The Catapulted Leader

Not too long ago, I talked to a lady who complained that her CEO acted like a jerk. She said that he was a more decent person and a better leader when he was a general manager a decade ago. What is it that happens to leaders to change their personality as they lead?

Some possible causes leaders get grumpier:

• pressure: the leader bears a lot of responsibility
• powerlessness: they wonder if maybe they lack real power to make a change
• fear of failure: tough demands upon a leader can trigger the "fight" instinct
• speed: its quicker to yell at an employee than to understand a problem
• lack of perceived options: the leader may never have learned how to successfully deal with people
• culture support: other managers might be praising the leader for getting results using harsh methods

Too much success can cause confusion. You probably have known one of these successful people: The GM who threatens people at every turn. The CEO who screams at people to get things done. The salesman who lies to make the deal. Too much success can cause you to think your flaws are ok or even the reason for it.

As you are doing important jobs, you are dragging your flaws right along with you. It can be difficult to determine whether you good behaviors or your bad behaviors are responsible for your success. Leaders can start to think that their flaws and their success are inseparable.

Let's be blunt about why we don't deal with our flaws: They work (at least part of the time). Yep we learned from a young age that certain behaviors can get results.

But are your flaws as scalable as your talent, or will they keep you from climbing higher? Can you afford to keep nurturing your flaws as you progress in your career?