Seven workplace behaviours that suggest your ego is becoming a problem
This is the first of a two-part blog focused on ego in the workplace. The second iteration addresses ‘keeping your ego in check: five lessons for leaders’.
The classic image of ego-driven behaviour is that of a narcissist who is attention seeking, self-promoting and condescending towards others. If that is the benchmark against which ego is measured, then it misses an entire category of behaviours that fly under the proverbial radar, but which can have an equally harmful impact on organisational efficacy.
So, let’s get back to first principles. It is important to keep in mind that ego is ultimately about self. Whether conscious or not, the result is an inflation of the individual over the collective. This blog does not focus on the obvious manifestations of ego and instead, turns attention towards those that are easily ignored or overlooked.
Described below are seven workplace behaviours that suggest your ego is becoming a problem.
1. Explanation compulsion
The willingness to account for one’s actions is at the heart of responsible leadership. Therefore, when leaders step forward to explain themselves, that is evidence of a healthy accountability culture. The flip side to this are those who go out of their way to get their explanations in early. For this group, explanation is a form of indemnity allowing them to get their side of the story ‘out there’ should things go wrong. This kind of behaviour, whilst superficially masking as accountability, is utterly self-serving and purely geared towards image perseveration.
2. Rejoinder reflex
Clarifying responses in meetings can be a helpful way of demonstrating that ideas have been properly thought-through, that concerns are being addressed and that colleagues are on the same page. Notwithstanding, feeling the need to respond to every answer with an answer ad infinitum is not only indulgent, but also reflects a profound deficit in self-awareness. Especially when responses delve into pointless levels of minutiae. You need to know when enough is enough. Sometimes it is better for all concerned that you just ‘shut your trap’.
3. Deadline delivery fixation
Under normal circumstances, a diligent results-orientated leader is a high-value asset, right? Look more closely and you may well see underlying behaviours that are almost entirely ego driven. Consider this; is the intention to deliver, about the greater good of the team or the individual? Do they transfer knowledge to others so that standards can improve elsewhere? If others are struggling, do they offer to help or are they obsessively focused on self? Allowed to continue without correction, this behaviour can lead to a culture of silo-working and needless duplication of effort.
4. The compulsion to prove something
The pursuit of continuous improvement can drive up standards and elevate levels of performance exponentially. Notwithstanding, when the determination to improve derives from a deep-seated sense of insecurity or a desire to prove oneself as indispensable, it can be highly problematic. To make up for perceived capability deficits, these individuals may over-compensate and engage in increasingly risky, and attention seeking behaviours. Left unchecked this pattern of questionable conduct could escalate further, creating an unsafe environment for the individual and their colleagues.
5. The compliance complex
Compliance is evidence of obedience, a strong sense of duty and loyalty. But there is another side to this that is often overlooked. Compliant behaviour can just as easily be motivated by craven ambition and the desire to get ahead at any cost. In such a scenario, the way compliant behaviours manifest may be completely at odds with an organisation’s values, ethics and codes. Therefore, when compliance is unconditional and motivated by a desire for self-preservation or offered in return for rewards, it undermines integrity. The corollary of the above is that compliance is worth nothing without character.
6. Taking oneself too seriously
Leadership is an important, challenging and often thankless business. However, when leaders are always in the ‘zone’ and cannot find an ‘off button’ it creates an impression that they are more pre-occupied with how they are perceived, than how they should serve. Whilst the function of leadership should be lived, rather than performed, there is a fine line between a leader who is committed and conscientious and one who is so wound up that they are no longer relatable. When a leader takes themselves too seriously then they are not serving others.
7. Over-imitation
Individuals often imitate the mannerisms, phraseology and habits of those that they admire. Whilst it is commendable to model one’s own behaviours, on the desirable traits of others, this can lead to unintended consequences, when taken to extremes. In some instances, behaviours may be demonstrated in a way that is intended to give individuals an air of authority or importance, that they do not possess. This can make them look inauthentic and even buffoonish. Whilst imitation may indeed be the sincerest form of flattery, attempting to do so without the filter of self-awareness is not.
The unhealthy manifestations of ego-driven behaviour can be subtle, easily go unnoticed or be dismissed as harmless. This is because, in workplace settings, the impacts of ego usually register on the ‘radar’ when they are of nuisance value and having a disruptive impact on team cohesion. Unfortunately, by this stage the behaviours may also be affecting productivity and require disproportionate levels of management time to address them. In the workplace, whenever employee behaviour skews irrationally towards self, it is a potential ‘red flag’. Don’t ignore it.
Paul Aladenika is host of the 11th Thing Podcast
