The 10 Mistakes Every Leader Makes

Mistakes are Inevitable Did you know that Abraham Lincoln was defeated in six state and national elections before being elected President? Barry Bonds struck out 1,539 times on his way to hitting 762 home runs? Theodor S. Geisel wrote a children’s book that was rejected by 23 publishers. The 24 th publisher sold 6 million copies of the first “Dr. Seuss” book. Leaders makes mistakes too, but what sets them apart is that they learn from their mistakes. No one expects you to be perfect, but there are a few mistakes that you can avoid that will help you be a better leader.

Mistake # 1: Being a commander There is a big difference between being a leader and being a commander. Leadership is based on a relationship between those who aspire to lead and those who choose to follow. This relationship is built on trust and respect. Respect is earned through working with and caring about others. A leadership position does not mean you automatically get respect. Commanding is never an acceptable substitute for leading.

Mistake #2: Being Inflexible Things can change quickly in an organization: members, advisors, policies, needs, etc. Good leaders need to be able to accept this change and deal with the impact it has on the members. You can learn to anticipate change and prepare members to avoid mistakes and members feeling overwhelmed.

Mistake #3: Failing to Acknowledge the Past Leaders are made up of their accumulated experiences: training sessions, mentoring, and guidance from others. Good leaders realize they don’t know everything and look to things/people from their past for help. You can learn a lot from other people’s experiences, so listen to the voices of your mentors and role models. Leaning on others is not a sign of weakness, don’t feel the need to do it all yourself.

Mistake #4: Not Being a Good Listener Make sure you listen to the many voices around you: members, advisors/supervisors, outside voices, and your inner voice. It’s about more than just listening, it’s about paying attention. “Listening with the eyes and the heart, not just the ears and the brain, requires a deeper level of paying attention and understanding. It requires we hear the heart and soul.” Kouzes & Posner, The Leadership Challenge This deeper type of listening can’t be done through , cell phone, text messaging or Facebook. It requires we get close to people and really communicate.

Mistake #5: Getting Caught Up in Your Own Glory It is the success of the team that matters, not individual success. Good leaders understand the needs of the group and puts them before their own. Success is the result of the entire team, not one singular person. Good leaders enable others to act so that they may accomplish great things. Leadership is a set of responsibilities, not a mantle of power. You don’t become a leader just for the title, but because you want to help people achieve something great.

Mistake #6: Expecting It to Last Forever There is a limited window of time for a leader to be effective, you have to plan ahead to make the most of it! Think about what you want to improve and accomplish during your time, but also think about how you can continue to lead as you are leaving office. Good leaders care about the future of an organization, so they won’t come in and use all of the resources while they are in office. Leave the organization in a better place than when you took office.

Mistake #7: Seeing things in Black & White There are two sides to every story, and the answer isn’t always yes or no. There are many shades of gray. When faced with difficult decisions, leaders must be able to look at all sides of the situation. Most importantly, you must put your own views aside and do what is best for the organization.

Mistake #8: Failing to Recognize Others for Their Contributions Recognizing members makes them feel like valued members of the team. It shows that their contributions are noticed and appreciated. Start by setting high expectations and then pay attention to what is going on within the organization. It is important to personalize recognition, it makes recognition more meaningful and thoughtful. Recognition can be as simple as a thank-you note, but public recognition goes a long way to show the entire organization that you take their contributions seriously.

Mistake #9: Hoarding Skills & Information A good leader must be a constant learner, but also a constant teacher. You must make sure that your members are educated and empowered to face any challenge. Great leaders find people, build them up, give them resources, authority and responsibility, and then turn them loose to achieve. Just because someone knows how to do something doesn’t mean they will do it. Great leaders enable others to act by fostering self-confidence. It is important to develop new leaders for when you move on.

Mistake #10: Taking Yourself Too Seriously This job should be fun! Maintain a sense of humor. Without fun and laughter many people wouldn’t put up with the long hours and hard work of being in an organization. Fun also helps in membership retention and recruitment. It can also sustain productivity; if people are having fun it makes the long hours fly by. Laughter can be a good remedy when things get too serious. Great leaders are down to earth people who are approachable.

Learn and Move Forward If you do make a mistake, it is important that you admit it, make reparations and move on. Admitting to a mistake will not damage credibility. In fact, trying to hide or blame others for a mistake is much more damaging and will erode credibility. Dwelling on mistakes takes away from your focus from evaluating why it happened and making sure it doesn’t happen again. Leaders are like any other human beings, flawed and prone to mistakes. Feel free to take risks and try new things.

Reflection Which of these mistakes have I made in the past? Why did I make those mistakes? What mistakes have I made that I learned the most from? Which of these mistakes will be easiest for me to avoid? Which one will be the hardest? How can I empower other members of my organization to see mistakes as learning opportunities?