251: Leadership 101: How to Do Spot Corrections That Actually Work
Oct 9, 2025
Leadership Is Built in the Moments You’d Rather Avoid
The number one mistake I see young leaders make is avoiding confrontation. They let little things slide, skip the spot corrections, and hope the culture “sorts itself out.” It won’t. Leadership isn’t a quote on the wall; it’s what you do in the uncomfortable 60 seconds after something goes off-track.
I learned this as a military officer for eight years and then as an entrepreneur for over a decade. Inside PT Biz, I run a monthly leadership call, and the pattern is always the same: once you’ve outgrown “more marketing tactics,” your ceiling is your leadership. Teams scale companies; leadership scales teams.
The Cost of Inaction (and Why It’s a Leadership Problem)
Every time you ignore a miss—an off-hand comment, a deadline slip, a low-effort handoff—you’re not keeping the peace; you’re building a new culture by inaction. There is no neutral. You’re either reinforcing standards or eroding them. That erosion compounds.
My Rule: Spot-Correct Immediately (Without Going Nuclear)
Immediate doesn’t always mean public.
The nuclear option (rare): Correct publicly only if the behavior is egregious (e.g., something bordering on harassment or a clear values violation). You’re setting a visible boundary for the whole team.
The default (most of the time): Correct privately the same day. If it happens in a meeting, wrap, then ask the person to stay on (or jump to a quick private Zoom). Don’t wait for the quarterly review and unload a list. That’s how you lose people.
The 5-Step Spot-Correction Script
Use this verbatim if you want:
Name the moment.
“Hey, when you said X in the meeting / when Y wasn’t delivered by Thursday…”State the standard.
“Our standard is Z / this ties to our value of [value].”Explain the “why.”
“It needed to be done Thursday because reports go out Friday. Without it, partners walk in blind.”Ask for alignment.
“Does that make sense? Anything unclear about expectations next time?”Confirm the next action.
“Great—let’s have this by EOD Wednesday. I’ll check in at noon.”
Leadership tip: The “why” turns rules into reasons. Adults respect reasons.
Cadence, Receipts, and Follow-Through
Time box it. Address it same day (worst case, next morning). After 24 hours, the moment is stale.
Document lightly. Two lines in your leadership notes: Date, behavior, standard, next step. Not a dossier—just receipts.
Close the loop. When they improve, say it out loud: “That was exactly the standard.” Positive marks anchor culture, too.
If Confrontation Scares You, Try This Reframe
You’re not “being mean.” You’re removing confusion. Clear expectations and quick feedback are psychological safety. People may not love the correction in the moment, but they trust leaders who set boundaries and uphold them consistently.
Two micro-reps to build your confrontation muscle this week:
24-Hour Rule: Any miss you notice gets addressed within 24 hours. No exceptions.
Values Language Only: Replace “I didn’t like that” with “It’s misaligned with our value of [value] because…” That keeps it professional, not personal.
Leadership is simple, not easy. Do the hard 60 seconds. Your future culture will thank you.
Try harder.
Show Notes
00:30 – The #1 leadership mistake: avoiding confrontation.
01:05 – My background and why leadership—not tactics—scales companies.
01:40 – Culture by inaction: you’re reinforcing or eroding.
02:20 – When to correct publicly (the rare “nuclear” case).
03:10 – Why private, immediate spot corrections win.
03:55 – The 5-step spot-correction script you can copy.
05:00 – Tie feedback to values and explain the “why.”
06:00 – Cadence: same-day corrections, light documentation, close the loop.
07:10 – Reframing confrontation: clarity = safety.
08:20 – Two micro-reps to build your leadership muscle.
09:05 – Final challenge: simple, not easy—do the hard 60 seconds.
