A startup founder or an entrepreneur who allows power to becloud their judgment often risks running their ventures into the relegation waters.
Tales of top executives’ misdeeds in top tech companies still rings a bell, but revelations have shown the skeleton in their cupboard and that given time, these activities will always catch up with them.
This has shown that leaders, no matter how powerful can always find themselves in pitfalls.
They are far from the comical superheroes. They are not different from the everyday human on the streets, their habits are like smokes that can’t be buried for long.
Spotting and analyzing power-hungriness
There was once a power-drunk CEO leading a tech company who was notorious for being above the rules. He used the F word with reckless abandon and willfully intimidate his employees.
Thinking he was a moving train no one could stop, it gradually began to dawn on him when he realized that the company’s top talent was exiting in their numbers.
Noticing this mass exodus, the board threatened to fire him, and it was not until this that he came back to life’s reality.
All this while, the CEO believed that a startup’s success comes from the founders only, they disregard every collective intelligence, believing that their quick decisions and biases supersedes all.
A research carried out by the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management revealed that personalities with strong moral identities have immunity against being corrupted by power.
Individuals with weak moral values tend to easily succumb to pushing the agenda of self-interest in the presence of what appears to be power.
However, being self-aware and objective might just be the keys to making great choices as startup leaders.
Startup entrepreneurs trying to identify the signs of power abuse can be pretty tough, they tend to be focused on their own vision rather than the customer’s need.
This can sometimes be referred as the innovator’s bias. Startup founders with this kind of mindset shield off various perspectives, thus they rarely receive useful input.
Eventually, they tend to burn out their resources and may likely not pivot to the much required stage.
One of the top reasons startups fail is the poor management of their core team, however, lacking a diversity of members had more to do with mismanagement from the head.
It could be quite difficult trying to change a power-drunk mindset, however, startup founders who are set to lead the way must shove aside their ego.
These three recommendations might help you refocus on getting it right.
Have a board of directors
Get together a group of people who can put you through with your personal and business decisions.
This involves amassing individuals you trust enough to give you honest feedback.
Ask for insights on what possibly you could be doing wrong. This can prove difficult, however, you need to brace yourself to hear the truth about your misdeeds.
You must be ready to accept criticism while improving your emotional intelligence.
When you acknowledge that you are vulnerable, the tendency to improve becomes high
Generate trust
You will realize that, people easily take risks and innovate when they are in a trust-based environment.
With accountability excessive can be minimized to some extent.
When you have people you admire and respect who are ready to hold you accountable, you Will have the tendency to refocus on others while gaining insight into your weak spots.
Founders should also build relationships that is focused on trust and truthfulness. Give brutal feedback when necessary because this will help in problem-solving.
Feedback is very necessary, don’t be afraid to get it as long as the information is vital for you. It will help your decision-making.
Own up your mistakes
Startup founders will rarely admit to committing errors when they are in a pool of power as they tend to cover up most things.
Thus they end up diverting valuable attention from very essential tasks.
As expected these pitfalls will resurface again and prove more difficult than the initial.
Even when your company is on the verge of losing reputation due to a pitfall, the leader owns up to mistakes while assuring that he is on top of the process with measures for improvement.
Conclusion
Startup founders who become successful entrepreneurs rise owing to their passion and personality, however, they need to let their power get checked as it clouds their judgment oftentimes.
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