No one comes therapy asking for more discomfort. And no leader wakes up expecting to be mistrusted. However, culturally competent leadership That’s what it takes—tolerating the unknown, accepting feedback without getting defensive, and accepting that growth as a leader has no end point.
The cost of avoiding this is immeasurable. Leaders who lack cultural competence experience less turnover labor productivityand less innovation (Campos-Moreira et al., 2020). Business women are particularly affected by poor leadership when it comes to diversity. According to 2023 Women in the Workplace Report by McKinsey & LeanIn.org, “women who experience microaggressions… are three times more likely to think about quitting their job and four times more likely to almost always think about it burn.”
In this post, I’ll explain three types of frustration that leaders actively avoid and specific ways to combat them and increase your impact.
What is culturally competent leadership?
Culturally competent leadership is not an end point, but a process based on “self-awareness, skill acquisition and flexibility” (Campos-Moreira et al., 2020). This constant work fosters respect and inclusiveness in teams, leading to innovation, productivity and higher satisfaction.
For managers accustomed to quantitative results, this open process can be both encouraging and frustrating, as there is no certification or finish line. But that’s exactly what makes it important, especially in VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Uncertain) environments, which are by definition dynamic and volatile.
3 Types of leaders avoid discomfort
- The discomfort of not knowing
Leaders are often (and unfairly) expected to “have all the answers” and “know what to do,” when in reality leadership consists of chasing a moving target—often blindfolded.
Of course, there is room for expertise and determination, especially of the human race, but to build bridges and solve unprecedented problems, leaders must be able to tolerate ignorance so that learning and growth can occur. This may look like adopting a position of cultural humility to learn from team members with less organizational power or deliberately encouraging collaboration. decision making processes (Campos-Moreira et al., 2020).
In practice, this might mean saying in a group meeting, “I don’t have an answer to this yet, and I want to hear from people who have a different perspective than I do.” Or, if a team member from another culture questions your approach, instead of immediately defending it, try saying, “I haven’t considered that perspective. Let me know how you see it differently.”
By modeling your ability to tolerate uncertainty and invite input, you allow team members to do the same and create a culture where not knowing is normalized and leads to creative problem solving.
- Discomfort of effect versus intention
As they say in tradition: “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” No matter how much you believe it and try to align your impact with your intentions, we all make mistakes and it’s very uncomfortable to be faced with an impact you didn’t intend.
For example, suppose you have a direct and sometimes confrontational communication style, and a new team member tells you that because of your directness, they feel uncomfortable asking clarifying questions about the task. Your first instinct may be to defend your intention (‘Compliance is not slander!’). Cultural humility means stopping this patter and instead saying, “Thank you for telling me. I meant no harm, but I hear that my communication style has had a negative impact. Can you tell me why?” Although this is a vulnerable position, especially for leaders who are not used to receiving feedback, it shows openness and respect, which leads to greater trust and understanding in group relationships.
- Discomfort of the process
Unlike technical skills that you eventually master, the work of cultural competence is never done. As researchers Steve Gulati and Kathryn Weir point out, cultural competence is “a process, not a place” in leadership development. This means that in order to thrive, leaders must learn to tolerate the associated discomfort.
For example, let’s say you’ve just finished training unconscious bias and be confident in your ability to avoid microaggressions. Six months later, you imagine yourself thinking about someone’s accent, and they later tell you that your behavior targeted them. Instead of beating yourself up or minimizing the importance of working with bias, you can remind yourself that everyone makes mistakes and that self-awareness and repair are more important than perfection (which doesn’t exist anyway).
Essential leadership reading
Develop processes for continuous improvement
To make this work permanent, build reflection into your practice. Set a quarterly reminder to ask yourself:
- What is one way my cultural competence has increased this year?
- What is one area where I still feel like a beginner?
- One action I can take in the next 90 days?
These questions engage you with the process without perfecting it. Even better, think of ways to integrate these reflective questions into team meetings, reviews, and strategic planning. The more you can incorporate the principles of cultural humility into your routine, the more powerful the results will be.
