Transforming Leadership

Learning As A Way Of Being

2011-04-10T08:22:00.002-04:00

I highly recommend reading Peter Vaill's book Learning As A Way of Being. The book focuses on how to educate for managerial leadership, whether taking place in corporate training programs or higher education. Vaill describes seven qualities of learning as a way of being that are critical for training leaders. The seven qualities of learning proposed by Vaill include:

Self-directed: The learner should be able to manage his/her efforts to confront unique learning challenges.

Creative: An attitude of exploration is needed when confronting novel learning problems.

Expressive: This is learning by doing.

Feeling: The learner needs to be able to deal with feelings of confusion, fear, and incompetence as well as experience the meaning of what is learned.

On-line: Learning takes place within the environments we find ourselves rather than being confined to educational institutions.

Continual: The realization that we are to learn throughout our lives and maintain the mindset of a beginner.

Reflexive: Learn about learning and be aware of one's own learning process.

Vaill explains each of these qualities in depth. The book will be valuable to those responsible for leadership training. It will also provide those who would lead with an understanding of the type of learning that is required to grow into being a leader.

Start

2011-03-27T06:44:00.001-04:00

Leaders create that which does not yet exist. Leaders initiate. In the book Poke the Box, author Seth Godin makes the case for taking the initiative. Those who create, lead, succeed are those who risk being initiators. Godin urges the reader to get in the habit of starting. He addresses the reasons for not taking the initiative and shatters the rationale behind each excuse.

Godin, at the start of the book, outlines the seven imperatives for making something happen. These include: 1. be aware; 2. be educated; 3. be connected; 4. be consistent; 5. build an asset; 6. be productive; 7. ship. To make something happen you need an idea, people to work on it, someplace to make it, raw materials, a way to distribute, finances, and marketing.

This is not a how-to book, though. Poke the Box is a manifesto about starting. There are no set formulas for initiating. There are no road maps for success. Success goes to those who create the maps. Godin’s purpose is to motivate the reader to start. Poke the Box is a quick read; it can be finished in one sitting. Godin doesn’t want you wasting time reading a manual, he wants you to start. Godin’s book is a great place to begin.

Lead With Luv

2011-03-01T22:14:00.000-05:00

Lead With Luv is written as a conversation between business author Ken Blanchard and President Emeritus of Southwest Airlines Colleen Barrett. The main message of the book is that you need to care first about your employees if you want to achieve lasting business success. Southwest Airlines is held up as the role model of a company that gets it right. The authors emphasize that profit is a product of caring. The purpose of a business is to serve—first the employees, then customers, and finally shareholders.

The book is a quick and inspiring read. There are many stories illustrating Southwest’s outstanding customer service. The authors describe what needs to be done to create a caring company, but don’t expect a how-to manual. Do expect to discover how love is relevant to business success in a competitive world.

A Quick Reference on Persuading

2010-06-07T20:43:00.002-04:00

Persuasion is an important skill for leading. For those looking for a quick introduction to the subject, I recommend The Skinny of The Art of Persuasion by Jim Randel. This book provides sound information in an engaging, conversational style. Information is presented in short frames with simple visuals. The information is concise. The essence of the topic is covered in a fun way that keeps the reader’s attention. The book can be read in an hour or so; excellent for people in a hurry or who don’t like to read. For those who want more details on the subject, the reading list at the end provides sufficient recommendations. This book is a good introduction to the subject and a handy resource. There is even a removable bookmark printed with the nine rules of persuasion the reader may use as a quick reference. A good book for those new to the subject or for those who want a quick refresher.

Most Influential Books On Leadership

2009-09-01T14:16:00.002-04:00

An informal survey done over the listserv of the International Leadership Association resulted in the following list of most influential books on leadership. I came across this list in Deeper Learning in Leadership by Dennis C. Roberts.

International Dimensions of Organizational Behavior by N. Adler
Integrating the Individual and the Organization by C. Argyris
Knowledge for Action by C. Argyris
Social Foundations of Thought and Action by A. Bandura
On the Nature of Leadership by R. Barker
Bass & Stogdill's Handbook of Leadership by B. Bass
Leadership and Performance Beyond Expectations by B. Bass & B. Avolio
Spiral Dynamics by D. Beck & C. Cowan
Leaders by W. Bennis & B. Nanus
Stewardship by P. Block
Thought As A System by D. Bohm
Power Up by D. Bradford & A. Cohen
The Student Leadership Guide by B. Burchard
Leadership by J. M. Burns
Philosophical Foundations of Leadership by D. Cawthon
The Courageous Follower by I. Chaleff
Leadership Theory and Research by M. Chemers & R. Ayman
To Lead The Way by D. B. Clark
The Charismatic Leader by J. Conger
Principle Centered Leadership by S. Covey
The 8th Habit by S. Covey
The Deep Blue Sea by W. Drath
A Theory of Leadership Effectiveness by F. Fiedler
New Approaches to Effective Leadership by F. Fiedler & J. Garcia
Paradigms and Promises by W. Foster
The Reconstruction of Leadership by W. Foster
Nuts! by K. Frieberg & J. Frieberg
The Leadership Investment by R. Fulmer
On Leadership by J. Gardner
Leadership the Eleanor Roosevelt Way by R. Gerber
Servant Leadership by R. K. Greenleaf & L. C. Spears
Leadership by M. Hackman & C. Johnson
The Leadership Secrets of Colin Powell by O. Harari
Leadership Without Easy Answers by R. Heifetz
Kinds of Power by J. Hillman
Leadership by R. L. Hughes, R. C. Ginnett, & G. J. Curphy
The Social Psychology of Organizations by D. Katz & R. Kahn
Exploring Leadership by S. R. Komives, N. Lucas, & T. R. McMahon
The Leadership Challenge by J. Kouzes & B. Pozner
Leadership On The Line by M. Linsky & R. Heifetz
The Connective Edge by J. Lipman-Blumen
SuperLeadership by C. Manz & H. Sims
The Leader, the Led, and the Psyche by B. Mazlish
The Leadership Odyssey by C. S. Napolitano & L. J. Henderson
Leadership by P. Northouse
The Adventure of Working Abroad by J. Osland
Surfing the Edge of Chaos by R. Pascale, M. Milleman, & L. Gioja
In Search of Excellence by T. Peters & R. H. Waterman
Lincoln on Leadership by D. Phillips
Ready To Lead? by A. Price
Leading People From The Middle by W. Robinson
Leadership for the Twenty-First Century by J. Rost
Organizational Culture and Leadership by E. H. Schein
Leadership in Administration by P. Selznick
The Fifth Discipline by P. M. Senge
Insights on Leadership by L. Spears
Policy Paradox by D. A. Stone
Leadership and the New Science by M. J. Wheatley
A Theory of Everything by K. Wilber
The Leader's Companion by T. Wren
Leadership in Organizations by G. Yukl
The Nature of Executive Leadership by S. Zaccaro

"Bad" Leaders Revisited

2009-08-12T05:20:00.001-04:00

Someone on the Learn To Lead network (http://learntolead.ning.com) responded to my blog posting entitled “Are There Bad Leaders?” The posting originally appeared in this blog on October 8, 2007. The responder began his comments by saying there are of course bad leaders and ended arguing that there have to be or how else can we decide who are the “good” leaders. His comments prompted me to elaborate further why I asked the original question.

People seldom get to choose their manager—whether in sports or the workplace. Having a position, however, does not make one a leader. Management is based on position while leadership is founded on relationship. People “obey” a manager and “follow” a leader. The difference between a manager and a leader is also based on perspective and focus. See my blog post entitled “What Leaders Do.”

