I was high on endorphins yesterday morning after I completed my usual
Saturday bike ride. I had retreated to the San Diego coast to escape the heat of where I live inland, and I was feeling great after knocking off a crisp 40-mile ride.
As I drove home, the freeway transitioned into a city road and I eased up behind a gentleman in a black Mercedes. He immediately slowed down significantly below the speed limit in a not so subtle attempt to tell me he didn’t want me following too close behind. I slowed down, all the while observing him eyeballing me through his rear-view mirror. Still not satisfied with the distance between our cars, he continued to pump his brakes and slowed down even more, to the point of holding up traffic several cars deep. Continuing to drive significantly below the speed limit, the grumpy Mercedes driver kept his attention focused on the rear-view mirror instead of watching the road up ahead. I switched lanes to pass Mr. Grumpy Pants and watched him as I drove by. He never took his eyes off the rear-view mirror as he proceeded to do the same thing to the next driver who moved up behind him.
The grumpy Mercedes driver got me thinking about how easy it is to lead by looking through the rear-view mirror instead of the front windshield. What I mean by that is we can get so focused on what's happened behind us that we forget to look forward to the opportunities ahead of us. Here are 10 signs you may be suffering from rear-view mirror leadership:
1. Your natural response to change is “That’s not how we do it around here.”Change brings out interesting behaviors in people. I've found most people don't mind change as long as it's their idea, they're in control of it, and it benefits them in some way. But most of the time, though, change is thrust upon us in one way or another and we have to deal with it. Rear-view mirror leaders usually fixate on what they're going to lose as a result of a change and they expend all their effort in trying to prevent or minimize the impact. Forward-looking leaders search for the opportunities of growth and improvement that will result from change. It's our choice as to how we respond.
2. Things are never as good as “back in the day.” I'm a nostalgic person by nature and am susceptible to this attitude or line of thinking. However, I've learned by experience that the past is a fun place to visit but it's a bad place to live. Nothing new ever happens in the past. There's no growth, improvement, or change. Our jobs, organizations, and industries are not the same as they were 20 years ago. We have to stay relevant with the times, personally and organizationally, or risk becoming relics of the past.
3. You’re pessimistic about the future. Sometimes it's hard to be optimistic about the future, especially in today's day and age. If your outlook on the future is dependent upon the performance of the stock market or the headline news, then you're in trouble. The best leaders are
dealers of hope. They maintain an optimistic view of the future, keeping focused on their purpose and core values, and putting forth a vision that encourages and energizes their team.
4. You’re focused on maintaining status quo. I'm not one to make a big stink about the difference between leadership and management. Leaders have to manage and managers have to lead. But there is one key difference that I think is worth noting—leaders initiate change whereas managers focus on maintaining or improving the status quo. Status quo leadership is often about looking in the rear-view mirror, making sure everything occurred exactly as planned. Forward-looking leadership involves surveying the open road and charting a course to move the team to its next destination. There will be occasional wrong turns, rerouting the course, and asking for directions. It will get messy and chaotic at times. But it will never be status quo.
5. You micromanage. Micro-managers tend to not trust people. Since trust involves risk, micro-managers default to using controlling behaviors to minimize their dependency on others. They want to maintain power so they hoard information, don't involve others, and make all decisions of any consequence. Micro-managers tend to believe they know what's best and will act in ways to keep themselves in the center of any conversation, meeting, or activities in order to exert their influence.
6. You spend more time assigning blame and making excuses than focusing on what you can control. Rear-view leaders are consumed with what others are doing or not doing, and almost always believe their lack of success is a result of factors outside their control. "If only Marketing would have provided us with the right kind of collateral that appealed to our clients...," or "If Operations hadn't delayed in getting that order into production...," and "Customer Service does a horrible job at client retention..." are the kinds of blaming statements or excuses you often hear from rear-view leaders. Proactive leaders understand there will always be factors outside their control, so they spend their energy focusing on what they can influence and trust their colleagues to do the same.
7. You wait for someone to tell you what to do instead of taking the initiative.Failure to take initiative is a symptom of rear-view mirror leadership. Because rear-view mirror leaders are focused on the past, what others are doing or not doing, or focused on maintaining the status-quo, they are often caught watching from the sidelines when they should be actively involved in the game. Do you find yourself surprised by decisions that get made? Find yourself out of the information loop about what's happening around you? If so, you might be sitting around waiting for someone to tell you what to do instead of taking the initiative. Find a need, meet a need. See a problem, fix a problem. That's what forward-thinking leaders do.
8. You have a graveyard of relationships that are "dead to you." It's easy to run over people when you're not looking where you're going. Precisely because they've been leading by looking in the rear-view mirror, these kinds of leaders have often neglected to invest in relationships across the organization. They have "written off" people for one reason or another, usually in an attempt to exert power and influence to preserve their position and authority.
9. A lack of possibility thinking. If your first response to new ideas is to find all the ways it won't work, you're a rear-view mirror leader. Critical thinking and risk mitigation is necessary when considering a new concept, but if the ideas that come your way never make it past the initial sniff test, then you may be shutting yourself off to new possibilities. Instead of shooting holes in the ideas your team brings to you, try responding with this question: "How could we make this work?" You may be surprised at how much energy and passion it unleashes in your team.
10. You have an "us vs. them" mentality. Do you say "we" or "they" when referring to your organization and its leadership? Whether it's done consciously or subconsciously, rear-view mirror leaders tend to disassociate themselves from the decisions and actions of their fellow leaders. Being a leader, particularly a senior or high-level one, means you represent the entire organization, not just your particular team. You should own the decisions and strategies of your organization by phrasing statements like "We have decided..." rather than "They have decided..." because it shows your team that you are personally invested and committed to your organization's plans.
The grumpy Mercedes driver couldn’t see he had a wide-open road ahead of him to enjoy because he was too focused on what others were doing behind him. Don't make the same mistake as a leader. If any of these ten signs ring true, you may be spending more time leading by looking through the rear-view mirror instead of the front windshield.
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