Leadership is a learned skill. Like most other skills, you often learn by your failures. I have lead many organizations and teams, and I have learned some things regarding what to do and what not to do. If you are in a new position of leadership, or you just want to make sure you aren’t making mistakes, then I wrote this post for you. Whether you lead a single person or a company of thousands, I encourage you to seriously measure yourself against these mistakes.
Are You Making These Big 3 Leadership Mistakes?
1. You Aren’t Aware of What Your Team Is Up To
When I teach my business school students, I tell them one of the most important lessons I learned was this simple statement: never let it be said that you didn’t find out. It is crucial you have a pulse on your organization and your team. I do this through weekly report forms that my employees turn into me. It allows me to keep track of their Key Performance Indicators, and it also allows me to see how they are spending their time. They list out the projects they are working on, and the projects they have left on their to-do list. If you would like a template reflecting the weekly report form I have my team fill out, then enter your email address at the bottom of this post!
2. You Micro-Manage Your Team
This may seem to contradict the first point, but there is a difference between keeping a pulse on your team and being there to witness every heartbeat. I know what projects my office is working on every week, but I don’t ask them for every detail regarding each project. When you micro-manage your team, you show them that you don’t trust them. Every strong relationship in life is built on a foundation of trust, and if you do not have that with your team, it will fall apart. Unless they have given you a reason not to trust them or believe that they are doing their job, then let them have some creative freedom.
3. Not Trusting Your Intuition
When I was younger, I was sometimes timid when it came to expressing my opinions about certain things. As a pastor, I would never disagree with the elders, even if my gut was telling me to say something. Now, you shouldn’t disagree in order to create problems, but there were definitely times where I felt like I could have done something better. As the face of the church, it was my rear on the line for certain things, and it’s the same for you whether you lead a church, a business, or a small team. Speak up when your gut tells you to! God gave us intuition for a reason. I believe the Holy Spirit is always leading us and guiding us, so don’t disregard that small voice in your head.
If you learned something from this post, or it helped you in any way, leave a comment below! To get the weekly report form template, enter your email below!
This was very helpful. Would like to receive the form that your employee’s fill in. Its good to learn that its not just me that made these mistakes in the past
Great insight, pastor Billy, especially on point 1 and point 3 I appreciate your input. Really good wisdom, I miss your classes at Chars. This is is Pastor Joe from World Outreach class of 2019, love and appreciate you! Stay blessed
Hi Pastor Joe, it’s great to hear from you! Thank you for keeping up with me and my blogs.
I’d like to see the weekly report template, please!
I enjoy your blog, vlogs and teachings a great deal.
Hope to see you in 3rd year business school in a couple of years!
Yes I most certainly did learn something from this post, I was encouraged, as well. I would also like to get the weekly report form template, So here is my email: christianaffiliat3@gmail.com
Thank you, we are happy that you got something from it! You have been added to our email list.