6 mistakes leaders make when creating a high performing team and culture

You may not want to hear this, but you need to.

You could be your own worst enemy as you strive to lead your team to high-performance.

It is an uncomfortable thought, isn’t it?

I have touched on this before, with issues like lack of vision and fear of delegation, but there’s more to it. Let’s look at some of the most common mistakes I’m seeing lately and what you can do to solve them.

1. Not focusing on strengths

The best way to extract high-performance from your team is to let them work from their strengths. While that sounds obvious, I see too many leaders trying to fit their people into a standard model of work performance. Your people were hired for their talents so let them use them. And that goes for you, too. Are you using your strengths? 

2. Not adapting leadership styles

Some people need direction while others need autonomy. Some need your support and attention while others simply need acknowledgement of a job well done. Great leaders are adaptive. If you’re working from a single leadership style, start reflecting on how you can expand your style repertoire.

3. Not feeding the pipeline 

One of the mistakes I see is leaders concentrating on their top talent with little attention spared for the rest of the team. All that extra attention won’t stop talent from leaving if something better comes along. It pays to keep your pipeline filled with potential but to do that, you need to pay attention to your whole team. Where is your attention placed right now? 

4. Not practicing what you preach 

This is one mistake that really damages a team and team trust in you. You should all be operating by the same rules and expectations. When leaders forget they are part of the team and see themselves as a separate entity, the whole team breaks down. When the leader is an active member of the team, the whole team pulls together cohesively. 

5. Not delegating 

To team members, this looks very much like distrust. They think you don’t believe they can do the job. Sometimes, too, it looks like you’re keeping the best parts of the job for yourself. Your team can’t improve if you don’t give them the opportunity to learn. Let go. Delegate and make yourself available if they need help. 

6. Not trusting their people 

Can you believe some organisations have the nerve to monitor when their people work either by video or server clock? Yikes! Technology can connect your computer to the office computers where everything you do can be watched. How invasive! What is the result? Reduced trust in the company, lowered morale, a feeling of being violated, and a total reduction in engagement. Without trust, your organisation does not have a functioning workforce. Does your organisation expect you to be watching your people like this? Look, if what really matters is results, why do this? 

If you are making any of these leadership mistakes, it’s time to stop. You need a different approach. If you would like to be a better, more capable and confident leader, executive coaching is your solution. Discover and exercise your full potential. Let’s get together and get your leadership career back on the right path.