Can a leader admit failure?
Old school may say, a leader is a leader because he is wiser, stronger and more powerful than anyone else around him. For such a person failure is practically impossible.
Some may say, a leader has to be intimidating to assure maximum engagement of his employees.
I intentionally did not write ‚he/she’ and ‚his/her employees’ here, because I have experienced such a behavior exclusively with men, never with women in leadership positions.
John Quincy Adams quoted: ‚If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader‘.
Such a leader is a person who makes failures like any of us. But he/she has the strength and greatness to admit failure.
In my years as CEO I made mistakes, fortunately not to many. Each time I made one I risked a proof of concept. I talked about my failure with my leadership team.
What happened did surprise me. Instead of continuing the discussion about the decision and it’s consequences I immediately earned a lot of respect. My team seemed relieved and unburdened and we could better focus on our challenges ahead.
Admitting failure does not make us appear weak. Admitting failure is the ultimate proof of a strong leader.
Find snapcard on Instagram: @love.lead.create
Next weeks post: Growth.
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