Why does this keep happening?
If you like your entertainment to be free of cursing, fighting, bleeding, and shooting, the John Wick collection is not for you. But if you are aware, you'll know that John Wick is very good at what he does. He is on alert and mindful of attackers from all angles, using all matter of weapons, in all kinds of scenarios.
Except.
Except he sure gets hit by cars a lot. Of all of the ways to dodge, parry, or otherwise avoid bullets, blades, sticks, fists, and feet, one would think that, unless he's being targeted by a Prius or Tesla, he'd hear a car coming at him from a mile away.
That is not the case. John Wick breaks windshields and dents hoods like it is his objective. But it's not. They run him down so many times.
Why does this keep happening? For reasons I certainly can't comprehend, he's got a blind spot. A blind spot that results in getting hit by cars. Repeatedly.
I hope you are a different kind of leader (and in a different industry) than John Wick. But the similarity is that we all have blind spots. But John Wick is a solo act. There's no one there to say, "Hey, John. You just single-handedly managed 58 attacks from 43 attackers which is awesome. But you see that car coming this way? Yeah, that may be an issue."
Leaders do have an extra set of eyes. Someone to advise them that there's an issue they have not yet indicated that they're aware of. Many leaders have this person in their own org chart. It's not bad, but they might not feel free to say what's on their mind. Cut to....
*John Wick getting helped up off the asphalt*
"Sorry, John. I didn't say anything because it seemed clear to me the car was coming and I didn't want to insult your skills and abilities by pointing out a ton-and-a-half of metal screeching your direction. My bad."
In your job, having someone who's not afraid to ask difficult questions, offer observations, and, on occasion, present assertions, is invaluable. The best way for you to be your best is to have all of the best data and information available to you. This includes the things you don't know that you don't know.
If you'd like to discuss blind spots confidentially, feel free to contact me. Otherwise...
If there is such a thing in your world, what's one issue that keeps coming up repeatedly, despite your best efforts?
#leadership #leadershipcoaching #executivecoaching #blindspot
Cover Photo from John Wick by Lionsgate