In Management, Your Ego is a Performance Killer
One of the biggest contributors to poor management performance, bad decisions, hiring mistakes, and a whole host of other problems is ego. One of the biggest contributors to poor management performance, bad decisions, hiring mistakes, and a whole host of other problems is ego. Everyone has an ego. It is a natural part of everyone’s psyche and vital for success. The problem occurs when a manager’s ego is given too much control of their behavior, attitudes, and management style. The ego wants to look good, be right, not make mistakes, not admit failure, manipulate, and control or appear in control at all times. It would be nice if organizations and their strategies, objectives, goals, purpose, mission, and performance were always predictable and operating at peak efficiency and optimum results. However, in the real world, change is the mantra and norm. Uncertainty prevails. And there are forces at work that would sabotage your ideal world. They include: the government, the weather, unpredictable employees, technology, competitors, customer attitudes and expectations, just to mention a few. If all of these could be harnessed for optimum control, we would never have business failures, lost customers, unhappy and poor-performing employees, disgruntled suppliers, and frustrated accountants. Ego has cost Corporate America more money than any other single factor. It has resulted in poor decisions, thwarted initiatives, products that have out-lived their life cycle, and acquisitions gone bad. Want more? I believe by now I should have your attention. So why is ego such a big problem in business? After all, Donald Trump has one, and he is successful. If you were to ask an out-of-control-ego executive or manager if their ego is out of control, guess what you will hear. Believe it or not: No. Why is this? Denial? Arrogance? Insecurity? Or some other psychological or emotional need that has not been or is not being met? During my career, I have watched clients make acquisitions (against my recommendations) for no other reason than ego. In almost every case, these cost their organization dearly in focus and reputation, not to mention profits. And, ultimately they were shut down or sold off again to some other executive with a big ego, maybe this time to someone who prides him- or herself as a business savior or turn-around master! Before I lose you, I don’t want you to get the impression that ego is only an issue in the big decisions or choices made at the top. Its impact can be found day-to-day in many of the small and often less significant parts of an enterprise, in the actions and decisions made by mid-level managers and supervisors. I see the results of this every day and everywhere I go in my travels as a speaker and trainer. As a manager, how do you know if your ego is out of control? Just pay close attention to a number of critical factors. I guarantee that if you are aware of your circumstances, honest with your self-appraisal, and in touch with reality, it will become crystal clear whether your ego is in control or is running rampant in your organization or department. Some of these factors are: In his classic book Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap … and Others Don’t, Jim Collins states: Level 5 leaders channel their ego needs away from themselves and into the larger goal of building a great company. It’s not that Level 5 leaders have no ego or self-interest. Indeed they are incredibly ambitious – but their ambition is first and foremost for their institution and not herself or himself. If you can rise to the challenge of channeling your ego in this way, be encouraged by the following:
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