Leadership Blind Spots That Hold You Back

This article summarizes key insights from Craig Groeschel on identifying and solving hidden leadership blind spots that silently erode organizational health and impact. The most dangerous threats are often subtle, residing deep within the team structure, and if left unaddressed, can lead to decreased performance, resentment, and high turnover.

Groeschel emphasizes the need for leaders to proactively look for these below-the-surface issues, as they rarely show up in metrics or weekly meetings. These symptoms—such as surface-level alignment, complaining in private, silent turnover, or talented people quietly quitting—are usually reflections of four deeper, pervasive problems.

The Four Hidden Leadership Blind Spots

Groeschel outlines four major problems that leaders should watch for in their organizations:

1. Leaders that Lead Up Well, but Lead Down Poorly: Leaders who are impressive to their superiors but ineffective or detrimental to their direct reports.
2. Leaders that Hit the Goals, but Hurt the Team: Leaders who deliver strong results but neglect the care, value, and support of the people producing those results.
3. Leaders that Care About People, but Tolerate Underperformance: Leaders who prioritize likability over effectiveness, creating sanctioned incompetence.
4. Leaders that Keep Control, but Kill Ownership: Leaders who are overly controlling, suppressing initiative and limiting the growth of emerging leaders.

The following sections detail the first two blind spots covered in this initial discussion.

Blind Spot 1: Strong Up the Ladder, Weak on the Ground

This blind spot involves leaders who excel at managing their superiors (“leading up”) but fail or damage the team reporting to them (“leading down”). This issue is particularly tricky because the senior leader’s personal experience with this person is likely “really solid,” making the problem difficult to spot.

Groeschel admitted this was a personal blind spot for years, as he had not read about it or learned about it in seminary. He recalled promoting a highly responsive, sharp, and prepared leader who quickly started releasing (firing or causing to quit) good team members. While the promoted leader offered believable excuses (e.g., “cultural problem”), further investigation through exit interviews and conversations revealed a clear pattern: the leader, who excelled at “brown-nosing” those above him, led down with a controlling and dominant spirit.

This problem is common, especially in fast-growing organizations, because leaders who lead up well tend to rise quickly.

Recognizing and Solving the Problem

Leaders must recognize that a great leader should always brag on their team members, give credit freely, and take responsibility when things go wrong.

Three Signs of a Strong-Up/Weak-Down Leader:

1. Unusually High Turnover: Look for multiple people being fired, quitting, feeling unhappy, or requesting transfers under a specific leader. This signals a need to pay attention.
2. Blame-Shifting Patterns: The leader takes all the credit for the wins (“I’m amazing”) but rarely takes responsibility for the losses, instead blaming the team. Great leaders always say, “We have not led them to…” rather than casting blame.
3. Team Silence: In meetings, the team members rarely speak up, offer ideas, challenge anything, or push back. Silence often signals fear, not alignment. They may be afraid of being reprimanded if they speak up.

Leaders must be aware, intuitive, and listening, as one of the top leadership objectives is to see problems early and solve problems quickly. Failure to address this results in lost people and hurt people.

Blind Spot 2: Hitting the Goals, but Hurting the Team

This blind spot involves a leader who achieves great results—the numbers are good, and deadlines are met—but at an unseen cost to the team beneath them.

The Problem: Neglect or Excessive Pressure

The leader’s focus on results means the team often feels unseen, undervalued, or unsupported. This problem manifests in two primary ways:

1. Driving Too Hard: The leader forces the team to “get it done at all costs” without allowing for necessary breaks or respite. While hard seasons exist, leading like this for too long is detrimental.
2. Caring Too Little (Neglect): The leader loves what the team produces but forgets to love the team as people. This leader celebrates wins in the office but ignores the blessings and challenges in the team members’ personal lives (birthdays, family issues, life events).

Groeschel stresses that leaders should never apologize for pushing for results and excellence, but they must recognize that “we don’t just create wins, we love people”.