In true leadership followers choose the leader by deciding to follow someone. When followers withdraw their loyalty, that someone ceases to be the leader. People may still obey the individual but will not be followers. Take Hitler for an extreme example. There were some who followed Hitler as their leader to the end. They never stopped believing in the man, his values, or what he was striving to accomplish. Others, though, became disillusioned. They no longer believed in the man and his cause. They may have continued to obey Hitler, though, out of fear of the consequences of not doing so. This made Hitler their dictator, not their leader.

I don’t perceive people judging a person to be a “bad” leader and then continuing to consider that person to be their leader. They may continue to obey but not to follow. As I have argued in previous blog postings, leadership is a system; it is a relationship. When followers withdraw their loyalty from a leader, they destroy the system. They now judge the lead person from outside the system, outside the leadership relationship. I don’t believe that people choose to follow someone they perceive to be “bad.” That label is applied by those who are outside the leadership system. I judge as “bad” those I do not consider to be my leader.

That leads to the question the responder raised at the end of his comment. How are we to decide who is a “good” leader and who is a “bad” one? The way to answer that is to say that there are those who are leaders and those who are not. A more disturbing question is how do we know we are following a “good” leader? We continue to follow someone because we consider them to be “good.” Others, though, may judge that individual as “bad.” Who is correct? Whose judgment prevails? Are we unknowingly following “bad” leaders? How are we to know? Who is to decide?

Stop Talking, Start Acting

2009-07-30T14:41:00.001-04:00

I am tired of listening and talking about what is wrong with the workplace, the community, the country, the environment, education, etc., etc. etc. I have decided it is time to act. If there is something I think should be changed, I consider what I can do to start that change. Then I do it. If I am not willing to contribute to the solution, then I stop complaining about the problem.

If you share my frustration and are ready to take action, the place to start is to identify other like-minded individuals. Approach them about collaborating on addressing mutual concerns. Share ideas, resources, and connections. Decide on what actions you each will take individually and jointly. Schedule times to follow up with each other to provide support and accountability.

When deciding how to contribute to changing the situation you are addressing, focus your actions on what you have control and influence over. Small actions can have large results. Your initiative may ignite others to take action. As you identify interested people, recruit them into your group of collaborators.

Each of us is more powerful than we imagine. By exhibiting our own commitment to a cause, we give others the courage to come forward. By then uniting our energies and expertise, we have the start of a movement.

It would behoove us to keep in mind the words of John F. Kennedy: “There are risks and costs to a program of action. But they are far less than the long-range risks and costs of comfortable inaction.” Stop talking, start acting. Lead now!

The Education of a Leader

2009-07-29T08:18:00.001-04:00

It can be edifying to know how accomplished leaders learned to lead. To understand how George Washington became educated in leadership, I recommend reading John Ferling’s new book, The Ascent of George Washington. Ferling has authored an informative narrative of Washington’s education as a leader.

The focus of the book is on Washington’s political life. The author goes behind the myths to reveal Washington’s political flaws and genius. The portrait of Washington that emerges is of an adroit politician. Ferling gives a balanced perspective. Washington is revealed as having been enormously ambitious and driven to succeed. He was quick to claim credit for the accomplishments of others and skilled at laying blame on others for his own failures. He was expert at self-promotion. He was a poor tactician and strategist and commonly indecisive in a crisis. Yet Ferling believes Washington may have been the only person equipped to lead the American colonies to independence and to guide the fledgling nation. Washington’s character, judgment, courage, industriousness, persistence, and political skills set him apart from his contemporaries. Ferling’s book is an engaging study of how one does not need to be perfect to achieve greatness.

Tribes

2009-07-28T09:54:00.002-04:00

I highly recommend Tribes by Seth Godin. Godin is one of my favorite authors because he gets me thinking in new ways. The essence of Godin's message in Tribes is that you have what it takes to lead, we need you to lead, so just do it. I have decided I will use Tribes as the text for the university leadership capstone course at I teach. Godin provides no formulas. He does stimulate thinking and inspires the reader to take action. My experience is that we learn to lead by leading. There are no set ways to lead. Each circumstance is different. What is key is the mindset we bring to the situation. Shaping the way we think is Godin's strength. Don't expect to find in this book step-by-step instructions on how to lead. Many authors, consultants, and teachers try to sell us such pat answers. There aren't any. Read Tribes and dare to accept Godin's challenge to lead.

Find Your Passion

2009-04-06T13:02:00.002-04:00

Leaders are passionate. They care deeply about something. It is the leader’s enthusiasm that attracts followers to an issue.

Leaders do not push or pull people to do things; leaders attract people to become involved. What attracts people will differ based on the needs and values of the people involved and the circumstances in which they find themselves. However, a leader cannot generate enthusiasm in others if that leader is not enthused.

Passion releases what I call the E-Forces: Excitement, Enthusiasm, Energy, Effort. Excitement is the physical sensation that passion arouses within us. Enthusiasm is our mind focusing our excitement on a specific target. Energy is the power generated by our passion. Effort is the outward manifestation of our passion in the form of action.

I don’t recall where I first came across this exercise, but it may help you to uncover your own passion. Start by completing the following sentence stems:
My heart pounds with excitement when….
I feel especially good about myself when….
I get a lump in my throat when….
I lose track of time whenever I am….
If I could be any person in history, I would be….
When I dream about my future, I see myself….
If I could change one thing about the world, it would be….

Study your responses. What do they reveal about what excites you or what you care about?

You may want to follow up with this next exercise:
1. For one week carry a notepad and record as you do things what activities you loathed or loved.
2. Analyze your log and identify what you enjoy doing.
3. Determine what makes those activities enjoyable. Consider place, time of day, people present, skills used, degree of achievement, etc.
4. Consider how what you are passionate about relates to your development as a leader.

Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.” Find your passion and discover your own greatness.

Adrenalin Rush

2009-03-28T08:04:00.000-04:00

Leaders do not push and pull people toward a goal. That is management. Leaders attract people to a vision. Followers are attracted by the leader’s passion and confidence in the vision. Followers are drawn to who the leader is and what the leader stands for. The leader cannot spark excitement in others if the leader is unexcited.

If you hope to lead, you need to care about something. There has to be something that excites you, energizes you, moves you. Want to be a leader? Start by discovering what sparks your excitement. What is it that gives you an adrenalin rush?

The Origins of Leadership

2009-03-07T05:45:00.003-05:00

A discussion on the new network site Learn To Lead at http://learntolead.ning.com (I invite you to join the network) prompted me to think about the origins of leadership. I hadn’t thought about this before. As I did begin to ponder the question of how leadership began, it occurred to me that perhaps it emerged from our animal origins. Animal societies are often headed by an alpha individual. This reminded me of something in an audio course published by the company The Modern Scholar. The course is Ideas That Shaped Mankind by Felip Fernandez-Armesto. I highly recommend the course. Fernandez-Armesto speaks of the evolution of leadership. He mentions that in non-human primate groups the alpha male imposed leadership through intimidation and violence. This is leading by physical power. With the emergence of priest-like figures, leading through the power of thought and imagination came on the scene. Here we have the appearance of charisma. A knowledge class arises. During the Ice Age, hereditary leadership develops.

This ties in with a chapter on the charismatic leader in a book by Garry Wills titled Certain Trumpets. In charismatic leadership authority derives from one person because of that individual's privileged position with God. The successors to this person derive their authority from their relationship with the charismatic individual. This is traditional leadership. When tradition weakens, authority is established by agreement and becomes legalistic leadership.

Why think about the origins of leadership? Donella H. Meadows in a new book entitled Thinking in Systems mentions that to understand a system we need to learn its history. I have written before of my view of leadership as a system. Knowing how leadership has evolved can aid our understanding of our current perceptions on leadership. Being aware of leadership’s past and present can stimulate our thinking about how to shape the future of leadership.

