The 3 Bs Unveiled: Blind Spots, Behaviour, Business Mastery
The 3Bs? You may be wondering, however now that I have kept you in suspense, here it is………………..Blind Spots, Behaviour and Business! So, how do we eliminate blind spots that results in poor behaviour and create successful business outcomes? You may have heard of the story where the car owner took out the warning light on the dashboard rather than looking at what caused it! Can you relate to that in your situation at work? In recent times we have seen extremely bad examples of poor behaviour in business seriously impacting people and it can all be linked back to blind spots. This is about individual and business responsibility!
“We don’t see what we don’t see” Anonymous
Leaders do have Blind Spots
Gwen Moran in his Fast Company article “Blind Spots That Plague Even the Best Leaders,” shows that there’s a mythology around great leaders. They’re visionary. They’re inspirational. They seem to know what their organizations and teams need intuitively. But make no mistake: no one is perfect—and most leaders have blind spots! There are some surprising examples of leaders behaving in a way that derailed their careers or failed to address critical issues. And you think, why did this happen? It’s often because of blind spots. Leaders need to be confident in their abilities, but have enough wisdom to know that they’re not going to see everything. And that’s not always a bad thing. Blind spots can help you maintain your confidence in the face of significant obstacles and make answers seem simpler than they actually are. There are five common visionary weaknesses that can hurt you and your company:
- Overestimating Strategic Ability
- Valuing being right over being effective
- Covering for weak team members
- Communicating effectively
- Losing track of what’s happening around you
There are clues to finding your blind spots by looking at where you’ve made your biggest mistakes or where you have recurring issues in your work. If you can spot patterns, you’ve probably got blind spot clues and also ask trusted colleagues who are vested in your success. However, getting an outside view of areas you tend to overlook can be very useful and tools such as 360-degree evaluations or regular, structured feedback can also be useful. Then surround yourself with people who can help you manage your blind spots or weaknesses.
Blind Spots and “Unacceptable Behaviour!”
Michael Roddan outlined in his 14th September article that “Cleanaway Boss admits Unacceptable Conduct.” After an investigation it was revealed that Chief Executive Mr Bansal had created a “culture of bullying and harassment” that led Mark Chellew – chaired board putting the garbage boss on final notice. “Mr Bansal has acknowledged that his behaviour should have been better and expressed contrition,” the company said in a statement authorised by Mr Chellew and the board of directors.
Do YOU have Blind Spots?
John Maxwell in his article “Leadership Blind Spots” indicates that most of us would acknowledge that we possess blind spots. We assume there must be some areas where we “don’t know what we don’t know.” And we suppose that our personal blind spots have an effect on our lives. But what happens when a leader has blind spots? It affects so many more people than the leader alone. It can have a far-reaching impact — on the leader, his or her followers, and the entire team, department or organisation. Here’s my definition of a blind spot: an area in someone’s life in which he continually fails to see himself or his situation realistically. This unawareness often causes great damage to the person and those around him. Open your eyes and your team will go to a new level.
Remember, Successful Leadership starts at Home
In my blog “How to be A Great Leader for Yourself and Your Family,” you might be wondering what being a parent has to do with being a leader. But if you think about it, what we should strive to do as parents is also what great leaders aim for. Leaders lead organisations and the people within and isn’t that what you’re doing as a parent? You’re working to mould your children into successful people, inspiring them to unlock their inner greatness. Without leadership, things go off the rails and potential is squandered. The key to being an effective and great leader for your children is to be one for yourself as well. Here are my tips for improving your leadership, both parental and personal.
- Work On Your Self-Awareness And Personal Growth
- Practise Communicating Positively
- Look At Problems As Learning Opportunities Instead
- Learn And Practice Emotional Intelligence, And Teach It To Your Children Too
- Strive For Balance
- Bring Out The Best In Your Children To Bring Out The Best In Yourself
- Be The Best Family Leader You Can Be
Leadership isn’t easy and sometimes we need help. I am always here.
Get in touch today to learn more about how to build leadership skills to avoid blind spots and set yourself up for success!
Stay Kind. Stay Courageous.
Sonia x
About The Author Sonia McDonald And LeadershipHQ
Sonia McDonald is the CEO and founder of LeadershipHQ and McDonald Inc. Sonia is a in demand keynote speaker, leadership coach and advisor, author and facilitator.
She believes we should lead with kindness and courage, from the heart, doing rather than telling and is known for her mantra ‘just lead’. She leads by example in all these areas and through her one on one practical coaching, leadership training for teams and organisations encourages others to do the same. Sonia has helped hundreds of people on their leadership journey to become the best version of themselves and in turn, inspire and bring out the best in others. Also she and her team have worked and partnered with a number of businesses and companies for over a decade build great leadership teams and cultures.
For more than 25 years, Sonia has been on the front lines of Human Resources, Leadership and People and Culture. She has held leadership positions worldwide and through experience, research and study come to realise what it takes to be a truly great leader.
Sonia has an ability to speak bravely and authentically about her own development as a leader, personal and career challenges in a way which resonates with her audience. She is recognised as a LinkedIn influencer and has become an in-demand keynote speaker, starts important conversations.
She is an award-winning published author of Leadership Attitude and Just Rock It! and writes regularly for publications such as The Australian, HRD Magazine, Smart Healthy Women and Women’s Business Media. Sonia has become recognised for her commentary around the topic of leadership, championing the up and coming leaders of tomorrow, advocating for women in business as well as building leaders in small business.
Sonia will give you peace of mind when booking a speaker. She is a proven world-class professional speaker with the skills to “rock an audience”. Her energy, empathy, kindness, sensitivity, and humour will enhance any event she appears.
Phone 1300 719 665
About LeadershipHQ
Outstanding Leadership Starts With You.
The key to success today is Great Leadership. Your leaders lead your culture and it’s the culture which drives your strategy.
We partner with organisations and businesses to grow great, kind and courageous leaders through bespoke leadership development programs and individual and group coaching – face-to-face and online.
We also celebrate and showcase great leadership through our Outstanding Leadership Awards and the Just Lead Podcast.
If you are a great leader or organisation, who wants to be even greater, we’d love to work with you.
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