As business leaders today, you need to demonstrate both vulnerability and transparency. This comes with humility and truthfulness. although the present scenario is changing, there are many leaders in the present era who are reluctant to let your guard down, their feelings and admit that they do not have the answers to all the questions. Rapid changes are accelerating so quickly that it is impossible for one individual at the top to have all the answers. Business leaders need to trust the people around them for answers to difficult problems, support, and knowledge. With COVID-19, all the vulnerabilities have outbroken. The only way to thrive and survive in today’s workforce is to have all the hands-on Deck. Old misconceptions, merits, and beliefs die hard. One of those myriads is that vulnerability is a sign of weak leaders. It was said that a leader who showed vulnerability will lose the respect of office employees and colleagues.Today, nothing could be further away from the truth as now it has been observed that leaders who can be vulnerable are healthy and create more effective workplaces. It has been seen and observed that vulnerability is the best measure for openness. Whether it’s a personal or professional level, vulnerabilities have held out everyone in the best possible manner. Showing oneself to others and being vulnerable is a sign of self-confidence and courage in the leader. This doesn’t mean that you are spelling out some emotions or spilling out all the beans. Successful leaders know when the place and time are right to show their authentic and real selves to the audience.Here are a few reasons why vulnerability is an attribute for the leaders-
Decreases Tension and Stress at Work
Have you ever worked in a place with an elephant in the room and nobody had a conversation about it? Tiptoeing around the secrets and avoiding them at work can be very depressive. If everyone sees that the leaders are able to bring up and popular areas for discussion, they will feel a sense of freedom and less stress about having a conversation. So, if you bring forward all your vulnerabilities as business leaders, you’re definitely going to encourage your employees.
The flow of Ideas, Creativity, and Innovation
If you acknowledge that leaders don’t have the answers to all the questions it will give them a freedom to have their input and feedback as per the ideas considered. By admitting the mistakes, managers can give their expert professionals more room to contribute their ideas and feedback to the organization. The leaders who accept their mistakes and forgive themselves are the examples of creative leaders. Because this is something which leads to more ideas coming for at all the levels. It results in a dynamic and competitive organization. This is why vulnerability is very essential for business leaders.
Better Communication Flow
A business leader is the one who says what is acceptable and what is not acceptable to talk about in an organization. If you are able to stay open-minded and share information authentically & honestly, a business leader will send a strong message that it is not only acceptable but very valued throughout the organization. Team members will feel that it is OK to open up and share things with each other. This will keep the flow of communication level positive and all the communication channels will flow smoothly. One of the greatest ideas to start a meeting and get started with a brief taken around the tables with every individual because this will give an insight into where and how each of the individuals coping in their real-world and understanding the environment. Empathy is something that leads to healthy communication flow.
Problems Identified Earlier
Most of the time people are afraid to bring problems and bad news to their leaders as they are scared that information will not be received well. They’re scared that the information will not be well received. The employees who see their leaders being vulnerable and admitting mistakes are the ones who are more likely to come forward as they feel less likely to feel the retribution of the bearer of bad news.
Better Teamwork and Cooperation
The organizations with a loop and closed leaders lends people to look for ways to impress the leaders. There is a great occurrence of events like backstabbing and not sharing the information among the staff because of the authoritative positions. These are the leaders who are constantly trying to determine and guess what goes above them. They, therefore, spend their time and energy trying to figure out what and how to get the approval of the ones who wore the superior position and when getting a promotion. This is something which could be spent more productively if you all work together as a team for the betterment of the organization.
Creates an Amazing Workplace
An organization or workplace which is full of secrets is not a very fun place to work. Always being cautious or having a caring attitude is not good when it comes to sharing. This will dampen down the spirit of the employees. A business leader who is vulnerable and open and authentically raises the mood of the work environment is the one who helps in creating a healthy and vibrant atmosphere that everyone is looking forward to it.
Emotional Connections & Turnover
In most of the research points being emotionally connected to an organization is one of the deciding factors on whether or not people will stay in the organization. Honest, open, and authentic leadership is more likely to help employees feel a connection at an emotional level and stay in the organization. They are the employees who are less likely to jump whether it is for the money or for the other benefits for staff.
To briefly conclude, vulnerable business leaders lead a better crowd rather than the ones who hide everything from their team members.