Join The Network

2009-03-03T09:04:00.001-05:00

In one of the university leadership courses I teach, the students and I were exploring ways to break out beyond the classroom to extend our opportunities for learning how to become better leaders. As a result of that discussion, I have started an online network called Learn To Lead. I invite the readers of this blog to join us at http://learntolead.ning.com. The intent of the network is to create a forum where college students and lifelong learners may support each other in becoming better leaders. It is a place to share your questions, experiences, thoughts, and resources with fellow learners on the subject of leadership. It is also a way to help educate our young leaders. I invite you to join the journey.

Lessons Are Everywhere

2009-03-02T08:45:00.001-05:00

Ever notice that once something enters into your awareness you see it everywhere. You decide on the model automobile you want to buy and you begin seeing numerous drivers on the road driving that same model. You purchase a new laptop computer and suddenly become conscious of how many others at the airport have the same brand.

My passion is leadership. As a result of my heightened awareness on the subject, I glean lessons about leadership from all aspects of life. That is why I enjoy books that open my eyes to how a seemingly unrelated subject can provide me with lessons about leadership. Such a book I have recently read is Leadership Texas Hold ‘Em Style by Andrew J. Harvey and Raymond E. Foster. The authors describe leadership lessons to be learned through the game of poker. I had fun learning something about the intricacies of card playing. What surprised me, though, was what can be learned about leadership from a game of cards. The authors do not belabor the analogy between cards and leadership. Instead, they use poker as a lead-in to the skills of leading. This book is no fluff piece. Both authors have had long careers in law enforcement and higher education. From their own leadership experiences and studies, they describe in detail the many skills required of leaders. What I found different about this book is that while many books describe what leaders need to do, in this book the authors explain how to do it. I recommend this book.

I also recommend you notice the leadership lessons all around you in the things important to you. I enjoy nature, drumming, cooking, exercising, reading. Each of these interests has taught me how to be a better leader. I have even incorporated these interests in my leadership work with students and clients. Allow the world to be your teacher. You will discover that lessons are everywhere.

Urgency, Not Panic

2008-12-12T15:50:00.001-05:00

John Kotter, whose work I have referred to in previous posts, has authored a new book entitled A Sense of Urgency. In earlier books Kotter identified creating a sense of urgency as the first step in leading change. In this latest book he explores this critical step in more depth. The book comes at an appropriate time. The world economy currently appears to be primarily panic driven. Those who would survive the current chaos must transform panic into urgency.

Kotter describes a true sense of urgency as a drive to win now. Urgency is a positive and focused force. There is recognition that action on critical issues is needed now. Unproductive activities are quickly jettisoned. Effort is put into that which is productive.

Kotter explains four tactics for creating urgency. Bringing the outside in involves connecting the organization with external opportunities and dangers. Second is behaving with urgency every day. Finding opportunity in crisis is the third tactic. The last tactic is removing or neutralizing those internal players who would dampen a sense of urgency. Refer to Kotter’s book to discover how to implement these four tactics.

Current circumstances call for urgent action. Kotter seeks to guide us in leading such action.

Always Leading

2008-08-13T12:16:00.001-04:00

Ben Simonton, author of Leading People to be Highly Motivated and Committed, posted a comment to my last blog entry. His remarks prompted me to think that managers are always leading people. Through their actions and interactions, managers are either leading people to effective or ineffective performance. It is often said that people can only be led; things or processes are managed. How a manager interacts with followers will determine if that manager is “leading” people to productive or unproductive actions.

I suggest reading Ben’s comments and my reply. Also click on his interview. His concept about growing people to become non-followers is one I find especially intriguing.

My last post also prompted an email from the Harvard Business Press informing me that they have a John Kotter page on their website-- http://blogs.harvardbusiness.org/kotter/. I found the video interview with John Kotter informative.

Transitioning From Manager To Leader

2008-08-06T13:05:00.001-04:00

Managing and leading are not the same. Each requires different actions and, more importantly, different ways of thinking. In previous postings I have described the differences between managing and leading. In my most recent entry on this subject I described the differentiation John Kotter makes between those who manage and those who lead. Managers plan, organize, control, and preserve order. Leaders establish direction, align people with that direction, and inspire people to move in the desired direction. Leaders encourage change.

Change requires moving outside the familiar. This often involves breaking longstanding rules and expectations. Think of a time when you productively broke the rules. What prompted you to break the rules? What did the effort require of you? What are the lessons you learned that may be applied to leading? What are obstacles to breaking the rules? Pondering these questions can help you learn from your own experiences of initiating change. How can you bolster your courage and skills to lead change?

Leaders think in broader terms than managers. Managers focus on the more immediate goals and needs of the organization. Leaders need to take a wider and more long-term perspective. In the book Personal and Organizational Transformations Through Action Inquiry Dalmar Fisher, David Rooke, and Bill Torbert identify four territories of experience. If you want to transition to a lead role, it is important to consciously address each of these territories.

The first territory is intentionality. This encompasses consideration of purpose, vision, intuition, direction. The second territory is planning. This includes strategies, tactics, plans. The third territory involves action. Behaviors, skills, activities, deeds, and performance are the elements within this territory of experience. The final territory is outcomes, which includes results, events, consequences, effects, and assessments.

A leader first considers the big picture. What is the mission, purpose, or overall direction for the organization? What is the vision of what is trying to be created? What is the organization striving to intentionally bring into being? When the purpose is clear, planning may begin to determine appropriate strategies and tactics to achieve that purpose. The plan then needs to be implemented and the results assessed. But assessment is not to be limited to simply the outcomes. A more extensive evaluation is necessary using what Fisher, Rooke, and Torbert call triple-loop inquiry.

The first inquiry loop examines the skillfulness of the actions and behaviors that led to the results. Could the actions have been more skillful? If so, what can be done to become more skilled? The second inquiry loop focuses on assessing whether or not the original plans and strategies still make sense based on the results. Would a change in plans yield better results? The third loop in the inquiry process considers if the original intentions remain realistic in light of the outcomes. This three-stage inquiry process examines all four territories of experience to determine if adjustments are needed in the implementation of a change initiative.

To transition from managing to leading, focus on what leaders do—establish direction, align people with the direction, inspire people to act, and produce change. Also think like a leader. Consider the four territories of experience—intention, planning, action, and outcomes. Then learn like a leader by undertaking triple-loop inquiry to assess your actions, your plans, and your intentions. As you act and think as a leader, you will grow to be a leader.

Leadership Culture

2008-06-24T11:19:00.001-04:00

In his research, Harvard professor John Kotter has identified six key elements present in organizational cultures known for attracting and developing leaders. These organizations stress: freedom to act, responsibility for end results, freedom to disagree and challenge, development of people, building competence, and recognizing individuality. In many organizations there is talk of developing leaders but not all provide the environment for such development to occur. If your organization is sending you for leader training or you are pursuing such development on your own, use Kotter’s culture checklist to assess whether or not your organization will truly foster your growth as a leader. Leadership facilitates change. This can be threatening to those at the top of an organization. You can be set up for failure if you attempt to exert leadership in a culture that does not support such initiatives. Individual development occurs within a context. It is not enough to be personally motivated to develop your skills as a leader. The organizational culture you are in must encourage the application of those skills.

What Leaders Do

2008-04-25T05:41:00.002-04:00

If we are to develop our abilities to lead, we need to be clear about what leaders do. Leading is distinct from managing. I have written about this distinction before. The clearest explanation I have come across of the difference between managing and leading comes from John P. Kotter in his book A Force for Change. Following is a summary of Kotter’s explanation. I recommend reading his book to gain a deeper understanding of the distinction between managers and leaders.

Managers plan and budget. They establish the steps needed to achieve specific results, create a timeline for completing those steps, and obtain the resources necessary for goal accomplishment. Leaders establish direction. They develop a vision of the future and determine the strategies for producing the desired change.

