Tag Archive for ‘Guest Post’ at DrivenLeaders.com

“I am your servant. I do not come to you as a leader, as one above others.”

When you read these words did the person who uttered them come to mind? Admittedly, the world is adrift in leadership quotations. But what makes these words special is that they were said by Nelson Mandela, a man who truly suffered by years being incarcerated in a South African prison.

What I want to talk about in this post is leadership and to pose this question, which each of us needs to answer. “Am I an authentic leader?”

We’ve heard statements that leaders are born. But then others argue that leaders can be developed. Well, how about going back in time to hear from Aristotle:

“From the moment of their birth, some are marked for subjugation, and others for command.”

Well, that may not be all that helpful, especially when the general consensus now is that leaders can be developed.

One way to look at the issue is this way: I’ve organized the debate over who possesses leadership into two types of leadership: Big L and Little L. My personal view is that only a few of us will ever have the dynamic leadership behaviors and skills to lead organizations, private, public or non-profit, large or small, or the populace of a country, state or province. Only a few of us have what it takes to be a Big L leader.

What propelled people like Winston Churchill, Mohandas Gandhi, Golda Meir, Margaret Thatcher and Nelson Mandela to be world-class leaders? For those who are sports-minded, consider the great athletes like Bobby Orr, Billy Jean King, Wayne Gretsky or Mohammed Ali. Or how about such vocalists as Aretha Franklin, Céline Dionne or Beverly Sills?

These individuals possess an innate talent and drive that propels them to succeed. Why do some children at a very young age show an incredible skill in a certain discipline, yet other children work hard but only attain a certain level of proficiency?

To lead an organization, especially in today’s turbulent world, requires someone with unique abilities. Some of these can be learned. But there needs to be an inner drive and vision that causes that individual to want to lead others. This raises the issue of power and status, for which many people strive in their efforts to rise to the top.

So what about power?

First off, power can be an important component of effective leadership, provided it is used properly and for the right purposes. When top leaders abuse power by controlling and manipulating their subordinates, then these are not Big L leaders. They may be good managers, but when it comes to inspiring people and leading with integrity, they fall short of achieving this.

I love the following quote by the late Peter Drucker, who called things as he saw them. He believed that leadership must be founded upon a constitution; otherwise, irresponsibility will result:

I am amazed that today’s prominent writers on leadership do not seem to realize that the three most charismatic leaders in all recorded history were named Hitler, Stalin and Mao. I do not believe that there are three men who did more evil and more harm. Leadership has to be grounded in responsibility. It has to be grounded in a constitution. It has to be grounded in accountability. Otherwise, it will lead to tyranny.

Drucker was an advocate for shared leadership. He believed in employee responsibility and the need for a “self-governing community,” where individuals and teams share in many managerial activities. And this brings me to the concept of Little L leadership.

What is Little L leadership?

letter l Are You an Authentic Leader? It’s the leadership we see displayed throughout organizations and community - the day-to-day acts that people at all levels engage in. But, there are those who aren’t interested in taking on leadership roles. That’s okay. Some of them will gradually come on board, while others will continue to want to be led by their peers and managers.

This is a key point to remember when reflecting on our personal leadership styles and potentials.
It comes down to each of us being authentic in how we conduct ourselves. We need to strip off the facades we wear and own up to our weaknesses, limitations, and warts. When we’re honest and open with ourselves and others, we gain greater confidence and self-respect, plus respect from others. Be true to yourself and others will be true to you.

Here’s a personal example.

When I was in my early 30s I was promoted to manager of a team of economists. I had zero management training. Because of my own insecurities and wanting to do a good job, I became a bit of a micro manager. That was until a couple of the young economists straightened me out. It took a while but I learned to eventually let go and share the leadership with my team.

I was still the manager, but my team took a lot of initiative and consistently demonstrated leadership in their own ways. There’s no magic formula or cookie cutter approach to this. Each of us has to find our own way. In my case I had to fall on my nose a number of times.

So here are three questions you may wish to reflect on when it comes to developing your leadership skills:

1. What are my strengths and weaknesses? (Be honest with yourself)
2. What do I need to do to be more adventurous and risk-taking?
3. How can I inspire others to want to work towards a common purpose?

I’ll share one piece of advice, something I’ve learned: If you want to inspire others (an essential part of leadership), you need to be passionate about your cause.

Here’s a great story.

I recall watching a PBS program a few years ago that looked at the head surgeon of an emergency room in a large US city. As you can imagine, an ER can be an extremely hectic and stressful place in which to work. People have to know their duties and understand the interdependency of their efforts.

What struck me most about watching the surgeon (middle age black man) was his calmness in dealing with highly stressful situations in the midst of chaos. Multiple victims of car accidents and victims with gunshot wounds. As he stated to the journalist: “My staff look at me to keep it together. If I lose it, they lose it.” When his shift finished, where did go? Home? No, he went to do volunteer work with inner city Black children. For me, this guy showed exemplary leadership! But I ask you, was this man born as a natural leader, or did he develop over time?

Each of us needs to see our personal quest for leadership as one that first starts with the discovery of who each of us really is. We need: mountain Are You an Authentic Leader?

To know ourselves,
To hear ourselves,
To tell the truth to ourselves,
To be honest with ourselves.

Once we address these questions and reexamine our values and beliefs, we’ll be ready to move forward in our leadership journey. Sure, leadership skills can be learned. But the first step is a process in which we look inside ourselves.

This journey is a very personal and private one. We may or may not to wish to share with others along the way. However, one thing needs to be clear and that is every leader must go though it.

