“Employees tend to rise to their level of incompetence.”
-The Peter Principle
Why do some executives fail and others succeed?
Successful executives have a purpose. They learn from their mistakes and those of others. They strive to learn good judgment, stay focused and pursue their objectives with abandon.
Conversely, ineffective executives fail with seven possible missteps:
1. They fail to understand the big picture. As a result, they don’t have a vision for growth and where they must lead their employees.
They’re focused on the past or only what’s at the end of their noses, which also means they fail to plan strategically and make effective decisions.
Moral: It’s important to understand the marketplace and to envision how the company can best flourish.
2. They’re negative personalities. They focus on problems not solutions.
By focusing on a problem, it grows into a nightmare.
Further, they fail to see why their peers succeed despite adversity.
Moral: Positive people know that for every challenge, there’s a silver lining and there are numerous solutions.
3. They start each day unproductively. They don’t practice good daily habits. Their routine is chaotic. They react to events – expecting drudgery and having to put out fires instead of planning, focusing on value and seeking enjoyment in what’s important in life.
Moral: Each day must start on a positive note. Look for reasons to be optimistic, appreciate your family and friends, get exercise and recreation, study and learn, and follow current events. Look for opportunities for growth, personally and professionally.
4. They build empires. For egotistical reasons, they scheme to stockpile power and clout. They want all the glory and credit. They inhibit the abilities of their employees. In business failures, they point fingers of blame at others.
Moral: For success, the ego must be kept in check. Get to know your staff. Partner with your employees. Empower them. Encourage them to provide profitable ideas. Find out what’s important to them.
5. They retain or hire ineffective employees, and fail to build teams. Their practices stem from the wrong motives. They want to hear the word “yes” to boost their egos instead of what they need to hear. They’re not objective in human resources for the welfare of the organization.
Moral: If you want a team to propel your success and that of your organization, use best HR practices.
6. They fail in internal communication. By failing to communicate, they’re impervious to water-cooler gossip. Rumors spread, employee morale suffers and the team members aren’t motivated.
Moral: For enhanced communication and an upbeat workforce, it’s best to be assertive and stay on the offensive. Prevent the spread of erroneous information at the earliest hint of trouble.
7. They fail to be trustworthy and discreet. They don’t give any thought to sensitive information and how it should be handled. Nor do they have a sense of good timing. They simply don’t care about the feelings of others.
Moral: To be respected and to keep employees happy, executives must know what and when information should be made public.
From the Coach’s Corner, related content:
Vision in Setting Goals with 8 Best Practices — Whatever your entrepreneurial dreams, focusing on the right details is a skill conducive for setting goals strategically. However, if management doesn’t ponder enough on action-oriented details, goals are inordinately difficult to achieve.
9 Dos and Don’ts for Best Decision-making — The dos and don’ts for best decision-making are applicable in three ways: Whether you have difficulty making the best decisions, engage in self doubt after making one, or are gun shy because some of your decisions have failed you.
Trust Gap between Managers and Workers — How to Drive Engagement — While it’s true there are companies that are aware that good morale among employees propels profits, many businesses are missing opportunities for growth. It’s not because of marketing. It has to do with internal issues.
Profit Drivers – How and Why to Partner with YourEmployees — If you want maximum profit, consider partnering with your employees. “Key employees – in fact, all employees – will be more valuable to a company if they understand what drives profit and improves cash flow for the business,” says leading financial consultant Roni Fischer.
Secrets in Motivating Employees to Offer Profitable Ideas — Savvy employers know how to profit from their human capital. Such knowledge is a powerful weapon for high performance in a competitive marketplace. Furthermore, there’s a correlation among excellent sales, happy customers, and high employee morale.
“If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. Then quit. There’s no point in being a damn fool about it.”
-W. C. Fields
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