I’ll be honest: I struggle with Whiners.
They come to you with problems but no solutions.
It frustrates me because I see it as laziness.
Here’s how I handle it now:
Active listening first. Acknowledge what they said.
Then coaching: “What were your three options? What’s the one you suggest?”
Force them to think through solutions, not just dump problems.
Because here’s the truth: if someone constantly complains but never acts, they’re not looking for help.
They’re looking for sympathy.
And that’s not your job as a leader.
Lloyd
PS – Operational bottlenecks whine too – they show up as team dependency, decision delays, and process gaps. Find yours with the Operational Readiness Assessment.