Here’s another great quote. Authors Kouzes and Posner (The Leadership Challenge) state:

“You can’t elevate others to higher purposes until you’ve first elevated yourself….You can’t lead others until you’ve first led yourself through a struggle with opposing values….A leader with integrity has one self, at home and at work, with family and with colleagues. Such a leader has a unifying set of values that guide choices of action regardless of the situation.”

Finally… Here are four excellent questions they pose to help facilitate the leadership journey:

• What are my values and beliefs on how people should operate in the organization?
• How strongly am I attached to my values and beliefs?
• How strong is my relationship with those I lead and with whom I work?
• Am I the right one to be leading at the moment?

The last question is especially important in my opinion. It gets at the heart of the shared leadership issue. Regardless of one’s “position” in the organization, there are times when one steps forward to lead and times when one steps back. As Kouzes and Posner state:

“To step out into the unknown, begin with the exploration of the inner territory. With that as a base, we can then discover and unleash the leader within us all.”

I hope this post has given you some new information that will spur you on to examine your personal leadership. Your thoughts and comments are welcome. Special note: Jim will be releasing later this fall his first e-book on leadership, entitled How to Become a Holistic Leader…Using a Principle-Based Approach

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BIO
Jim has been a student of leadership for over 15 years, devoting over a decade to applied work in leadership development, organizational learning and team building. As a thought leader, he has initiated and lead several change management projects. He’s also a professional economist, and has lead research projects on such topics as labour market functioning, business innovation and industrial competitiveness. He holds masters degrees (honours) in economics and leadership. He lives in Ottawa, Canada.

Jim invites you to visit his website: http://www.LeadershipWorldConnect.com
He also writes a blog at http://ChangingWinds.wordpress.com
Meet Jim at http://www.linkedin.com/in/jimtaggart

Today’s guest post is the first in a series from Kyle Ryman of ProfessionalLeader.com.

Your Dilemma as the Leader:

As a leader you may one day be faced with the reality that your organization’s days are numbered. The potential reasons for this are many and range from the plant closing down permanently, to a round of layoffs moving through the company, to the Halloween super store closing for the season. No matter the “why” though, as a leader you will have a dilemma on your hands: how will you lead people who have less and less reason to come to work in the morning?

Your Game Plan:

As a leader, you know very well that the key to getting people to accomplish the organization’s mission is to know what makes them tick. But, when your organization, or your people, is down to the home stretch these motivations change. Bobby will never be promoted now, so why bother? And Jeanne will never see that pay raise, so who cares? This is a tough challenge for any leader! However, there are some general strategies that you, as a leader, can follow to ensure that your organization will continue to perform until the last hour of the last day.

1. Strengthen your bonds with your people.

Here’s the deal. Because the end is near, what motivates your people has changed. Your star performer can suddenly go to your problem child since his or her career ambitions were just destroyed. However, just because your people’s motivations have changed doesn’t mean you can’t lead them. You just need to find out what they changed to! Focus on getting to know your people again and strengthening your bonds with them. Then you will be able to effectively lead them again. Or, at minimum, they will follow out of respect for their relationship with you.

2. Strengthen your team’s internal bonds.

No, there probably won’t be any time (or money!) for staff retreats. However, continuing to make team-building a priority will continue to pay dividends in this period of an organization’s life. Team-building will help maintain, if not strengthen, your people’s bonds with each other. These bonds can be your best friend as a leader. After all, someone who just cannot be motivated any other way will still come into work just so that they won’t let their buddies down. Again, these bonds are another tool for you as a leader to put into your bag.

3. Give your people something to look forward to.

Just because the end is near doesn’t mean that your role as the organization’s visionary is over with! Give your people something to look forward to. Plan a party for the last day of work. Or, promise (and deliver on) a generous severance package. The point is that they will only get it, or be able to participate if they continue to work until the last hour of the last day. You will give them a powerful incentive to stay loyal until the end if you promise even just a small reward for all of their hard work. Trust me, even the promise of a cheesy employee party can go a long way…

4. Carve yourself a new “stick” (and hope you won’t need to use it).

Sometimes even the best leaders will need to bring out their “stick” (discipline program, etc.) to deal with subordinates who just will not perform with the end looming near. However, the end brings out interesting dynamics in your ability to use your stick. For instance, who cares about getting written up when you won’t be climbing that corporate ladder after all? Or, what threat is there in getting fired if your company won’t be around anyways to answer inquiry’s from future employers? And, what’s an extra two days of pay after all? Your challenge as a leader is to find that single, tangible, thing that actually holds sway. While what you may actually be able to do will vary considerably from leader to leader (and never be draconic!), common practices include withholding severance pay or denial of re-hire status for seasonal employees. Nobody wants to use their stick, but sometimes, very rarely, your hand will be forced.

What You Should Take Away:

Terminal leadership is hard. The most important thing that you, as a leader, must take away from this discussion is that what motivates your people will change when the end is coming near. It may not seem like it at first, but the closer the end comes the more your people will change. You should strengthen your bonds with them, strengthen team bonds, give them something to look forward to, and carve yourself a new “stick.” While terminal leadership is hard, it can be done.

What have you, as a leader, done (or seen done) when the curtain was coming down on your organization?

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Kyle Ryman is a guest contributor and author of ProfessionalLeader.com. He is a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army (infantry), and a recent graduate of Texas A&M University with a B.A. in History, Minor in Communications, and Certificate in Leadership Development and Study.

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