7 (More) Things Project Managers & Leaders Should Never Do

I wrote earlier about “11 Things Project Managers & Leaders Should Never Do” (Recommendation: Read the earlier post before you read further to ensure continuity of ideas) .

Here are 7 more things they should NEVER do:

• Ignore the context. Things that worked in your past context may not necessarily work in the changed environment, new organization or a new project. When your context changes, if you don’t align your thinking to the new context, you are more likely to fail. Sticking to past ways of working is comfortable (because it worked), but no longer safer.
• Loose focus on results. It is easy to get into mundane activities and loose focus on results. You can be an easy going manager or a tough one. You can be a coercive leader or an inspiring one. But ultimately, leadership is all about generating meaningful business results. Results should drive us, not the circumstances.
• Throw the weight around. Sure, you are higher up in the order, but you still shouldn’t ignore Uncle Ben’s advice to Spiderman: “Remember, with great power comes great responsibility.” Humility is the most important virtue of leadership. The moment you have to show that you are powerful, you are not. Moreover, power comes from doing right things, not by cheap tactics to demonstrate that you are powerful. (You might also like reading this piece on “Leadership and Subordination to a Cause”)
• Not scheduling critical stuff. I read this somewhere, “What doesn’t get scheduled doesn’t get done”. Lot of project managers say, “I always wanted to have code reviews done but we never had time!” Wrong. You always had time, but you never planned it. Remember – if you want something to be done and if you don’t schedule it, it ends up being a fantasy.
• Expose the team in crisis: When in crisis, it is expected that you protect your team members and accept responsibility of team performance. The moment you try to expose your team members when things don’t turn out well, you are actually exposing your own weakness as a leader.
• Not understanding people. We work with breathing, living and emotional human beings. Leaders fail utterly when they ignore the people aspect of work and start treating people as ‘resources’. When it comes to managing people, one size does not fit all because each individual is unique. My simple formula is – treat people as “humans’ not as ‘resources’ and watch them deliver great results.
• Under estimate the power of personal/professional integrity. Being a leader is like being a fish in a glass bowl. You are constantly being observed. People take important cues from the way you talk, what you talk and what you actually do. You loose respect when they find out the gap between what you preach and what you do. My definition of integrity is simple – Do what you say, say what you do and be yourself.

These are simple rules, but difficult to follow because what we do as leaders is very situational. As I said in my earlier post, “Having the fundamental thumb-rules right and following them consistently is the first solid step to success as a manager/leader.”

What basic rules do you adhere to when you manage people? Join the conversation!