Managers organize and staff. They establish the structure needed to implement the plan and then acquire and assign the needed personnel. Managers delegate responsibility and authority to complete tasks, establish policies and procedures to guide behavior, and create systems to monitor performance. Leaders align people. They communicate the vision to those whose cooperation is needed and form coalitions to support the change.

Managers control and problem solve. They monitor results and take action to correct deviations from the plan. Leaders motivate and inspire. They energize people to overcome barriers to change.

Managers produce order. Their job is to establish stability, predictability, and consistency. Leaders produce change. Their role is to disrupt the status quo and encourage creativity and innovation.

Success comes to organizations by balancing managing and leading. Too much managing brings about stagnation. An excess of leading creates chaos. By understanding how leading and managing differ, we can better ensure that both functions are fulfilled.

My experience is that most organizations suffer from a leadership void. In my next entry I will discuss the organizational culture required to develop leaders.

Journaling

2008-04-15T03:48:00.001-04:00

Journaling is an important tool for self-development. There are many forms of journaling. One practice is called “morning pages.” Developed by author and artist Julia Cameron, this process involves starting each day by simply writing three pages in your journal. Just keep writing without stopping. The regular act of writing can uncover new discoveries about you.

There are more intentional forms of journaling. For example, when struggling with a problem, it is useful to dialogue with yourself in your journal. Ask yourself a question and then write the answers that emerge.

You may also use questions to explore your inner terrain. Following are some starter questions you might journal about as a follow up to the process I outlined in the previous entry entitled “It’s About You”.

Who am I?
Who do I want to be?
Who do others think I am?
What do I identify with?
Who would I like to be like?
Who are my heroes?
What do I wish people knew about me?
What do I not want others to know about me?
How would I like others to see me?
What is the image I project as a leader?
What image would I like to convey as a leader?
Who are leaders I admire? Why?

It's About You

2008-04-06T14:54:00.002-04:00

You learn to lead by leading. Book learning cannot substitute for experience. However, you can prepare yourself and hone your skills to lead.

Leading starts with being a leader. This involves an inner journey of discovery. To develop yourself as a leader begins with discovering who you are. What do you value? What is your life’s purpose? What is your vision of what you are striving to create with your life? What are your strengths and weaknesses? It is from your sense of identity that your actions emerge. Your actions beget outer results.

This shall be the first in a series of blog entries about becoming a leader. I shall lead you on an inner journey of discovery to find the leader within.

You are multifaceted. You are body, mind, soul, and spirit. To uncover the many facets of your identity, complete the sentence stem “I am…” at least thirty times with a different answer each time. What do your answers reveal about who you are?

Now complete the sentence stem “I am a leader because….” What does your answer reveal about your identity as a leader?

I stated that you are body, mind, soul, and spirit. A focus on your body involves strengthening physical wellness. Concern for mind is about developing your intellectual capacity. Soul work refers to deepening your awareness of your inner connection with the universal. To nurture spirit involves expanding your consciousness of the unity of all creation. We shall address all four of these aspects of self as we progress through this leader development process.

Let’s take a moment now to connect with your soul. The soul is the presence of the universal deep within you. You may refer to the universal with whatever term is meaningful for you—God, Divine, Creator, Cosmic Consciousness, Universe. To connect with this ultimate source, try the following exercise.
1. Start by becoming aware of your surroundings.
2. Then shift your awareness to your body.
(It may be helpful to close your eyes as you do the next steps in the exercise.)
3. Observe your physical sensations.
4. Next observe your emotions.
5. Then observe your thoughts. Simply allow your thoughts to pass through your mind as though you are watching clouds in the sky drift past.
6. Now observe yourself observing.

Who is doing the observing? This observer is sometimes referred to as “The Witness.” It is the “I” that is present in all humans. It is the universal “I am.”

The exercise demonstrates that you are able to detach yourself from your surroundings, body, sensations, emotions, thoughts, and ego. This means you are not these. You are not that which you can observe. You are that with which you identify. You are not controlled by that which you are able to observe. What you identify with controls you. If you are able to remain aware of your body, emotions, thoughts, and ego, you can then consciously choose what you shall respond to and how to respond.

This ability to observe is a key skill for fostering your own development. As you uncover aspects of yourself that you may find troubling, remember that if you are able to observe those things within you it indicates that you are not those characteristics. The thoughts or emotions you uncover may be within you, but the fact that you are able to look at them means they are not you. The ability to detach and observe frees you from being controlled by that which you are observing. By separating yourself from that which is being observed, you are in a position to consciously decide whether or not to act on your emotions or thoughts. They no longer control you. You are now in control. This expansion of consciousness is a crucial aspect of your spiritual development. The ultimate goal of personal development is to identify with Spirit--the ground of all being. It is then that we discover who we really are.

To live consciously in any moment, be aware of:
Your feelings
Your thoughts
Your behaviors
Your results
Your feelings are generated by what you think. Your feelings and thoughts generate behaviors. Your behaviors determine your results. Assess your results. If they are satisfactory, continue doing what you have been doing. If you want different results, determine what behaviors will get you the desired results. Then what must you change about how you think in order to generate those new behaviors?

To continue your self-exploration, respond to the following statements:
1. Why I want to be a leader.
2. My strengths as a leader.
3. My weaknesses as a leader.
4. What I want to learn about leading.

In my next entry, I will introduce an important personal development tool—journaling.

The Simple Things

2007-12-24T05:52:00.000-05:00

It came to me in a dream:

Try harder to do the simple things.

So what are the simple things of leading?

Listening. Listening connects us with others. It is through listening that we learn the needs and motivations of others. This knowledge provides us with the reasons people will follow. As leaders we discover how we may move and serve our followers. Listening also connects us with ourselves. By listening inwardly we discover our mission and passion, the forces that compel us to lead.

Courage. Courage provides the will to lead. Courage feeds our faith and counters our doubts. Courage keeps us moving forward despite the obstacles we encounter.

Through listening we discover our call to lead; through courage we nurture our will to lead. Listening gives us a reason to lead; courage provides us with the strength to lead.

Now, may each of us have the courage to listen.

Lead By Listening

2007-10-27T22:25:00.000-04:00

Listening is an act of vulnerability. To truly listen is to open ourselves to being changed.

Listening requires loosening our focus on self. To listen is to put our focus on the sender’s message. It is allowing ourselves to be influenced by what we hear. It is a blurring of boundaries between sender and receiver. Both enter into each other.

The sender we listen to may be another person. The sender may also be an aspect of ourselves. Listening requires silence. We must stop talking to hear. Periods of solitary silence allow us to hear the varied voices within us. We discover our own multiplicity. Paying attention to the various perspectives within us allows for more balanced decisions. The same is true when we listen to others. Listening to others also builds understanding and trust. When followers feel listened to, they are more apt to support the leader’s decision. Followers feel their input has been considered and perhaps even incorporated into the final decision.

Followers will trust, though, only if they experience the leader as having genuinely listened. Sincere listening means the leader is willing to be influenced by what is heard. This does not mean that the leader will necessarily change. The leader may decide to continue on the original course of action. However, the leader who genuinely listens is willing to change. This requires that the leader not identify with his or her opinions, decisions, or actions. We are quick to defend ourselves when threatened. If we believe our ideas, perspectives, behaviors represent who we are, we will feel threatened whenever someone disagrees with us. If we separate ourselves from our thoughts, feelings, and actions, we can then observe them and more objectively compare what others share with us. If we can observe it, whatever it is, we are not it.

To be a leader who listens requires courage. Listening opens us to learning. Learning takes us to our edge, the boundary separating the known from the unknown. This means living with uncertainty. Uncertainty is an obstacle to control. Control bolsters our sense of stability and security. This is why listening makes us vulnerable. It exposes us to the unknown. But the unknown is where leaders live. Leaders create that which does not yet exist. We cannot know what does not yet exist. All we can know is what is or has been. Leaders take self and followers to the edge of the known and move into the unknown.

