Stop Yelling and Start Leading

                                                 Stop Yelling – Start Leading!

A couple of solid young leaders approached me within the last year and told me that they didn’t think they could continue as leaders. Both of these people were good at what they did. They got the job done, they could motivate the people they supervised to do their best, and they worked well with subs to get the work done when it needed to be done. So, needless to say I was surprised by their revelation to me! What did they mean they couldn’t keep leading?

Here’s what they meant. They didn’t like to yell and scream at people to get them to work hard. To me this was a great illustration of an effective leader: someone who could get people to work as a team to get the job done right, on time and safely – unfortunately they saw themselves as poor leaders because they didn’t yell to get results. They also didn’t make people feel stupid when mistakes were made. The men and women they supervised actually liked working for them – don’t get me wrong, they weren’t pushovers by any stretch though! They didn’t see themselves as strong leaders because of how they treated others, they needed to be meaner.

Oh sure Todd, this must be common in the trades, people who scream and belittle others, to get what they want. Well, it’s becoming less common as people learn what it means to lead well, as they apply the right tools for the job of leading. But here’s the reality – I HAVE SEEN AS MUCH POOR LEADERSHIP OUTSIDE THE TRADES AS INSIDE THE TRADES!!       I have seen men and women in office settings, hospital settings, schools, restaurants, and even pastors in churches scream at their employees to get their point across. (It’s amazing how loud we can scream in a whisper) What this tells us, is not primarily that there are a lot of bad employees (there are some for sure!) but that there are ineffective leaders out there. Leaders who don’t understand how to build a team that will go through hell or highwater for each other, and for the leader.

Where do we get the idea that it’s a good thing to yell at another person to motivate them to do what we want them to do? What we do need is to put the right tools into practice. The right leadership and management tools can give us the ability to lead others in a way that we all go in the same direction, accomplishing the things that each of our roles require. Here’s the reality, if you yell at me, you just lost me! I can’t articulate the words going through my head at that point, because this is a family friendly post, but those words are there, and I’m telling you to get lost. You would do the same to me if I treated you that way.

If you yell and scream to motivate (even if it’s in a whisper), it doesn’t mean you’re a terrible leader, you likely just need access to better tools, and to learn to change your response to stress. Take a look in my latest book – More Than a Hammer: Leadership Tools for the Trades – to get some of these tools, and for the ways to implement them every day, even if you’re not in the trades. Good luck in your journey to become a better leader, a journey we are hopefully all on!  www.morethanahammerbook.com