Your Ego Is The Problem

How unchecked impulses and self-importance quietly sabotage leadership success

Photo by Mimi Thian on Unsplash

George Patton is famous for his daring. His bravado. His embodiment of the glory-seeking, dashing general.

He led his troops and served the cause during The Second World War.

He also mocked traumatized combat veterans and, for a time, was sidelined from the action.

Patton’s problem: ego.

Patton’s ego was, unsurprisingly, large. We can argue that to achieve what he did, especially in combat, you need an ego.

But in leadership, ego is, to quote Ryan Holiday, “the enemy.” (A great book by the way if you haven’t read it).

We all have an ego. It’s why we doubt ourselves. It’s why we feel hurt at times. It’s why we judge others. It’s why we judge ourselves.

For leaders, however, the trick is keeping our ego from becoming, in the case of Patton and so many others, a problem.

When a competent leader lets their ego do the leading, the team suffers. Whether you’re a CEO with all the authority, a project manager with indirect influence, or an operations lead trying to execute, your ability to control your ego is foundational to success.