What does it mean to lead by listening? It means to learn, to grow, to experiment; always with an ear to the messages experience sends us.

Are There Bad Leaders?

2007-10-08T15:34:00.000-04:00

Is there such a thing as a bad leader? Followers choose their leader by choosing to follow. If followers become dissatisfied with their leader, they can choose to no longer follow. The person in the lead no longer has a following and is thereby no longer a leader. A leader may be judged as bad by those who are not followers. They may consider the proclaimed leader as ineffective or immoral and judge the person as a poor or bad leader. The followers of that leader, however, continue to choose to follow so must judge that individual worthy for some reason. I am not speaking of people who continue to obey out of fear someone they once selected as a leader. Such individuals are no longer being led but are being bullied. A leader is chosen by the followers. As long as there are those who choose to follow, they must still believe in the effectiveness or worthiness of the leader. They would not consider their leader to be bad. If I perceived someone to be a “bad leader,” I would not give them my loyalty. I follow those I believe to be “good leaders.” So, is there such a thing as a “bad leader?”

What Differentiates Leaders and Managers

2007-09-09T09:18:00.000-04:00

What differentiates leaders and managers is a question that commonly arises during discussions of leadership. I have addressed some of these differences in previous blog postings. Following are additional thoughts on this question.

One key difference is that a manager's authority derives from the organization while a leader's authority comes from the followers. People do as a manager says because the organization has given the manager the authority to speak and act on behalf of the organization. If employees wish to remain in the organization, they must respect the manager's authority. Employees may not respect the manager, but they do respect the authority the manager has been given. Followers follow the direction of leaders by choice. The leader remains in the lead role only as long as followers choose to follow. Followers can revoke a leader's authority by withdrawing their consent to follow.

A consideration of authority leads to a discussion of power. Managers tend to use power derived from their position and their control of rewards and punishments. Positional or legitimate power derives from the manager's position in the organization. This pertains to the above discussion on authority. Reward power derives from the manager's ability to award benefits people are seeking. Coercive power issues from the manager's ability to impose negative consequences. The power exercised by leaders tends to emerge from what the leader knows or who the leader is. Expert power is based on expertise, special skills, or particular knowledge possessed by the leader and perceived as valuable by followers. Referent power arises from desirable resources or traits the leader possesses.

Following are some additional differences to add to those described in previous postings.

Managers vs. Leaders
Seek control vs. Seek influence
Pull, prod, push followers vs. Attract followers
Emphasize what is visible vs. Emphasize what is invisible
Focus on doing vs. Focus on becoming
Concerned about the physical vs. Concerned about the spiritual
Goal oriented vs. Mission oriented
Focus on the parts vs. Focus on the whole
Provide form & structure vs. Provide meaning
Stay within the boundaries vs. Play with the boundaries
Preserve stability vs. Promote instability
Efficient vs. Effective
Do things right vs. Do the right things
Needs-driven vs. Values-led
Short-term perspective vs. Long-term perspective
Administer what already exists vs. Create what does not yet exist
Administer resources vs. Steward resources
Train for skill development vs. Train for self development
Influence through power & authority vs. Influence through love & caring
Expect followers to serve vs. Seek to serve followers

Leading As Self-Expression

2007-08-23T11:23:00.000-04:00

Leading is not so much about what a leader does as it is about who the leader is. Leading is an act of self-expression.

This expression may not be conscious. However, the leader’s actions still emerge from within whether the actions are initiated consciously or unconsciously. The leader’s effectiveness can be improved through increased self-awareness.

What is the self-conscious leader to hold in awareness? Since we are complex beings, our awareness needs to be multifaceted. Our actions emerge from a myriad of interrelated factors. These include, but are by no means limited to, our values, goals, roles, thoughts, feelings, prejudices, intentions, moods, assumptions, attitudes, circumstances, environment; the list goes on. It is unlikely that we can be aware of all the underlying factors influencing our actions. However, the more aspects of our inner and outer environments we can be aware of, the better our ability to make conscious choices regarding our behaviors. Such awareness requires cultivating the skill of mindfulness. As we become more mindful of more aspects of ourselves, we attain increased self-control. As a result we can better lead ourselves and thereby become better leaders of others.

The Questioning Leader

2007-05-26T11:03:00.000-04:00

Yes, I am still on the question kick. My focus on questions got me thinking about the importance of questions to leading.

Leaders may use questions to focus followers’ attention. Asking questions is a gentle way for leaders to move followers’ attention to whatever the leader thinks is important. Questions also initiate learning. Learning is prompted by the desire to know something, either out of mere curiosity or because of a need to solve a problem or to improve in some way. Asking questions prompts the search for answers. The search for answers cultivates growth and development.

Questions can introduce us to new ways of thinking. Asking “what if” questions can spark creative thinking that may lead to innovative solutions. Questions can lead us to adopt new perspectives and acquire new skills. Questions can draw us beyond our conceived limits to explore new possibilities.

Questions are a leader’s tool to get followers to take ownership of goals and plans. When asked questions and guided in discovering answers, followers actively participate in the identification and implementation of solutions to shared problems. The answers that emerge are those of the followers and not the sole possession of the leader. This empowers followers. They experience the power of taking responsibility for their own destiny.

A key way leaders can contribute to the growth and development of followers, and thereby to the development of leadership, is to ask questions. So, when leading, rather than promote answers, prompt questions. Then lead the followers to answering those questions.

101 Questions

2007-05-25T10:17:00.000-04:00

Another question. If everyone thinks of himself or herself as being right, what can be considered as wrong? Facts are disputed, scholars disagree, morals differ. Who is right? Who is wrong? Is there a right and a wrong?

What are the implications of this question to leadership? Are there good leaders and bad? If someone is a leader, then there are others who choose to follow that person. Do people choose a leader they consider to be bad? I am not referring to people obeying an authority out of fear. I am speaking of someone who is truly a leader; someone who people freely choose to follow. There are those who choose to follow the lead of George W. Bush. They even follow him to war. There are others who would not follow him to the corner store. Those who consider him to be a leader think he is doing a good job. Others do not consider him to be a leader at all. Who is right and who is wrong?

When we are in a lead role, how do we determine when we are right and when we are wrong? Does it depend on how many people choose to follow us? How about those individuals who we now hold in high esteem who in their time were generally rejected?

I don’t have answers to the questions I pose. Even if I did, would it make any difference? If you agreed with my answers, you would consider me to be right. If you disagreed with me, you would say I was wrong.

There is always “maybe.”

100 Questions

2007-05-24T06:24:00.000-04:00

Last September Dropping Knowledge brought together 112 leading thinkers from 56 countries to respond to the top 100 questions posed by individuals from around the globe. The questions and answers are posted on the organization’s website (www.droppingknowledge.org).

What question would you pose? One I have is why do we continue to do what we know does not work? I continually hear people complain about their jobs, their organizations, their relationships. Yet when asked what they will do to change the situation, the answer I usually hear is that nothing can be done. Then I hear all the rationalizations explaining why change cannot happen. As I heard one speaker say, to rationalize is to perpetuate “rational lies.”

It is not that changes cannot be made; it is that we won’t make the needed changes. It is easier and safer to stay with what we know even when it doesn’t work than to exert the effort and take the risk of creating something different.

Why won’t we change what we know doesn’t work? I say the primary reason is fear. Change requires courage, commitment, and community. The leader is that individual who is willing to step forward with a vision and to provide the support and create the community needed to facilitate change. Change can happen if we work together.

So, what question would you pose to the world?

