Leadership Dementia
My 86-year-old mother has slight dementia. Most of the time she remembers things, but she can struggle at times. I love my Mom. She's not perfect, but she is "the best." (Hopefully you feel that way about your mother too.)
This past Monday I was with her. As we were driving home from her doctor's appointment she asked me to set up the movie, An Unfinished Life, for her because she likes to watch it over and over again.
I decided to joke with her and responded, "Is it because of your dementia that you can watch the same movie over and over again, and still enjoy it?"
She responded without missing a beat, "You're just jealous." We both had a good laugh.
Unfortunately many leaders suffer from what I might call "Leadership Dementia." They too easily forget the work their employees do well, the ideas they suggest that are valuable, and the times when their people went beyond what was required.
It is simple math: Positive contributions + mistakes = work performance
When you eliminate the positive contributions then all you remember are the mistakes. And by the way, some leaders have the reverse problem: They are unwilling to fully consider the mistakes.
Here are two quick suggestions for this weekend:
- Visit someone special to enjoy their company. Before you leave, remind them how much you love them.
- Consider your selective memory of employee performance. We all do it to a certain extent. Do you need to develop a more balanced perspective? If so, how you will do that?
It is Friday. ACCOUNTABILITY TIME!
- How are you doing on your 3strands this week?
- Is the work remaining to complete this week's 3strands scheduled in your calendar so you can work uninterrupted?
- Have you scheduled your Sanctuary time later today or over the weekend for personal accountability and focus?
Stay on track.
