Five Ways You Could Be Killing Your Business

Personality Conflict

Sometimes, the very thing destroying your company may be the simple fact that you're not a people person, observes Terry Bacon, business coach and author of What People Want: A Manager's Guide to Building Relationships That Work. "I've seen it a number of times," he says.

Mostly, he sees micromanagers. In surveying 500 employees for his book, he found that 87% wanted their boss, more than anything, to trust them, "and being a micromanager absolutely violates that." But there are other personality traits to avoid: the "my way or the highway" persona, investing no emotion or warmth when dealing with employees and colleagues, and being an egomaniac.

The first step in changing is awareness, says Bacon. "You have to be aware that you are the problem." Bacon recommends using a business coach when trying to fix a personality flaw, but he says any sort of mentor or confidant will do, provided this person can be truthful "and help you hold the mirror up to really see yourself and what's going on."

Bacon suggests casually sitting down with every employee, or at least the core ones, and discussing your relationship. You need to ask: How are we doing? What's working and what's not? "What you're trying to establish is an open dialogue, where your employee feels free to give feedback and knows you're not going to lash out at them," he explains. "That's one of the best ways to really understand how people see you."