Your leadership team isn’t performing because you’re solving the wrong problem.
Most leaders see the gap between where their team is and where they need to be—then jump straight to solutions. Big mistake.
Your assumptions about WHY the gap exists are probably wrong. And when you’re wrong about the problem, your solution fails every time.
I learned this lesson working with a CEO who was frustrated that his teams wouldn’t “challenge the status quo.” His instinct? Roll out psychological safety training. After all, people don’t speak up because they’re afraid, right?
Wrong.
When we actually investigated, we discovered it wasn’t about fear—it was about futility:
- “I suggested something like that last year. Nothing came of it.”
- “I asked the hard question and got brushed off.”
- “I put myself out there—and it went nowhere.”
The real problem wasn’t safety. It was follow-through. So instead of safety training, we implemented a closed-loop feedback process that ensured every suggestion got a response and clear next steps.
Recently, another client complained their leadership team was “too reactive and activity-focused instead of strategic.” The obvious solution seemed to be strategic thinking development.
But when I dug deeper, I found something else: These leaders had been historically rewarded for taking action—any action—even when it wasn’t strategic. Their behavior made perfect sense given the reinforcement system.
So we didn’t just train strategic thinking. We also established clear behavioral expectations and aligned recognition to reward strategic impact over busy work.
Here’s the truth: When your leadership team isn’t delivering the behaviors you need, the problem is rarely what you think it is.
Stop assuming. Start investigating. Get curious about the real barriers, not the obvious ones.
Because the most effective leadership teams aren’t built on good intentions—they’re built on solving the right problems.
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