Heroes and Villains don't belong at work
One of my favorite parts of leadership development is helping people figure out where they might be contributing to a leader myth. Urs Koenig’s book has me reflecting on this outdated leadership myth.
⚠️The “hero “mindset of leadership is often one of the most dangerous. While often coming from a good place, the mindset and actions that follow can create unintended ripple impacts.
🔥 For the leader: trying to save everyone is exhausting! It can contribute to burnout.
🤨 For the individual follower: it can create dependency and decrease empowerment. Liz Wiseman’s book “Multipliers” might refer to this as a combination of “rescuer” & “protector.” The long-term results are rarely good.
‼️ For the team and broader organization: every hero needs a villain or an enemy. So if someone is leading from a space of being “hero “leader, someone (or someone’s) may have become the enemy.
Enemy might be a strong word to use; however, leaders who facilitate an “us“ vs. “them” dynamic create dysfunction in an organization of any size.
While I haven’t met a leader yet who wakes up in the morning and says “Today, I want to work until I am burned out. I want disempower my team by solving all problems. And I want to create team and organizational dysfunction.” I do often see these symptoms and until you get to the heart of mindset, they are hard to change.
❓ Are you trying to be a hero?
❓ Who have you made your enemy?
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