Glad you found this post helpful and congratulations on the new position. When dealing with struggling employees, it's easy to compare them to those who are doing well and assume that they must be sub-par. The mark of a true leader is someone who recognizes that these employees need their support and encouragement, and perhaps even a shift in how they approach their responsibilities, so that they can use their abilities to their fullest. We have to remember that these employees were hired because the leadership recognized the strengths they brought to their organization. In these moments, it's what both the employees and their leader need to focus on to help get them back on track.

Thanks again, Sandra for the kind words. I'm happy to welcome you as a new subscriber/reader of my blog and I do hope you'll share your thoughts and experiences in future discussions held here on my blog.

Thanks again, Aileen, for sharing your thoughts on this piece.

When we consider how much time and resources companies spend to develop their employees in the first place, it only makes sense to help them even more when they start encountering difficulties at work.

@Megan – Absolutely. The mark of true leadership is not someone who expects others to simply do their bidding. It’s someone who recognizes their responsibility to help their team members succeed in reaching their objectives. And as such, this makes it incumbent on them to not simply dismiss an employee who is having difficulty as being unproductive, but to find out what is hampering their abilities and what you as their leader can do to help remove these obstacles to help them get back on track.

@Sally – Thanks Sally. I do so enjoy toiling in my garden, all the more so the last few years as my girls express an interest to lend a hand so they too can have the satisfaction of watching the garden bloom, knowing they played a part in making that happen.

That’s another great quote from Lincoln that again demonstrates how our focusing on the wrong aspects of a person often leads us to not appreciate the value they bring, either to our organization or to our lives.

@Debra – Hi Debra; nice to see you here and I’m glad to hear we share the same view in how to approach such employees. Granted, it’s not an easy situation for managers to deal with, or even a desirable one given how often it requires showing empathy and understanding for the emotional state of your employee at this point.

But this is what distinguishes those who manage from those who lead, in that those who understand leadership realize that you have to appreciate the whole person and not just their technical aptitude, in order to help them to contribute their full potential toward the team’s shared goal.

My thanks to you all for these wonderful comments and for adding so much to this delightful conversation.

However, just as rose gardeners sometimes have to help a struggling plant regain its former ability to thrive and grow, so too must employers understand that it's also their responsibility to figure out why an employee is having difficulties as it's as much to their company's benefit as it is for the employee.

Thanks again, Drew, for sharing your thoughts on this piece.