Do You Micro-Manage?

Very often there is a tendency to micromanage. Micromanagement is “overcontrol,” which impedes your team members’ potential. This is counterproductive. It leads to demoralized and unwilling employees. A leader who over-controls actually practices rigidity in thinking! This is definitely not conductive to creative thinking. Some people in leadership positions think that the position they hold gives them absolute authority, so they push to the extent that they micromanage. Effective leaders know that they do not achieve production through constraint, control and limitation, but by providing opportunities.

In reality, micromanagement stifles creativity! It causes people to be afraid to make mistakes. It makes them unwilling to take risks or to use their intuition to make decisions. They will choose to stay in their comfort zone where they feel safe. Very often the practice of micromanagement does not allow people to utilize their strengths, and it forces them to perform far below their capacity. A better approach is to develop their strengths and mold their raw talent to accomplish your desired objectives.

Making sure that everyone follows the rules and stays within the confines of doing things “your way” limits initiative and creativity. Control will keep things on track, but is it the best way? Today’s leaders realize and understand that people drive business. Therefore, nurturing relationships rather than policing activities achieves maximum benefits. The cop mentality belongs to yesterday. It has no place in today’s environment where employees need to feel valued, motivated and excited about change.

List 3 things you can do differently and then start working on them.