I see many leaders who exhibit great strengths, but then undermine their positive qualities with a negative behavior that harms their team and their ability to manage the business. In many cases, such leaders are largely unaware of this Achilles heel.
Imagine a leader who invests plenty of time talking to his or her people, reflecting appropriately on key data, and working hard to bring out the best in each team member. S/he plays to each of their strengths and gives them a lot of room. Everybody loves working for this leader.
Except for one thing.
This person struggles to make decisions. There’s always a new angle to consider. “Better ideas” keep popping up and s/he is eager to pursue them. The lack of progress is maddening.
But this leader doesn’t realize any of this and has a self-perception of being innovative, creative and open-minded. Everyone else thinks: what a great person, but we never get to head in the same direction for long enough to deliver results.
One question can help solve this
I learned this hack from Wharton professor and author, Adam Grant. He suggests that leaders ask their team members to rate what it’s like to work for them on a scale of 1 to 10. Grant points out that almost no one ever rates a 10, which sets leader up perfectly to ask, “What’s one thing I could do differently to get my rating closer to a 10?”
This approach makes it comfortable for others to give honest feedback. People hesitate to criticize their leader, but once they’ve already told you that you are an “8”, the follow-up question makes it safer for to offer a single piece of constructive feedback. Telling someone “here is what you might try to get to a 10 in my eyes” is pretty safe territory for the feedback provider, and pretty easy for the leader to hear.
In this manner, a subordinate could tell our fictional leader that “you are highly creative and innovative, but sometimes delay our progress by taking a long time to decide on the right path forward. Or, shifting so often impedes execution and creates frustration in the organization.”
You can’t fix a problem you don’t know you have, and you can’t learn from valuable feedback unless the people around you feel safe enough to provide it. Give them room to be honest.

