How do I Correct One of My Leaders Without Discouraging Them?

I think this is something you have to learn as a leader, because if you don’t know how to correct people, you can correct them and damage them in the process.

First, you need to understand what you are correcting. Is it their character? Is it their attitude? Is it something they did? Or is it simply that they didn’t do something the way you would have done it? Because sometimes, we call something correction when, really, we just want people to do things our own way.

So, before you correct them, make sure you are actually correcting something that needs to be corrected.

And when you are sure, don’t correct them in front of everybody. Call them aside. Talk to them as a leader, but also talk to them as somebody who is trying to help them become better.

You can say, “I want to talk to you about something I noticed…” Then explain what happened. Don’t start attacking their personality. Don’t say, “You are always doing this,” or “You are the kind of person that…” Talk about the particular thing they did and explain why it is a problem.

And I think this is where encouragement is important. Don’t let the only time your leaders hear from you be when they have done something wrong. If the only conversation they have with you is correction, after a while they will start feeling like nothing they do is ever good enough.

If they are doing well, tell them. If they handled something properly, appreciate them. So when correction comes, they know that you are not against them. You are trying to help them.

And sometimes, after correcting them, ask them, “Do you understand what I’m saying? Is there something I’m not seeing?” Because maybe there is a reason they did what they did.

You can correct somebody and still preserve their dignity.

Correction should not make a leader feel useless. It should help them become better at what they have been entrusted with.

Proverbs 27:5 says, “Open rebuke is better than secret love.” There are times when you have to correct people… just make sure that when you do it, your goal is not to put them down, but to build them up.