Too much of the wrong thing

As individuals matriculate through careers, it is quite common for blind spots to develop.  Some common blind spots have to do with interpersonal relations, focus and direction, and delivering on hard-to-quantify soft skills for the good of the organization.


What still remains remarkable to me - even after several years of observing teams and leaders - is that the individual with the blind spot is usually the last to know.  There is a strong tendency for individuals to discuss another's weaknesses with everyone except the individual that would benefit from the feedback.  This tendency extends to managers as well, who don't like delivering bad news any more than the rest of us.  Sometimes it remains an ongoing problem, and sometimes it's dismissed as "oh, that's just how she is."

If there's an issue with a leader and we don't want to address it directly, we might:

• offer a psychometric evaluation or personality test, hoping the individual will "figure it out"


• use some sort of multi-rater feedback with little context


• create challenging experiences where the individual will be stretched and may fail


• offer some special program with a title of "leadership" or "communication"


• purchase a book that addresses a specific blind spot of an individual, maybe highlighting all of the important parts intended for the reader)


• establish a mentor for the individual

Any of these (and yes, even the highlighted book falls into this category) could be beneficial, but only if the individual understands why these things are happening to him or her.  If someone gave me a book on leadership, I may perceive it either that:  I'm considered a good leader and enjoy broadening my understanding of the topic; or that the giver thinks I have no leadership ability and am failing miserably.

A leader once described to me the most effective approach in setting the table for feedback or any of the interventions above:  have a one-on-one conversation, looking the person in the eye (if possible), and share honest, direct feedback.  If there is enough information available, it's helpful to say what you think the issue might be, how it is affecting the organization, the team, the individual delivering the message, and the leader with the blind spot.

What keeps conversations like this from happening is often fear of negative consequence.  It's impossible to know for certain how an individual will react to constructive feedback, and quite possible there will be some sort of retaliation.  The solution is to examine your own purposes for sharing the feedback.  If your purposes are not motivated by helping the individual and the team improve in some measurable way, it may be best to hold your thoughts until you can authentically share them in a non-threatening and helpful way.

Expecting individuals to respond to interventions with no context as to why the interventions are happening is delivering too much of the wrong thing.  Remember that, regardless of where you sit in an organization, you hold the careers and livelihoods of individuals partially in your hands.  Be responsible, and deliver feedback authentically, honestly, and with the best interests of the individual in mind.

Best,

Bryan