Sunday, January 17, 2010

Why Leaders FAIL.

From Scott Williams:
Below is a list of 4 memorable reasons leaders FAIL in an easy to remember acronym FAIL.
  1. Fake- A leader who attempts to be someone they’re not instead of simply being themselves has a difficult time succeeding, at some point it just catches up to them. This also applies to the leader that has a different face, different persona, different tone, different everything… when certain people are around. In other-words when the big boss comes around they put their fake-face on. Not to say a leader might not make some adjustments when company comes around; however the super-fake-face comes from insecurity of how they act normally. Remember: Don’t be fake, be yourself… “Do You! It’s A Statement… Not A Question!” Fake Leaders Fail!
  2. Attitude- One of the primary reasons that a leader fails is because of a poor, negative or a no-can-do attitude. If a leader thinks he can fly and has a positive can-do attitude; even though they may not be able to fly they will come darn close. The reason why attitude is important is because that leader’s attitude will rub off on their team members and their followers. Remember: “Attitude reflects leadership, Captain.” ~Julius in Remember The Titans
  3. Integrity- If a leader doesn’t exhibit a high degree of integrity they will fail. The integrity issues will either catch up to them (what’s done in the dark, will come to light) or those that follow them won’t respect them. If team members or followers don’t respect the a leader, it puts the leader in the place of pushing a snowball up hill… it’s a difficult task. These integrity issues run the gamete: profanity, lying, cheating, stealing, affairs, flirting, yelling, substance abuse, pride-filled decisions etc. I have worked with many high capacity leaders in both the secular world and ministry that have failed because they allowed their integrity to get off track. Remember: Integrity is doing the right thing, even if nobody is watching.
  4. Lacking- Although I believe that everyone has potential for some degree of leadership in them; the bottom line is that some leaders fail because they are either: a.) Not the leader they think they are, or b.) Promoted above their leadership capacity/leadership role has outgrown them, or c.) Not a visionary, or d.) Not a leader at all! They are lacking what it takes! Remember: Just because someone has an office, role, title or responsibility doesn’t mean they are a leader. Leadership is an art, a skill, a craft, a gift… and it must be developed!

What do you think? Are there others you would add to the list?

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