Liam Leonard is an experienced investor and owner of DML Capital, where his company facilitates real estate investments on behalf of high net worth individuals. Leonard is also the host of The Prosperity Perspective, a podcast aimed at sharing the stories of successful entrepreneurs, in hopes of inspiring and educating those who are just getting started on the journey. He joined Negotiate Anything to share his experience with difficult conversations in the workplace as well as his mindset for navigating these moments in a way that works for all.
The Reality of Change
Over the last few years, inconsistency has been one of the most consistent aspects of business management. With dramatic changes happening all over the world, entrepreneurs and leaders have been forced to adjust to ever-changing markets, economies, industries and more.
In the lending business, growing interest rates led to a decreased demand for mortgage loans. This forced Leonard to reevaluate his business and engage in a host of difficult conversations - especially with members of his team. As he prepared for the inevitable transition, Leonard reflected on the decisions he was forced to make along the way.
“The biggest and toughest decision was actually getting out of my own way,” he shared.
Reframing the Narrative to Overcome Obstacles
As he faced the decision to make major changes to his company structure, Leonard recalls two distinct (self-imposed) hurdles.
First, as an entrepreneur, it was natural for him to believe he could take on and overcome any business challenge, even though the reality of his small company competing with larger ones was daunting. Second, he felt a deep sense of responsibility to his employees. The thought of cutting an entire division felt disingenuous to him as a leader who cares about people.
“As an entrepreneur, you have to believe you can take on the world, but that same mentality can make you think you can win an un-winnable situation,” he shared.
A conversation with his board changed everything. They encouraged him to consider all the ways he was holding his employees back by keeping them in an unsustainable situation. This helped Leonard to see how engaging in these difficult conversations could not only be authentic to his leadership style, but beneficial to those on his team.
He explained, “When you have conversations with those folks that you’re inevitably letting go because it doesn’t fit with the direction they're headed in, you can do it genuinely and with a full heart.”
A Mindset for Accepting Hard Truths
When it comes to successfully navigating difficult conversations in leadership, Leonard encourages entrepreneurs to have some type of sounding board. He also believes it’s important to prepare for, and request, direct and honest feedback.
“In the conversation with the board, I prepared them to be brutally honest,” he said. “There is no benefit [to me] for them to sugarcoat things.”
Attributing his tough skin to his upbringing, Leonard believes this mentality led him to more and more opportunities where he was forced to strive for excellence and, most importantly, learn to be coachable.
“I try to take away something in every conversation,” he explained. “When you take that perspective, you are constantly looking for ways to improve yourself.”
Leonard also recognizes that without coach-ability, having a board becomes futile. Instead of fearing honest feedback, he advises entrepreneurs to embrace failure.
“Without failure you don’t learn because you think you’re doing everything right,” he shared. “I find those moments of uncomfortable-ness and failure so that I can grow and develop.”
In the Best Interest of Others
For leaders and business owners who care, letting go of employees will never be easy. To navigate this difficult reality, Leonard learned to ground his conversations by considering what would be best for the other person.
“I don’t approach a conversation until I realize what’s in the best interest of that person,” he said, elaborating on this approach. “Once you establish that it’s in the best interest of that person not to be with your company, it’s very easy to have the conversation to say ‘this probably isn’t the best place for you, how do I get you to where you want to go?’”
That said, he doesn’t expect all conversations to go smoothly. He encourages leaders to accept this reality and create space for people to process.
“You can’t approach the conversation the same way for every single person,” he said. “It has to be tailor-made to how they’re going to respond.”
For employees who are especially sensitive, he advises that a follow-up conversation may be helpful in order to ensure they completely understand the process and how things will work out in their best interest.
Regardless of the outcome, he encourages leaders to embrace the emotional discomfort while staying mindful of their intentions.
“It’s being grounded in [the fact that] you know you’re doing the best thing for them and what that looks like.”
To learn more about Liam Leonard and his work visit www.dmlcap.com or www.theprosperityperspective.com. To listen to the full episode, click here.
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Delivering Bad News With Empathy: A Mindset For Conquering The Most Difficult Conversations At Work - Forbes
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