Why leadership often remains ineffective
When talking to managers, one topic comes up again and again: too many messages, too many queries, too little time for the essentials. A new impulse for success that asks why leadership often remains ineffective and what makes the difference.
At first glance, it looks like an organizational problem; in reality, the cause usually lies deeper: a full inbox is rarely the actual issue. Rather, it is a symptom of leadership gradually slipping into reactivity, priorities becoming blurred and decisions being left undone, usually because clarity is lost in everyday life.
Important or unimportant?
If you take an honest look at your last week, you will know this. The quality of your leadership doesn't drop because of the number of emails or appointments. It drops at the moment when it is no longer clear internally what is really important now and what you stand for.
This is not a «soft» issue, but can be observed in very concrete terms. Studies by Gallup have shown for years that teams are significantly more committed and productive when managers formulate clear expectations and consistently provide guidance. At the same time, Deloitte points out that a key productivity killer is that «work gets in the way of work», i.e. a lack of clarity leads to more coordination, queries and loops.
Teams perceive this lack of clarity very precisely, not through words or official instructions, but through your behavior. Through the way you make decisions, how consistently you clarify things and how much guidance you provide, especially when things get turbulent.
Clarity in action
In practice, I repeatedly observe how collaboration in teams changes as soon as managers themselves become clearer. Agreements become more binding, responsibility is taken on more readily, discussions become more objective. The reason for this is simple: direction becomes tangible.
Research also supports this. Amy Edmondson, professor at Harvard Business School and leading expert on psychological safety in teams, shows that clarity and psychological safety are closely linked. When leadership provides orientation, uncertainty in the team decreases - and people are more likely to take responsibility instead of hedging their bets or withdrawing.
Show attitude
Ownership in a team is not created by appeals. It arises where leadership shows attitude - visibly, consistently and tangibly in everyday life. Three helpful questions:
- Where are you currently more reactive than creative?
- Which unresolved decision draws more energy in the background than it should?
- What would change in the team if you consciously became clearer in one area?
Perhaps it is often less about becoming even more efficient and more about realigning yourself more clearly: What do you stand for right now - and what do you specifically expect from your team?
Wayne Dyer, an American psychologist and bestselling author, once put it aptly: «The state of your life is nothing more than a reflection of the state of your mind.»
To the author:
Volkmar Völzke is a success maximizer. Book author. Consultant. Coach. Speaker. www.volkmarvoelzke.ch
