Leadership Gaffes to Avoid in 2024.

I am pleased to share my perspectives. The article is based on self-reflection and what I have observed; please use this more as a point of view than any commandment.

1. Overzealous Optimism: Many people in today’s world tout positivity and optimism often. As I hear from others (I am not active on any), these words find expression exaggeratedly in social media. It is excellent to remain optimistic, but I am unsure if the definition is understood well. The optimism starts with acceptance of the current situation. I have seen instances where people push the facts under the carpet and remain in the unreal world in the guise of being optimistic. Many leaders in business settings and many human beings in their personal lives fall into this trap because they cannot accept realities or take time to understand the current situation. We remain positive only when we accept reality and make decisions with an uncluttered mind. If the optimism stems from the imaginary notions of a situation, it is not being positive but being silly in the best case and foolish more realistically.

2. Dreadful Declaration: It is common for a leader in a firm to declare that a product or service will transform lives, businesses, or any other domain. In personal lives, there are proclamations about how great a person is, what records someone has, and the impact they made in society and business, etc. While there may be merit to these conclusions in a few cases, many lack substance, driven by either ego or ignorance of the larger domain. Nothing is wrong with confidence, but any declaration without understanding the impact is dreadful. It may set wrong expectations within the organizations/ family, negatively influencing young leaders to learn bad behavior.

3. Exaggerated Expertise: In the days of the ubiquitous Google search engine and Chat GPT and tools like them, everyone becomes an expert after reading a few articles. While Medicine, Marketing, and Architecture are the subjects, everyone becomes an expert after reading a few articles and just having the ability to pronounce some industry-specific words. One of my friends told me that a doctor in a city in India will charge 3X if he needs to answer questions from patients based on their Google search. We must study every subject diligently before understanding the fundamentals to become familiar with the topic, let alone be called an expert. Even in the days of GenAI and beyond, we need much more than merely reading a few articles to make us experts on a topic.

4. Fake Formula: We have the temptation to give templates or proclaim that the only way to accomplish something is through following certain practices or steps. Except for a few absolutes in life, there is no set formula for success or the “only way” to approach an aspect of working or making decisions. As a leader, we must watch our words not to lead anyone on the wrong path. Everyone is different, their perspectives are varied, and their paths to success are their own. We should shun fake formulas and provide perspectives rather than prescriptions in life and business.

Have you seen or observed any of these in your professional lives?

I wish you a very happy 2024

Compassmet Consulting LLP is a boutique consulting firm focusing on strategy, business domain and technology programs, and leadership programs for GCCs, IT and BPM Service providers, and technology firms. www.compassmet.com details the services provided.