This text is based on an article at ManagementToday.co.uk.
Failure to learn from mistakes
The ability (and willingness) to learn from mistakes is one of the basic requisites for success. You and your team cannot develop, move forward and improve if you are unable to identify where you have made a mistake and how you can avoid it next time. Overly optimistic leaders do not address mistakes, or even see them, and certainly do not draw sufficient consequences and lessons from them.
Underestimating or ignoring risks
Risk management is key to success with projects and team leadership. If a manager wears rose-tinted glasses and ignores risks, the team will languish long term and unnecessarily deprive themselves of good results.
Loss of trustworthiness
To be overly optimistic is to have an unrealistic approach. The guesswork and opinions of an incurable optimist cannot be relied upon; thus they lose credibility and trustworthiness in the eyes of colleagues, superiors and subordinates.
Unrealistic expectations
Excessive optimism is also associated with unrealistic expectations. Overly optimistic leaders often ask the impossible of subordinates because they are unwilling to acknowledge the risks, obstacles and constraints that can interfere with successful goal achievement.
Inability to respond flexibly
All of the above points then lead to a single outcome: the overly optimistic leader is disconnected from reality and they and their team are unable to respond effectively to change and the prospects that come with their job.
-mm-