From Good To Great

2007-05-13T06:25:00.000-04:00

What differentiates a good leader from a great leader? Good leaders have a passion for their vision. Great leaders, however, go beyond possessing passion for a vision. Great leaders also care passionately about their followers. Great leaders are energized by a vision because they understand how that vision will serve the followers. What drives great leaders is not their passion for their vision but their compassion for their followers. Great leaders understand how the vision they hold can benefit their followers. Followers respond to great leaders because the followers feel cared about. What moves leaders from being good to being great is moving from caring primarily for the vision to caring more about the followers.

There is no set formula for leading. Different approaches are employed by different leaders with equal success. What really matters, in my view, is the connection between leader and follower. The great leader answers the key question in followers’ minds—“Why does this vision matter?” Great leaders make the vision relevant to followers’ lives now and for the future.

Great leading, then, fulfills the call to serve. It is not a mission or a vision or a goal that leaders are called to serve. Leaders serve human beings. If leaders do not serve who they lead, then it does not matter how good the leadership techniques. It is when followers experience what is in the hearts of their leader that the leader will move from being a good leader to being a leader who is great.

Choice Not Coercion

2007-03-18T08:00:00.000-04:00

Can one lead those who do not want to be lead? The short answer is no. Followers choose their leader by choosing to follow. To coerce compliance is not leading, it is bullying. Leadership is based on the free choice of the followers. So how do you get others to follow? Give them a compelling reason to want to follow. Tap into their source of motivation. This means either satisfy a need the followers have or appeal to their values. Leadership is driven by desire not fear. Leadership is founded upon choice not coercion.

Appreciative Inquiry

2007-02-24T15:32:00.000-05:00

As we strive to develop our ability to lead, we typically focus on what we are doing wrong and what needs to be “fixed.” This focus on problems generates a keen awareness of what is not working. What gets lost is an awareness of what is working.

Appreciative Inquiry is a generative change process that begins with identifying what works and then analyzing how to do more of the same. AI operates from the assumption that in every society, organization, or group something works. We can apply this at the individual level as well. All of us are doing things in our lives that are working.

Following is an AI inspired approach you may take to improve your own performance as a leader. Start by inquiring about your own successes. These questions can help you explore what you are doing well:

1. What attracted you to be a leader?
2. Describe a specific time or situation when you felt most alive, involved, excited about your role as a leader.
3. Locate a time in your leader role when you felt most effective and successful. Describe how you felt and what made the situation possible.
4. What do you value most about yourself as a leader?
5. Based on your answers to the above questions, what are some key factors that if present, could replicate the peak experiences from your past?

Taking the key elements that emerge from your inquiry, write an affirmative statement that describes the idealized future as if it were already happening. This statement is to envision you performing at your best. It depicts the future you want to create. This is no idle dream disconnected from reality. Your future vision is based on the best from your past performance. You have already proven it is something you are capable of. And as you grow toward your ideal, you will discover that you are not only capable of more but you are more than who you thought you were. As you appreciate your past, you create your future.

Leaders Don't Settle

2007-01-16T12:07:00.000-05:00

Leaders don’t settle for the status quo. They are continually compelled to create anew. Leaders have a vision of what they want to create. Leaders are passionate about their vision and enthusiastic about manifesting that vision in reality. It is that passion and enthusiasm that attracts others to follow and participate in realizing the vision.

Leading Is Creating

2006-12-19T07:25:00.000-05:00

Leaders create that which does not yet exist. Yet leaders need not be creative to create.

Creating is to take action to change reality. It is to bring something into being. What is created may not be unique. Creativity usually refers to originality. But to create something does not require that the creation be something that has never been done before. To create is to simply bring something into existence within a time and place in which that something did not before exist.

Differentiating between creating and creativity can encourage individuals to lead. Leading does not require originality. The leader does not have to invent something that has never been done before. What the leader does is originate something within a particular context. What the leader implements may have been done elsewhere but not in the time and place in which the leader is currently operating. This frees leaders to learn from others in other places and from other times. Leaders need not reinvent the wheel; they simply apply the wheel where it has not been used before.

The Map Is Not The Territory

2006-11-26T09:13:00.000-05:00

The late Catholic priest and psychotherapist Anthony de Mello in his book The Song of the Bird recalls a story of an explorer who returns to his people, who are eager to know about the Amazon. There is no way he can convey in words his experience of the beauties and dangers of his journey, so he urges them to go and find out for themselves. To guide them he draws a map of the river. The people eagerly study the map and become experts on all the information contained within the map. They eventually come to believe they know everything about the river.

Leaders and followers alike would do well to remember that the map is not the territory. Knowing and experiencing are not identical. Leaders are not simply to provide followers with guidance but are to help followers gain experience. In this way followers attain the experience necessary to lead others through the territory.

Developing new leaders is not the only benefit of learning from experience. It is when you lead from your own experience that you are perceived to be an authentic leader.

Find Your Courage

2006-11-12T09:05:00.000-05:00

Courage is to act in spite of our fear. Fear causes us to consider the consequences of our actions so we do not take foolish risks. Fear can also paralyze us. Courage gives us the power to make choices.

To lead is to create that which does not yet exist. Leaders are change agents. Change generates confusion as we move from the known into the unknown. To clear the confusion we must acquire the competency needed to handle our new circumstances. Increased competency gives us a sense of control over the situation. We gain confidence in our ability to influence events. This bolsters our courage. We become more comfortable with our new circumstances. This can lead to complacency. At this point we either move ourselves into the next stage of change or change finds us. The progression is as follows:

Change → Confusion → Competency → Control → Confidence → Courage → Comfort
→ Complacency → Change

Following are exercises that can help reinforce your courage.

Exercise:
Think of a time you displayed courage. What was the source of your courage? Perhaps it was someone who inspired you. It may have been your values and beliefs that drove you to act. You may have trusted in your skills to give you the ability to handle the situation. Your past experience in similar circumstances may have reinforced your courage to act. Music may have aroused your courage. Identify the sources of your courage.

Fear is in our minds.

Fantasized Driving
Experiences Ourselves
Appearing Unconscious
Real By
Thinking

Rationalize = Rational Lies

Exercise:
To experience the mind/body connection associated with fear, do the following exercise. Close your eyes and recall something that causes you anxiety. When you feel anxious, focus on the physical sensation associated with your anxiety without thinking about what is making you anxious. When you focus on the physical sensation disconnected from the thought causing the anxiety, the anxious feeling will dissipate. Your anxiety will flare as soon as you recall the anxious thought. Use this technique to return yourself to calm whenever you feel anxious.

Our fear is caused by our attachments. We are afraid of losing those things we are attached to. We cling to possessions, lifestyle, self-image, popularity, life. We are controlled by a myriad of attachments. Simply becoming aware of what it is we are afraid of losing can help loosen the grip of those attachments and calm our fears.

Exercise:
Think of something you needlessly feared in the past. List what you had feared would happen. Check which fears were realized. Most likely little if any of what you feared materialized. Use this exercise to strengthen your courage. Before entering into an activity that sparks your anxiety, list everything negative you imagine will happen to you if you proceed to do that which scares you. After completing the anxiety-producing activity, return to your list and identify all your fears that materialized. As you repeatedly discover that your imagination is more fearsome than reality, you are less likely to allow your fears to hinder you from taking action when faced with future challenges.

Exercise:
Linda Adams in her book Effectiveness Training for Women suggests listing 10 situations that you don’t act on due to anxiety. Rank the situations you listed with #1 designating the situation that causes you the least degree of anxiety and #10 your most anxiety producing situation. Enter into your #1 situation and work down your list. As you confront each challenge, you will strengthen your courage to face the next circumstance on your list. This exercise can help you to become more courageous.

Exercise:
To help you face a challenge, use the Read, Talk, Test technique suggested by Doug Hall in Making The Courage Connection. Create three columns on a page. In the first column list what you could read to provide you with the information and inspiration you need to move forward on your challenge. The second column is for listing people you could talk to who will provide you with support. The third column is for identifying small actions you could take to build your confidence.

