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Leadership Lesson: The Merit of Missteps

In order to be a more effective leader, you must think, inspire, energize, connect, and act like a leader. Here is a quick tip to help escalate your success as a leader on the merits of missteps:

Most successful leaders approach life with a positive attitude. In business, it’s nearly impossible to completely avoid a misstep or bungled project. Not everyone is able to appreciate that catastrophe can often lead to breakthrough. Effective leaders model a healthy response to defeat and difficulties. Leading your team to emerge from the ashes of failure realizing greater insights and fresh new directions can transform a stale situation.

Try this:

To effectively lead your team from failure to flourishing after a misstep, first take care of your own emotional response. Allow yourself to experience the pain of disappointment and don’t be afraid to share that with your team. You are human after all, and an honest leader is able to express the notion that you wish things had turned out better but accept the fact that they did not. It’s important to shift the focus to where you go from here. Don’t try to sugarcoat the situation, no one likes to lose.

Allow yourself to experience the pain of disappointment and don’t be afraid to share that with your team.

As you and the team evaluate the mistakes, avoid finger pointing and public shaming of any one person or persons. To keep morale high after a loss, it is best to objectively outline the missteps and then address the errant actions in private. Managing the feedback as a coaching exercise can lead to growth and transformation for the entire team.

“Use missteps as stepping stones to deeper understanding and greater achievement.”
Susan Taylor
1946-Present