As a business owner, your behavior has a direct correlation to the success or failure of your business. Especially if you suffer from what I like to call “controlitis” That is the overwhelming urge to control everything around your company.
Entrepreneurs with this condition are often perfectionists who truly believe, “If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself.” Which ultimately makes them a control freak. They hate the fear of wondering if someone else will do the job right. They regularly feel withdrawn to take control and lead their team more closely. But this drive for perfection can come at a high cost to their business and I see it as a business coach all the time. Here are the five destructive behaviors I see a lot and why they can really hurt your business.
1. Micromanagement.
This is always a popular choice and is one of the most common problems I see when coaching entrepreneurs. This is the inability to let competent people “own” work that they have shown they can do well. You have spent a lot of time and energy on hiring staff key team members, and in many areas they are better educated and competent than you. But you still can’t let them go and let them do the work they were hired to do. Not only does this lead to higher sales, but it can really put you in a steady growth pattern as you constantly have to hire and retrain new team members. Micromanagers also have a much higher rate of burnout because you have limited time and resources to do all the things that need to be done.
2. Abdication.
This behavior is seen when a leader blindly lets something important go in a passive or abrupt manner. This can be seen at all levels of the business, from procrastinating or firing a team member until it is too late to pay no attention to cash flow and ultimately limit business growth. Being a leader means taking on challenges and leading your team to success.
3. Inflexibility.
Getting in the way can really hurt your business in the long run. Your inability to make reasonable adjustments or come up with alternative ideas could not only prevent your business from growing, but could also lead to the loss of key team members, business partners or suppliers in the process.
4. Hoarding.
While you may not be hoarding in a physical sense, holding onto too many tasks or responsibilities because you’re too eager to “own” other people on your team can be another destructive behavior that can really do a lot of damage to your team. company.
5. Secrecy.
The last destructive behavior is another one I often see as a business coach. A leader misguidesly believes that they must protect their institutional knowledge from their team out of a misguided belief that it will make them “indispensable.” When in reality it just creates bottlenecks within your business, making it difficult for you to serve your customers and grow.
If you notice any of these destructive behaviors in yourself or other managers on your team, it is important to address it immediately and take active steps to change the behavior.
