Skill / Will Matrix

 

The worst leadership mistake I made?
Judging performance without context. 🙃

There was a moment I’m not proud of.
A team member kept frustrating me.
Sometimes, late to meetings. Othertimes, pushing back.

I labeled it quickly: “Not committed.”

If it were up to me back then, I would’ve let them go.

Then I learned what was really going on.
They were carrying something heavy and no one had asked.
Including me.

That stayed.

Because I realized:
I was judging performance without understanding context.
And that’s not leadership.
That’s assumption.

They had the capability.
But what they lacked was energy.
And what they needed was understanding.

That experience changed how I lead.

Now I try to pause before reacting and ask a different question:
Where is this person really at?

I often think in four modes:
💪 Empower → when they’re ready.
⚽ Coach → when they’re learning.
🔥 Reignite → when energy is low.
🤝 Realign → when it’s not the right fit.

Not everyone needs more pressure.
Some need clarity or support.
And others just need to be seen.

The best leadership decisions I’ve made came after I stopped reacting…
and started listening to all of them.

👉 When was the last time you paused to understand before judging?

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