8 Leadership Mistakes Managers Make (and How to Avoid Them)

Among the many challenges facing managers today, some of the most common relate to how they manage their team and optimize their work environment.

Prioritizing tasks, time management, decision-making, and team-building are just a few of the responsibilities managers are required to juggle. So, whether you’re new to the management role or have several years of experience, here’s a look at some common leadership and management mistakes you want to avoid.

Common leadership mistakes:

#1: Trying to do it all

When you’re busy, you have more on your mind and face tighter time constraints. But the busier you are, the more decisions you need to make, which means you could experience decision fatigue. The result of this? You choose to make easier but unwise decisions instead of making the right decisions.

How to avoid it:

Cut down on the number of decisions you make in a day, conserving your mental energy for more important decisions. For example, decide what you’re going to wear the day before so when you wake up in the morning the decision has already been made.

#2: Undefined goals

Another common leadership mistake managers make in their jobs is often not setting clear and defined goals for their team. These can be both overall and individual goals, without which employees can be left feeling unmotivated, confused, and unsure about what they’re trying to achieve, both within their organization and on a personal professional level.

How to avoid it:

As a manager, you should ensure you have a clear understanding of what your company’s overarching goals are. You should then be able to filter these down into the broader goals of your team. From there, you can start to define the individual goals and objectives for each team member. By doing so, you can ensure that every employee has a clear understanding of their purpose within the company, as well as how to achieve their objectives in a way that aligns with the organization’s goals.

#3: Not getting to know your team

An error that both new and experienced managers can make is not taking the time, or making any real concerted effort, to get to know their team members on a personal level. Often, they focus instead on optimizing productivity through task management and success incentives because it’s easier and less time-consuming – but this is actually a top mistake managers make in their jobs.

How to avoid it:

Firstly, don’t hide behind the convenience of technology, like email or a task management system – prioritize face-to-face interactions. Consider having short team check-ins every day, or a weekly meeting where your team is able to share their wins, or current challenges, both work-related and personal. Another option is to set up one-on-one time with your individual team members. This allows you to check on how everyone is coping, give and receive feedback, and most importantly, develop a unique relationship with each person you’re working with.

#4: Being a reactive manager

A mistake managers, and especially new managers, make is to immediately try and solve each and every problem that crops up, themselves. Although this might be a natural reaction, it can have detrimental effects.

How to avoid it:

Instead of simply jumping into action to solve a problem, rather make time to prioritize and strategize. Proactively planning ahead means you’ll not only be able to anticipate potential problems, but it’ll also allow you to be less reactive because you’ll know which issues you can leave to your team to manage, and which will actually require your attention and response.

#5: Not shifting your perspective

As a manager or leader, it’s easy to take a one-track approach when it comes to decision-making or to simply view problems and challenges from just your perspective. It’s also surprising, considering how often perspective-taking appears in problem-solving literature, that so few leaders invest the time and effort in developing this skill.¹

How to avoid it:

Start by asking yourself what someone else might do in your situation. Not only can this help to provide you with a more objective perspective, but it can also help you approach the decision more rationally. Even if you disagree with someone else’s answer or approach, it may open your eyes to a viewpoint you haven’t considered before.

#6: Attitude

When considering that a manager’s demeanor or mood can influence whether a team feels relaxed and motivated or stressed and under pressure, a common management mistake is not managing your own attitude.

How to avoid it:

Think about the kind of work environment you want to create, and strive to be an example of that. Always try to maintain composure, as well as handle each situation, whether positive or negative, in a fair, calculated, and professional manner.

Here are some quick tips:

• After a dispute is resolved, continue as usual and don’t hold a grudge
• If problems arise, don’t ignore them – address them immediately
• Treat every team member uniquely, but equally
• Don’t let your own mood affect your team negatively

#7: Relying solely on money as motivation

A common leadership and management mistake is to assume that team members do the work they do purely for the monetary rewards. However, for many employees, money isn’t their only motivation. It’s an important part to be sure, but in many cases, other forms of motivation are required.

How to avoid it:

As a manager, it’s vital to understand that different people value different things. It’s also why knowing your team is so important so that you can identify what will best motivate each individual employee. For some, work/life balance is more important than money. So they may choose to work fewer hours or work from home (if their type of work allows). For others, they may relish the opportunity to learn new skills that allow them to grow their career – it all depends on knowing what your team values most.

#8: Not being professional

It’s easy to fall into the trap of wanting to appear friendly and approachable as a manager, but not being professional enough can have repercussions when it comes to making tough decisions. That’s why it’s so important to maintain a balance and nurture a professional understanding between you and your team.

How to avoid it:

As a manager, you need to be able to criticize work or provide difficult feedback when necessary. So keep in mind that being professional doesn’t mean you can’t be friends with team members or employees, it’s more about putting boundaries in place and ensuring that everyone understands that there’s a time and a place for everything.

Perhaps the most important thing of all to remember is that there are skills and tools you can develop to help you avoid these 8 common leadership and management mistakes. Take a look at this selection of online courses to help you improve your leadership and interpersonal skills in order to be the best manager you can possibly be.

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