During the past century when corporate culture took over and capitalism spread throughout the globe, many businesses reached peaks of success that were never imagined before. In the survival of the fittest arena, competition became the name of the game and running an organization gained new meanings. In an environment as cut-throat as this, businesses and individuals that gave work their all, sacrificed their personal lives and chased their goals with passion and determination became the leaders; personified as inspirational. Throughout various media, images and characters of individuals such as the ‘alpha male’ or the typical ‘CEO’ became common. What all these characters had in common was usually a complete disregard for anything besides work; including their personal health, family and life in general. Additionally, the personified image of the business leader was also a beacon of bad habits that were recognized as just a part of their ‘persona’. More often than not, the personified image of the leader paid no heed to building relationships with employees and was ruthless in terms of behaviour. With no attention to listening and a ‘dictatorship’ of sorts, a business was imagined to be on the pathway to success; all of which we now know and acknowledge as harmful misconceptions.
Due to the widespread awareness and better information regarding what it takes to make a business successful, we now know that most of the traits highlighted as drivers of success are actually behaviours that lead to tremendous failure in organizations. Various studies and a plethora of discourse show that leadership is best understood as a partnership. Without maintaining a free channel of communication with the employees an executive can never even imagine achieving any real success. Additionally, not listening to employees, imagined as a driver of success or a part of an executive’s persona, is one of the biggest mistakes a leader can make. In an environment where employees feel unheard, unappreciated, over-worked with no returns and downright mistreated, the workforce naturally becomes unmotivated and lacks any commitment to the growth of the organization.
Often people ranking higher on the official hierarchy believe that by not listening to employees, their grievances or their needs, they are not only minimizing distractions for themselves but are also setting an example for the employees. These kinds of biases are often thought of as drivers of success among the leadership but they actually destroy any creativity and any success that is achieved is not sustainable. The higher up you are in the corporate ladder, the more important it is for you to possess the appropriate people skills, particularly in improving arenas where improvement is needed. It is crucial to understand that in real-time, the more approachable, understanding and supportive the corporate hierarchy is the better the success. Although one may have achieved success with the same patterns of behaviour, it does not mean real sustainable success lies in bad practices
