This post from The Intelligent Leader blog’s Management Tip of the Day sounds good, but the comment by Tom Ryan rips the bark off the post. As Tom notes (cleaned up slightly):
Every time (and I mean every time) someone (including myself) is asked to list a flaw, it’s always workaholism. No one ever says, I’m not very detail oriented, or I can’t multitask. or I’ve lost interest in my career. It’s always I worked too hard and spend too many hours in the office.
My favorite non-flaw flaws are “I care too much” and “I’m too impatient about making change happen”. Yeesh.
I do, however, think that Tom missed the broader point. It is the leader who should be open and vulnerable about a real personal or business challenge. When he/she doesn’t do so, that’s when the behavior Tom describes is most likely to happen. I hope I’ve done that with my team (see my post here on “Improving Trust”).
Filed under: Communications, Leadership, People Development, Skills vs. competencies | Tagged: Charles Green, Management Tip of the Day, The Intelligent Leader, trust management, Washington Post | Leave a comment »