Leadership biases: stop letting attribution error hold you back

Leadership biases: stop letting attribution error hold you back
Leadership biases: stop letting attribution error hold you back

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We humans tend to

We humans tend to attribute our own problems to outside events and are happy to blame other people for similar issues. 

This attribution bias, causes us to over-emphasize internal motivations to explain someone’s behaviour while under-emphasizing the situation factors.

We assume that someone’s actions tell us what “kind” of person they are, without considering the environmental factors that may have influenced their behaviour.

It’s much simpler to blame someone’s personality than take into account all of the situational factors that may be affecting them.

Most workplaces are no

Most workplaces are no stranger to incompetence. Yet they don’t hire incompetent people. And they don’t train people to be incompetent. 

The environment is the invisible hand that shapes human behaviour.

If you dissect these decisions, you tend to see that people aren’t making poor choices from a lack of intelligence or motivation, they’re making them because their environment is pushing them in that direction. 

Overcome your attribution bias

Overcome your attribution bias today

Have compassion for everyone you meet because you do not know what wars are going on down there, where the spirit meets the bone. 

Remembering that we don’t know someone else’s motivations is the first step in overcoming attribution bias.

Another trick is to put yourself in their shoes. 

Think of a time that you were in a similar situation and recognize how external factors influenced your own behaviours.

Managers, especially newer managers,

Managers, especially newer managers, struggle to set clear expectations. They’re unpracticed in giving clear, actionable feedback. 

And they rarely give their team definitive priorities.

None of these set their teams up well for success.

Another tactic is to

Another tactic is to simply talk with people. 

We’re all very comfortable thinking that we can infer people’s motivations when the reality is that very few of us are qualified to do this. 

Instead of looking for more mental shortcuts, have a conversation and understand what’s really driving people’s behavior.

It may be more work, but it’s infinitely more effective.

New managers go through

New managers go through a quick checklist and look at four potential causes whenever someone fails to live up to their expectations:

  • Direction — Did I clearly communicate my expectations?
  • Competence — Did this person have the skill necessary to succeed?
  • Opportunity — Did they have the time and resources necessary to succeed?
  • Motivation — Were they motivated to do it?

Of the four, the first three are the responsibility of the manager. 

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