7 Temptations Leaders Avoid Every Day

As I’ve been pitching myself and my services more often, I keep thinking about what I bring to the table when it comes to leadership. I’ve been telling people I specialize in 3 areas: Marketing | Leadership | Social Media. But the truth is, I feel I’m specialized in a lot more than that.

Great companies let their marketing bleed through their organizations and when I work with someone I want them to know that is my plan for their business. It’s a blend of all three ideas, and then some. I’m selling people on my philosophy. This makes me a sales person (already knew that) and a leader since I’m asking people to believe in me.

Even if that doesn’t make sense to you, I’ve compiled a list of some of the temptations leaders avoid since the subject has been on my mind. I hope you enjoy this, I hope you apply these (if you aren’t already), and I would love to hear what else leaders avoid so leave me a comment below!



Criticize Someone

The easiest thing to do in this world is criticize someone for their work. It takes guts to get off the bench and into the game. It takes nothing to sit on the sideline and say what that person should have done on the field from the comfort of a padded seat with a mouth full of proverbial popcorn.

Leaders put themselves out there on a stage to be judged by their every action. The great ones know when others are putting themselves out there as well. When they recognize it, they don’t criticize harshly, they praise boldly.

Walk on People

Leaders are often looked up to in organizations whether they are in a position of power or not. When others look up to you, you have the power to lift them up or crush them simply by your body language.

Real leaders show others they care, even if those people can’t do anything for them. It’s easy to be a jerk, it’s hard to be kind. You may not have time to ask about how the family is doing every day, but things as simple remembering people’s names and being sincere go a long way.

Take the Credit

I love to see this scene in sports (mostly football) game press conferences: A slick reporter asks a star player about the previous win and how great he/she played, setting them up to take credit for the game themselves. No matter how many times this has happened, the great leaders don’t crack. They never take the bait!



When leaders receive praise they point the finger outward. Great leaders don’t take the credit for a victory/accomplishment/goal-achieved even if it fell mostly on their shoulders. They say how instrumental their team or their supporting cast was in making this happen.

Deflect the Blame

Flash back to 4 seconds ago, similar scene: Now the same star player has lost a game and the same reporter asks them about why they lost, looking for a scapegoat and some controversy to print. Again, the seasoned leader takes the blame. They could have played the game of their life, but they’ll say something like, “It wasn’t enough,” or, “It’s not about me.”

When leaders receive criticism, they point the finger inward. They don’t shift the blame to others, the ones that look up to them. They can handle the attacks and they can handle the judgement, it comes with the territory.

Think Small

Leaders have to be a bit off their rockers. Nobody wants to follow the quite, harmless person that never got out of their comfort zone. People want to follow the person that makes bold moves and achieves great things. Leaders push the envelope with their thinking, it’s rarely small.

Hold Others Back

When small people see that someone below them is doing something to better themselves, they break them down. Poor leadership will hold those around them back, in fear of losing their own position. They will stifle growth, they will criticize, they will humiliate, and they will attempt to “keep them in their place.”

Real leadership invests in it’s people, even after they’ve been surpassed. One of the men I looked up to most in my collegiate football career was Marvin McHellon. At one point in his career he was surpassed by an underclassman who took his starting position. Marvin didn’t whine, he didn’t quit, he didn’t make a scene. He humbly helped teach that younger player learn everything he knew so we could win as many games as possible.

Hold Themselves Back

Leaders realize that they are valuable to their people in some way, even if they don’t go around announcing it to everyone. So they know they cannot just sit back and rest on their laurels.

A leader that doesn’t get better with time and is not a leader, they are person in a position of power. A leader will push themselves to be better, to learn, and to grow.

What else do leaders avoid? I would love to hear your feedback and I would love to add to this list!

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Have a great day & don’t forget to avoid these 7 Temptations!