Page 56 - Fearless Leadership

The Blind Spots That Derail Leaders 43

Symptoms of an “I Know” Attitude
• Not listening to others or diminishing what others have to say
• Making assumptions and judgments
• Acting as if you have all the answers
• Being rigid and inflexible in your viewpoints
• Refusing to explore alternative ideas and options

With the simplistic approach—I’m right and you’re wrong—leaders
with an “I know” attitude diminish the desire for others to contribute,
learn, and grow. This was the case with Anthony, a business unit leader
of a global manufacturing firm. Anthony was aggressive and hard-hitting,
but one behavior stood out: “This guy is self-righteous about his point
of view, and if you don’t agree, he doesn’t want to hear it,” protested
his peers.
For two months, Anthony’s senior team worked on preparing a presen-
tation for a potential client. They spent countless hours looking at inno-
vative ways to meet the client’s needs and were excited to present their
proposal to Anthony. Always busy with something else, Anthony did not
meet with his group until the day prior to the client meeting. In the meet-
ing, when his group attempted to explain the client’s challenges, Anthony
interrupted and said, “I know all about this; it’s been all over the trade jour-
nals.” He proceeded to pontificate for 20 minutes on his thinly researched
opinion of the client’s strategy, and then he left the meeting.
Anthony’s arrogance got him into trouble. He was unprepared for the
client meeting and relied on his seat-of-the-pants behavior. The client was
unimpressed, and Anthony and his team lost the account.
But his problems did not end there. Anthony liked to work with a core
group—his inner circle—of three key people. They emulated Anthony and
behaved in an arrogant “I know” style with others. To make themselves
look good, Anthony and his lieutenants shot down ideas from others.
Under Anthony’s leadership, the business unit derailed and went from
being highly successful to becoming a liability to the enterprise.

The Impact of Having an “I Know” Attitude. If you have an “I know”
attitude, you are downright annoying to others, especially people who like