I once had a boss – one I highly esteemed – one that was a real mentor for me – that constantly warned me about the ‘tyranny of a weak bench.’ He meant it not as a metaphor but as a real-world risk in the corporate world where we were eyeballs-deep in succession planning and professional development to ensure the long-term success of the enterprise. Yeah, right! Right up until we were acquired….LOL. Anyway, the ‘tyranny of a weak bench’ was a very real threat evidenced by the difficulty we would have in filling essential senior positions. But there is a much greater threat to organizations that often comes from within – the tyranny of arrogance.
Arrogance blinds its practitioners. Arrogance creates a belief in one’s own ability to achieve. Arrogance masks any rational attempt to be self-perceptive. Arrogance, in a word, is horrific. It’s horrific in its affects. Its horrific in its masking of truth. And, perhaps worst of all, it’s horrific in its bizarre ability to wreak havoc over an organization, a family, an individual, a team. And on and on.
One person with a high degree of arrogance is entirely capable of sinking an entire ship. The most arrogant people I have worked over these many years are also entirely self-unaware. So let that be your test: if someone is self-unaware then they likely suffer from a high degree of arrogance. Run away. Fast. But just don’t confuse confidence with arrogance.
Arrogant leaders are the worst. Arrogant underlings are just a pain in the ass. Watch out for these signs – whether in a leader or an underling: a remarkable inability to truly listen to others; an inflated belief that they are ‘right;’ a quick trigger on decision-making; an apparent desire to help people be more like ‘them;’ false modesty; little appreciation of the talents others have; always knowing the right answer.
Tyranny means oppressive power. It is never constructive. It is never productive. It is only fearful. It is only destructive. Couple it with arrogance and it becomes masked from those above it and below it. Beware of it. Beware of it organizationally – it’s been the ruin of many.
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