Hi Reader,

On Monday, I asked you to take a look in the mirror — not simply at the face looking back, but at the leader behind it.

As we continue developing a profile of Effective Leadership, that mirror needs to reveal more than the qualities we admire. It also needs to expose the tendencies that can undermine our plans when important qualities are allowed to run unchecked.

Ambition, drive, high expectations and the desire to win can all be powerful leadership qualities.

But when does enough become too much?

That brings us back to our continuing examination of the Seven Deadly Sins — and to GLUTTONY — as we explore how these traits may affect our leadership success.

GLUTTONY is traditionally defined as the inordinate desire to consume more than we require.

Its origins are usually associated with food and drink, particularly the consumption of more than our fair share when others may have little.

But food is not the only thing we can consume to excess.

Leaders and organizations can develop an insatiable appetite for MORE.

• More revenue.
• More growth.
• More market share.
• More productivity.
• More initiatives.
• More meetings.
• More work.
• More hours.

And, inevitably, more from our people.

There’s nothing inherently wrong with wanting more. Growth is essential to lasting business success, ambitious goals inspire people to stretch and high expectations can produce extraordinary results.

The problem begins when MORE is the default.

When Everything Becomes More

You’ve probably heard the familiar refrain:

Sometimes we do.

But in too many organizations, what begins as a temporary necessity becomes a permanent management philosophy.

Yesterday’s extraordinary effort becomes today’s expectation — and tomorrow’s starting point.

We know who will take the extra assignment, rescue the troubled project, work through the weekend or somehow find another five percent. So we go back to them again … and again.

Eventually, our best performers become victims of their success and their reliability.

We launch new initiatives without eliminating old ones.

We add meetings without asking whether another meeting deserves an hour from eight people.

We declare five priorities — and then add five more without removing any of the first five.

Everything is important. Everything is urgent. Everything needs to be done.

If the work never ends, it’s easy to continually demand more.

And some of the people we most wanted to keep begin wondering whether they want to keep doing it.

The Leader In The Mirror

That’s where GLUTTONY becomes much more than an ancient warning about overindulgence.

It becomes a leadership issue.

One of the questions we’ll continue exploring as we develop this leadership profile is not simply whether we possess certain strengths.

It’s whether we recognize when those strengths begin working against us.

Drive and ambition may be among the qualities that got us where we are — and our willingness to push harder, expect more and refuse to settle may have produced some of our greatest successes.

The traditional counterweight to GLUTTONY is TEMPERANCE — the discipline of moderation and restraint.

It means understanding the difference between stretching an organization and consuming it.

So, take another look at the leader in the mirror.

Are you challenging your people to become better?

Or have you simply become accustomed to asking them for more?

Don't Stop Leading.

Lary