At the risk of adding fuel to a fire that’s burning pretty much out of control already, I will submit that, for those interested in learning, there are a plethora of leadership lessons currently being taught daily on the national stage. Some of the lessons come from good examples, while others involve some pain, ‘er tuition. One of the more recent ones involves the President, and it relates to areas where managers (any of us) lack skill, or perhaps sufficient interest in a given aspect of our job function, even a vital aspect.

It’s no secret that President Trump frequently runs into difficulty when he ventures anywhere near tragedies, people who feel aggrieved, or nationally sensitive moments, and the need to console or be appropriately respectful of people who are hurting. There are often live wires just beneath the surface of those situations, and he has demonstrated a remarkable propensity for finding and stepping on them through poor word choices, bad optics, poor preparation, or the felt need to add too much value to the situation.

Before anyone gets their red or blue knickers in a knot, let’s stipulate that we ALL have our own demons and shortcomings. In fact, this happens to be a shortcoming that I share with the President. Lucky for me, my job doesn’t require regular presence near disaster scenes, Gold Star families, or flag-draped coffins. If it did, at an age that is within a pitching wedge of the President’s (that’s two things we share), and some pretty well-worn habits, I likely would lean a lot harder on my Vice President to represent me / the Nation in such matters, not just because he’s available, but because he’s better at it than I will ever be.

A recent post, Have You Upgraded Your Leadership OS Lately?  underscores the notion that not unlike the operating system used by our digital devices, the system and methods we use to operate as leaders similarly needs periodic refreshing. Part of that refreshing process should cause us to identify things to start doing, stop doing, or do differently.

In the “do differently” category, if we’ve wisely recruited teammates whose core strengths are not a mirror image of our own, it makes impeccable sense to match some of our weaknesses up with the strengths of others. So, here’s a two-part challenge:

1. Take a look at your core strengths, responsibilities and repetitive tasks, and see where some duty realignment or better delegating might allow you and your teammates to operate more in your respective sweet-spots.
2. Take note of the aforementioned core strengths when you next have a job opening on your team, and make an effort to “plus up” your collective talents and interests.

Try it. I think you’ll like the result.