Whenever I hire a new employee, as part of his orientation I am always careful to emphasize that it would be wrong to mistake my forbearance for indifference, that while I am long-suffering and will give him time to learn the ropes, there are standards to be reached and maintained.

One of the most ineffective positions leaders take is to sanction incompetence. Now by that I’m not suggesting that there is no room for error, or that no one is ever allowed to make mistakes. When we sanction incompetence, we support or approve of a pattern where incompetence is “manifesting the inability to carry out a task or responsibility.”

How we sanction incompetence

1. When a person’s substandard performance is allowed to continue unchecked. People will make mistakes; sometimes they make lots of them. We sanction incompetence when we do nothing about it.

2. Allowing associates and employees to mistake forbearance for indifference. Again, this calls for a response on our part. To do nothing is to manifest indifference.

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