Hear Directly from our Clients
Dr. Brian's cautionary story of Leadership Blind Spots: Anger, Denial, and Stagnation Risk
Brian is the medical director of a large city hospital. He has attended a meeting today with the CEO and the General Manager of People and Learning because there has been a complaint against him from a senior doctor for racism and harassment. This is not the first complaint Brian has had to answer to. He phones his good friend Peter on the way home from work. Peter is a partner at a global accounting firm and works with people from all over the world. He knows it can be lonely at the top and feels for his mate, but he has himself thought Brian to be racist sometimes when he talks about his work colleagues.
Brian tells Peter how angry he is and how unfair the situation is. He says this would never have happened 10 years ago to his predecessor. He claims that the junior doctors are out to get him, and the senior doctors want his job. Brian tells Peter he has to attend a course on empathy and cultural sensitivity and asks Peter, "What am I going to tell the staff I am doing? I can't say that!".
Brian believes he is innocent and shows little insight into what others have identified as a problem. There are serious consequences to this, both for Brian and for the people who work with him. His beliefs are hindering his growth and learning, and they are limiting his relationships.
Dr. Steve on what really matters: Reputation Guides Us Through Conflict
In my coaching sessions with Steve, an ICU specialist, intention questions came up early. Steve was angry because some of his colleagues had sought a review of his practice after an adverse event, which is what had brought him to coaching.
The review found his work and his processes to be above reproach and he was relieved, but he still felt angry. He was left wondering who to trust at work and whether he could keep working with his current colleagues. As I asked him a series of intention questions, we began to find an interesting pattern. He didn't always know the answers to what he wanted, but he was able to clearly tell me what he didn't want in his life and work.
Steve felt betrayed by his colleagues, some he had worked with for 12 years.
In talking through all the stories he held, he discovered that what mattered most of all to him was his reputation. He had worked hard to establish it for 30 years and now believed it was significantly damaged. Steve's insight into how much he valued his reputation helped him think through what he needed going forward in order to feel safe at work, what he was willing to do or not in terms of his collegial relationships. Steve did not want to stay angry, and in fact was a bit confused by his strong emotional reaction. Naming his values helped him decide what to focus on and how to behave. Ultimately, Steve's emotions dissipated, a natural occurrence that wouldn't have happened if he had suppressed his anger. He felt more in control again once he gained some clarity about what mattered the most to him - what he valued.
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