Leadership is contagious. If you encourage collaboration, trust and honesty, this will be reflected at your dealership. Or, if you encourage mistrust, anxiety or even fear, your employees will reflect that as well, according to a story on Inc.com.
Do a “leadership check” to see if you’ve fallen into the rut of some of these bad habits:
1. Taking employees for granted.
Always remember they have a choice. A leader can never say thank you too often.
2. Ignoring the processes your team has worked so hard to establish.
Don’t undermine the processes your employees established to make your dealership more efficient.
3. Playing favorites.
Everyone is essential to your dealership.
4. Leading with emotion.
No whining, complaining, or temper tantrums allowed — especially from the owner.
5. Hoarding the decision-making process and refusing to delegate.
Trust your people. That's why you have them.
6. Having your mind made up before listening to input.
Few things are as demoralizing as knowing no one will take your opinion into consideration.
7. Interrupting.
Your needs do not necessarily take precedence over your employees’ immediate priorities.
8. Assuming employees are in the loop — or not caring if they are.
Make an effort to loop everyone into what's happening across the company so staff members feel connected to one another.
9. Being a hypocrite.
What applies to you applies to your employees.
10. Forcing new-hire decisions without employee input and expecting staff to blindly embrace them.
Forcing new hires without any buy-in is a shortcut to personnel problems.
11. Telling them you support innovation but then penalizing them for trial and error.
How well does your culture embrace trial and error?
12. "Empowering" them without clearly established processes to follow.
To empower doesn't mean letting employees do what they want to do, and then penalizing them for making mistakes. It means giving them the freedom to make decisions and take action after they've received clear direction.
Do you recognize any of these habits in yourself? The more you take responsibility for your behaviors, the stronger your organization will be.
