is in fact the true strength of a leader.

Displaying arrogance and know-it-all attitude

An arrogant and know-it-all attitude paves a leader’s path to downfall. Considering yourself superior, having an inflated ego and narrow mindset will close you from the feedback loop and will leave no room for improvement or learning.

Effective leaders are lifelong learners and know they don’t have all the answers. They constantly seek to push the boundaries, question, inquire and learn more. It’s important to welcome all types of feedback—even if it’s unpleasant to hear. How you assimilate feedback and strive to constantly learn and improve is a true test of your character.

Washing your hands during failures

Taking credit for the work of team when it is a win and passing the blame on team members when things go wrong is a sure sign of bad leadership. Such leaders try to appear infallible by passing the blame down the hierarchy.

A true leader is one who takes full responsibility in the face of failure and shields the team from accusations and criticism. He/she owns the mistakes and instead of criticizing, encourages the team to learn from mistakes and move forward.

Is your leadership style going on the right track or derailing? Whether you’re a seasoned leader or just stepped into the role, I hope these lessons will be useful to you.

Alvina Clara, Content Writer, emQube

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