Reason #783 Why Leaders Fail: The Yes Men
Are you a leader?
Middle manager?
Working for a leader?
(I believe that should cover everyone)
Ever felt the urge to simply agree with the senior leader of your company when deep down inside you didn't agree?
More than the urge, have you ever actually done it? That is, been a Yes Man? When everything inside you was telling you the answer was No but you said Yes??
I'm becoming increasingly aware as I grow and mature in leadership that there are a great many YES MEN out there.
I'm also thinking more and more that there is a real problem with the YES MEN. Yes they are kissing up to the leader, brown-nosing, climbing the corporate ladder, or whatever metaphor you see in them, but annoying as that behaviour is, that isn't the real problem.
The real problem as I see it, is for the leader!
A truly great leader would never intentionally surround themselves with Yes Men.
No way.
But it is possible that a truly great leader could end up being surrounded with Yes Men.
How can this be?
As a leader increases their focus on casting vision and building into his leaders that are around him, it becomes more difficult to keep that connection to the front lines, to those working in-the-trenches so to speak. If the people around him become over time, more consumed with saying what they think the leader wants to hear, rather than the truth or what he really should be hearing, there is going to be trouble in paradise.
The leader would be heavily relying on the truth and honesty to keep in touch with his organization but if no one is willing to have the straight/difficult conversations that possibly no one wants to hear, the leader loses touch and over time... will fail.
Imagine for a second the leader.
He asks someone a question.
There is a slight pause.
The person who is giving the answer is scrambling, mind racing, but not for what the answer is, but for what they think the leader wants to hear...
Lonely place for a leader to be if they ever realized that they were being surrounded by Yes Men.
Very lonely.
So my challenge is this, when asked a question by a leader, take the opportunity to help them and your organization by answering truthfully.
Will you win the popularity contest?
No.
For sure No.
But will you be the one providing lasting value in the end, compared to the Yes Man? Definitely.
Don't give in to the temptation to get in good with the boss. If you really want to see your leaders succeed and not fail, speak the truth.
Carefully.
With Tact.
Just don't be a Yes Man.
Oh, and shout out to you leaders, when you find people that ARE NOT Yes Men... KEEP THEM!!
Keep them VERY close.
They are like GOLD.
Protect them.
Protect them.
They will keep YOU and REALITY in check!
agreed! if a leader is being told what people think he wants to hear rather than the truth...He makes decisions that are not based in reality. The further he is from reality the less likely he has the ability to lead. "The Emperors Clothes" comes to mind. :)
ReplyDeleteYep :-) You got it!! "Emperor's New Clothes" is EXACTLY what I'm getting at!!
DeleteHi Jordan. Great post! I'm a leader. My own boss of my own small company. My deal is that I've often had the urge to disagree with senior leaders because deep down I felt they didn't make any sense. I never agreed with someone because I was shall we say afraid? That is why I am self employed now ever since 1990 because senior leaders find it very difficult to accept when I disagree with them:)
DeleteGreat post. It leads a fine line. We don't always agree with our employers' direction, but again as employees we may not always have the education or knowledge to know why they are going in a certain direction either. I wouldn't say I am a "Yes Man" but providing what I am asked to do does not go against my morals or ethics, I do as I am told and give my opinion if asked. I will also advise management of possible repercussions of a certain decision. They don't have to use my advice. As long as I provide them with options I have done my job. What they do with the information is up to them. I too own my company, but I contract to a couple large companies. They are good about taking my opinions into consideration, but at the end of the day while I am on their premises I do as I am told.
DeleteAwesome advice for everyone and I completely agree!!
ReplyDeleteCool. Thanks for the comment Liz!
DeleteI agree, a good leader should listen to every angle of the situation - from his superiors, followers, antagonist and from facts or data. The truth lies somewhere and it his/her job to find it and execute without fail. Yes!
ReplyDeleteAgreed - what makes it difficult for a leader is to ensure that he is not swept by either extreme - the Yes Man or the Naysayer ! The holy grail is the True Objective who calls a spade a spade - but may need to be reigned in when sometimes the environment needs hope and belief not criticism
ReplyDeleteAgree with you completely, it's not just a problem of yes men but of leaders surrounding themselves with yes men or failing to nurture an environment where subordinates can exercise their judgement and critical thinking or express opposing opinions without fear of being singled out as a non-team player.
ReplyDeleteAgree
ReplyDeleteAwesome! This is so true and I will go further to say that most "Yes Man" are not true to themselves, then how can they be real to others. Yes men never grow or sustain you, in fact they keep you back.
ReplyDeleteGreat piece Jordan.
Posting as anonymous for obvious reasons...
ReplyDeleteI work in an environment where our "leader" has surrounded himself with Yes-Men at every turn. Anyone who has attempted to stand up to him has either left the organization under "suspicious" circumstances, or has been transferred to a less than optimal position and basically shut down. I even know people labeled as "negative" because they don't simply blindly agree with management. (I can't call them leaders as nobody really wants to follow them anymore) These negative people are being excluded from projects, even though they have the expertise required to ensure the success of the project. Instead, the projects are staffed with "cheerleaders" whose sole purpose is to sell how great the project is rather than actually complete the project.
People are frustrated and management can't figure out why.
Great post. Thanks
ReplyDelete