Page 257 - Using the Enneagram System to Identify and Grow Your Leadership Strengths and Achieve Maximum Success

232 What Type of Leader Are You?

a Four may decide to raise an employee’s salary because that indi-
vidual has personal issues that cause him or her to need additional
financial resources. However, the Four may pay insufficient atten-
tion to the fact that this employee’s work performance is far below
that of other employees who did not receive raises. In an effort to
be compassionate, the Four may unintentionally be unfair and
damage employee morale.
Many decisions don’t have obvious answers, and Fours can
become distraught when a decision is complex and none of the
alternatives seems ideal. A Four leader will also experience angst
over a decision where one choice, though profitable, may hurt
some employees. Because Fours are so sensitive themselves, they
tend to put themselves in the shoes of the other person—or in
what they imagine to be the other person’s shoes—and they have
a difficult time making a decision that they believe will cause some-
one to suffer.
Here’s an example of a time when Jacob had a very hard deci-
sion to make:

Jacob knew that if the center was to grow, the older research
scientists had to mentor the younger scientists. However, the
two most senior scientists were unwilling to do so, believing
that their job was only to do research. They also had no
interest in developing the skills of the scientists who had just
recently received their graduate degrees. Jacob knew that (1)
without these two scientists’ support, he would never get the
mid-level scientists involved in mentoring; (2) if he pushed
the issue and alienated the senior scientists, they might
resign over this issue; and (3) if he ignored the problem, the
work of the center would be hurt. Jacob was unable to deal
with this issue for two years, until he sought guidance from
a consultant, who helped Jacob develop an incentive system
that was successful in motivating the mid-level scientists to
become mentors.