How Suggesting Ways for People to Improve Can Backfire on You

When you are in a leadership role, you will have conversations where you are discussing other people’s behaviors, words, approaches to work, and results. Eventually, you will need to help the other person find a way to improve in at least one of these areas, and you will be tempted to offer a suggestion for improvement. Be very careful in this moment. Even with the best of intentions, trying to help another person improve can quickly backfire on you. This week, we’ll take a look at this situation and I’ll offer some strategies on navigating it more successfully.