Why You Want Your Employees to Second-Guess You

It’s annoying when someone questions your authority. Naturally, you might want to remind them you’re the boss with a threat or punishment. After all, that’s what people did to you. As a kid, your parents withheld allowance. As a student, your teachers assigned detention. And when you were an employee, your boss didn’t allow such disobedience.

But before you wield your power, you might want to consider disagreement in a more positive light. As journalist Sydney J. Harris explains,

It is impossible to learn anything important about anyone until we get him or her to disagree with us; it is only in contradiction that character is disclosed. That is why autocratic employers usually remain so ignorant about the true nature of their subordinates.

While threats and punishment might squash bad behavior, they also mute meaningful conversations. When you “make an example” out of a bad employee, you simultaneously scare away suggestions from good employees. Taken to the extreme, you get obedience at the cost of indifference and silence.

Being second-guessed and questioned is a good sign. It means your employees care enough to want to make change. Use it as an opportunity for improvement.



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  • http://create-learning.com michael cardus

    Being second guessed is a comfort level that takes a mature and trained leadership. Often time leaders feel that they are paid to be the end all of there organizations idea tree. They are paid to make tough decisions – questioning my authority is a sign of insubordination.
    Emotionallly INtellegent and mature leaders allow questions that are based on the betterment of the team.
    WHen one asks a question it is (many times) to make them look better in front of peers – or to throw a zinger at the boss. These question must be sent with an open an true desire for team and organizaitonal growth.
    This also takes training and understanding of team conflict and dynamics.

  • http://asad123.wordpress.com Asad

    I think leaders in a variety of contexts should encourage questioning. Teachers should encourage their students to question them. Parents should encourage their kids to question them. Coaches should encourage their players to question them. Questioning shows that a person is thinking about what they’ve been asked to do and that they want to do it in the best way possible.

    Check me out at asad123.wordpress.com. I comment about life, politics, music, religion, and other topics.

  • http://www.quietthethunder.com Milena Thomas

    I can see a parallel in your personal relationships. I’ve found that when my husband and I quarrel, I often find myself taking time to think, “Is what he saying valid, despite how I feel about it?” I have made huge progress in our relationship by listening to criticisms for their legitimacy instead of defending myself no matter what. I think we have a much healthier relationship. No doubt this would translate to the workplace as well.

  • http://www.mindyourdecisions.com/blog/ Presh Talwalkar

    Michael Cardus: It is important to distinguish emotional “intelligence” from conventional intelligence. In many tasks, it is more important to be well understood and liked than it is to be logically or morally correct.

    Asad: It is a lot easier for us to say this than to practice it. I myself used to be very defensive about faults. Now when people nitpick me I just make a joke about it and move on. They know they got their point across, and we’re all better off.

    Milena Thomas: Excellent point! Dealing with criticism can help with our personal lives too. It works with friendships as well. My best friends are the ones that are the most laid back and easygoing about being made fun of and criticized. We all improve together.

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