Exercise:
According to Hall, excuses are apologies for not having courage. We use excuses to justify our lack of action. To overcome your anxiety about tackling a large endeavor, divide the challenge into small manageable actions. Schedule when you will undertake each activity. Track your progress and reward yourself as you complete each task.

May the above exercises help you to follow the advice of Eleanor Roosevelt, who said, “You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.’ You must do the thing you think you cannot do.”

Leading Through Learning

2006-10-29T07:36:00.000-05:00

To lead is to move self and others beyond the known into the unknown. Entering into unfamiliar territory requires learning. We must adapt to new experiences; we must acquire new abilities. Leaders must continually take themselves to their own intellectual frontiers. Leading demands living on the edge.

Our most significant learnings come from exploring our own inner frontiers. Learning about ourselves creates new possibilities. We discover not only that we are capable of more than we thought were, but we are more than who we thought we were.

As leaders take themselves to their own cutting edge, they are to lead others to do the same. This requires leaders to relate to followers from where the followers are. This means leaders must backtrack and help followers along the path the leaders have already traveled. This requires patience on the part of leaders. While the leaders have already covered this territory, the landscape is new to followers. But having already traveled the path, leaders can guide followers around the dangers of the journey.

Leaders are lifelong learners. And they share what they have learned with their followers. At the same time, leaders learn from their followers. It is this shared learning that moves leaders and followers to new levels of achievement.

We Are Not It

2006-09-24T13:42:00.000-04:00

We are that with which we identify. If we can observe something, it means we are not that which is being observed.

This ability to observe is a key skill for fostering our own development. In the previous posting I speak of the hero's journey. In that posting I issue the invitation to don our armor and weapons as we answer the call to adventure. One of the ways we can defend ourselves and slay the dragons we confront on our inner journey is to identify with our soul--the inner witness or observer. As we uncover aspects of ourselves that we may find troubling, we are to remember that if we are able to observe those things within us it indicates that we are not those characteristics. The thoughts or emotions we uncover may be within us, but the fact that we are able to look at them means they are not us.

The ability to detach and observe frees us from being controlled by that which we are observing. By separating ourselves from that which is being observed, we are then in a position to consciously decide whether or not to act on our emotions or thoughts. They no longer control us. We are now in control. This expansion of consciousness is a crucial aspect of our spiritual development. The ultimate goal of our development is to identify with Spirit--the ground of all being. It is then that we discover who we really are.

Becoming A Leader

2006-09-17T08:51:00.000-04:00

To become a leader requires self-examination. We must explore who we are. Self-exploration can be disturbing. Aspects of ourselves will emerge that we may prefer not look at. As we journey inward, it can be helpful to keep in mind the metaphor of the hero’s journey.

I speak of the hero’s journey in my posting of March 5, 2006. The hero’s journey begins with separation from the familiar. The process of self-development moves us beyond the known and comfortable. There is no growth without conflict; that conflict may be experienced outwardly or within us. As we change, other people may become upset. We no longer fit their images or expectations of us. Inwardly we may experience tension and anxiety as new aspects of ourselves emerge. Our old identities are challenged. We begin to view ourselves as being different than we were before. This is both exciting and frightening. The process of development moves us beyond our comfort zone. If we are comfortable, we are not growing.

To separate from the familiar, the hero must accept the call to adventure. On this adventure the hero is confronted with obstacles and challenges. There are dangers to be faced. The challenges may come from without or from within. The most fearsome obstacles are generated from within. The hero confronts the inner demons and dragons. These monsters represent our dark side, our shadow. This consists of our fears and weaknesses.

But the hero is not alone on this adventure. Along the way there are guides and mentors. And by confronting and slaying the dragons, the hero discovers new abilities and powers. It is then the responsibility of the hero to return to the community to use these new skills and powers in service of that community.

Not everyone has the courage and determination to answer the call to adventure. That is why not everyone accepts their role to lead. We can choose to simply skim the surface of self-exploration, or we can dive deep and shine the light of self-reflection to penetrate the inner darkness. We mustn’t dive too deep too quickly, however. Patience is necessary. This is a lifelong process. We are to go only as deep as we can handle. We are not to overwhelm ourselves.

We also are to remember that we are not alone. We each may be on separate paths but we are in the same forest. We are within earshot of each other. We need to call out for support when needed.

The goal of the journey is to discern our calling and develop the power we need to fulfill that call. James Autry in his book Life & Work summarizes best the endpoint of the hero’s journey:

Find your people.
Find your place.
Tell your story.
Listen.

I will share again the questions that can help us discover these four points that Autry describes as important in life and work.

Find your people:
· Who is your community?
· Who are the people you are called to serve?
· Who is in need of what you have to offer?

Find your place:
· What is your role within your community?
· How do you fit into the larger whole?

Tell your story:
· What is the message you bring to your community?
· What is the gift you have to offer your people?
· How can you best share that gift?

Listen:
· What is the response to your message?
· Are you having the impact you intended?
· How are your people’s needs changing?
· How must you grow so that you may continue to serve your community?

Becoming a leader is a process that requires time and effort. That process involves answering the above questions. The answers do not come quickly or easily. So let us don our armor, take up our swords and shields, mount our trusty steeds, and venture forth on an exciting journey to discover the leaders we are as we answer the call to adventure—the adventure called life.

Thoughtful Leadership

2006-09-03T14:14:00.000-04:00

Effective leadership requires leaders and followers to think. We all have thoughts. Typically those thoughts are merely random chatter cluttering our minds. Thinking requires a focus.

We focus on that which interests us. That interest forms the focal point of our thinking. It is the center around which we organize the input of information. Each piece of new information is like a piece of a larger puzzle. By finding where the new piece fits with past knowledge and experience, we add to our understanding. As more pieces of the puzzle fit together, a new and larger picture emerges. When enough pieces have come together, an entirely different perspective may arise. What we once thought becomes transformed. We experience a different reality. Our consciousness expands and we thereby have a new experience of ourselves, others, and the world around us.

To develop our thinking, we need a focal point around which to organize new inputs. To create that central focus we need to discover our passion; that which fires our enthusiasm and energy.

The word “enthusiasm” comes from the Greek word meaning “having the god within.” Enthusiasm is generated from discerning our call. Our call is generated by discovering our mission, vision, and values. Once we understand who we are and who we want to become, we can then decide what we need to do to achieve what we are called to create. Our pursuits then have meaning within a larger context.

When we have a central organizing focus for our lives, we can then assess and integrate the information and experiences we input. Leaders who are clear about what is important to them are more likely to be able to communicate their messages clearly and generate enthusiasm. Followers clear about their priorities are better able to assess the relevance of a leader’s message to the needs of the followers. When leaders and followers share the same focus, they are more likely to be able to influence the context in which they operate.

The quality of our thinking influences the quality of our actions, which determines the quality of our results. Effective leadership begins with effective thinking. What do you think?

From The Inside Out

2006-08-19T13:53:00.000-04:00

A common approach to leading is to manipulate the environment to control or influence followers. This approach is founded on a belief that people are primarily motivated by externals. A materialistic approach contends individuals are motivated mainly by money or other material rewards. A mechanistic viewpoint seeks to lead by applying force to control followers. Both of these approaches seek to influence followers from the outside. People are seen as extrinsically motivated.

An alternative approach is to lead through intrinsic motivation. The leader seeks to influence people from the inside. This requires getting people in touch with a sense of purpose and a vision for the future. It is helping individuals live from their values. Rather than seeking to control, the leader collaborates and co-creates with followers.

Leadership training typically concentrates on the would-be leader’s external skill development. The focus is on what leaders “do.” If the leader is to tap followers’ intrinsic motivators, then that leader must emphasize the “being” aspects of leadership. The mission, vision, and values of the leader must resonate with those of the followers. This requires that leadership development and practice proceed from the inside out.

Holistic Learning For Leading

2006-07-21T13:55:00.000-04:00

Each of us is called to lead a life. That is why learning to lead is relevant for each of us. To be effective, that learning process must be holistic. That means we are to train the head, the heart, and the hands.

Training the head is about obtaining knowledge. Educating the head focuses on the rational, analytical, and objective. The heart is reached through our passions. This aspect of learning embraces our emotions, our intuition, and our subjectivity. We then need to express our newfound knowledge and energy in action. It is necessary to train the hands in technique, versatility, and the practical. A holistic approach to leader development will involve the science, spirit, and skills of leading.

The Interaction of the Remaining Ecological Principles

2006-06-26T15:23:00.000-04:00

For the principle of recycling described in the previous post to work effectively in a leadership system, it requires leader and followers to work in partnership--the third principle of ecological systems. All parties must trust and respect each other if the flow of communication is to remain open. Without trust and respect, relationships become poisoned with fear, anxiety, and competitiveness. The exchange of information between people becomes constricted. This limits people’s responses to the environment.

Partnership requires each person to exercise the principle of flexibility. You need to build rapport with someone if you are to develop mutual trust and respect. You achieve rapport by communicating in a way that is comfortable and understandable for the other person. This puts that person in his or her comfort zone when interacting with you. The person will then be more open to sharing their thoughts and feelings with you and listening to yours.

When people’s interactions are characterized by flexibility, the entire system becomes more flexible in its response to various situations. People are open to learning and sharing rather than protecting themselves behind habitual behaviors and uncompromising opinions.

Flexibility fosters the principle of diversity. The more wide ranging the perspectives and skills within a group, the more options are available to it when responding to varying circumstances.

This supports the system’s sustainability--the sixth principle. The more effective the group in responding to changes in the environment, the more likely the group will thrive.

This brief outline of the relationship between ecological principles and leadership systems is meant to encourage further exploration of the organic nature of leadership.

Applying the Ecological Principle of Recycling

2006-06-21T11:55:00.000-04:00

This blog entry continues to explore the application of ecological principles to leadership by considering the principle of recycling.

All organisms in an ecosystem produce waste. What is waste for one species, though, is food for another. The result is a system without waste. This cyclical process differs from a linear operation, which ends with waste being discarded unused.

The principle of recycling applies to the flow of information within a system. Information is a system’s food source. According to organizational consultants Margaret Wheatley and Myron Kellner-Rogers writing in their book A Simpler Way, “Information feeds the local explorations that keep a system viable and stable.” The needs of a system are “nourished by Information.” If information is restricted, the life of the system is threatened.

A system takes in data, processes it, and produces outputs. Information that is received and evaluated as irrelevant is discarded. What is rejected is informational waste. What is considered unimportant by one part of a system, however, may be deemed useful by another part of the system. A system’s viability is enhanced when the system improves its capability to notice, process, and apply a broader field of information. One individual within a leadership system may not take notice of a specific piece of information. Someone else, though, may see the relevance of that discarded bit of data and apply it for the good of the system. Each individual within the system brings a different perspective to every situation. Each person’s point of view needs to be respected if it is to benefit the whole.

Applying Ecological Principles To Leadership

2006-04-17T14:18:00.000-04:00

In his book The Web Of Life, physicist and systems theorist Fritjof Capra outlines six basic principles of ecology. He considers these principles critical to the creation of sustainable human communities. The organizing principles of ecosystems, according to Capra, must be the foundation upon which our educational, business, and political communities are built. He goes as far as to say that “the survival of humanity will depend … on our ability to understand these principles of ecology and live accordingly.” The basic principles include interdependence, recycling, partnership, flexibility, diversity, and sustainability. I will examine the relevance of each of these principles to leadership in a series of blog entrees.

The first characteristic of ecosystems Capra identifies is interdependence. All members of an ecological community are interconnected to form a network of relationships. Each individual’s identity is derived from the pattern of relationships within the network. The behavior of every member within the system is shaped by the behavior of other members. The success of the whole community is dependent upon the actions of the individuals within the system. Each individual’s success is dependent upon the effectiveness of the entire community. This makes an understanding of relationships the key to understanding systems.

Relationships involve patterns of interactions. Relationships cannot be understood by studying each individual in the relationship separately. To separate the parts destroys the pattern. You kill an organism when you disrupt its life-giving patterns by dissecting it. This is why it is fruitless to attempt to understand leadership by focusing on its individual components. You cannot improve leadership by training a designated leader without considering the relationships and context within which that individual must perform. The leadership response will differ as circumstances change.

Leadership of a group is destroyed when the components of leader, followers, and context are separated. Leadership is not improved by trying to analyze its different components. Analysis is taking something apart in order to understand it. Systems cannot be understood by isolating their parts. Systems thinking is holistic. It looks at the entirety. Systems thinking shifts attention from the parts to the whole, from objects to relationships, from content to patterns.

A systems perspective puts relationships within a network pattern. The relationships within a network are nonlinear. This means that a disturbance within a system will not have a single effect but will ripple out impacting many parts of the system, much like the effect a stone has when thrown into the middle of a pond. This is why a slight disturbance within a system can have far reaching effects. This constitutes the power of the leadership response. By altering your response to others or the environment, you can have a significant impact upon the leadership of the group.

Leadership As A Living System

2006-03-17T15:15:00.000-05:00

In my second entry of this blog I wrote of the ecology of leadership. Ecology refers to the relationships of organisms among themselves and to the environment. Leadership may be viewed as an ecological system involving the interaction of humans with each other and the environment. If leadership is an ecosystem, it will then adhere to the principles of living systems.

Living systems are the natural order of life. Living beings link together. Connections lead to patterns of behavior. The relationships that emerge form the environment in which the life forms interact. The environment formed likewise shapes the relationships between the organisms. It is a cyclical rather than a linear process.

To illustrate the difference between a cyclical and linear perspective, let us consider the food chain. A simple linear model would have plants eaten by herbivores, herbivores eaten by carnivores. Smaller animals are eaten by larger, stronger, or smarter animals. In a linear or hierarchical model, we would put ourselves at the top of the food chain.

But what if we look at the feeding process cyclically? Animals eat plants. Animals die and become fertilizer for plants. Plants give us oxygen, we give them carbon dioxide. Are plants here to serve us or do we exist to serve plants? We consider ourselves as superior. When we die, however, our bodies become food for insects, microbes, and plants.

The linear and hierarchical models are usually applied when we consider leadership. We think of the leader as being out front with followers bringing up the rear or the leader occupying the summit of a pyramid with followers down below. A cyclical view of leadership gives us a much different perspective. Leader and follower become defined by each other. One is a leader because someone else chooses to follow. Being a follower implies someone else is leading. There is no leader without a follower. There is no follower unless someone is leading. The distinction between leader and follower becomes even fuzzier when we consider that we occupy both roles simultaneously. As a leader I take my lead from the followers. If I get too far out ahead of the followers or become disconnected with their motivations, they will choose not to follow and I am no longer a leader. As a follower, I lead by choosing who to follow. I can change who leads by choosing someone different to follow. Who I choose to follow determines the direction the group shall take. For leadership to be successful, it must be exercised by both leader and follower. As with any living system, remove any part of the system and you kill it.

Where Are The Leaders?

2006-03-16T13:26:00.000-05:00

After nearly a century of leadership studies, we continue to lament the dearth of leadership in our organizations. The secret to developing leadership continues to elude us in spite of the flood of advice given by academicians, speakers, consultants, and even recognized leaders. With all the books, videos, and seminars devoted to leadership development, we should be blessed with an abundance of outstanding leaders. Yet the cry goes out throughout all sectors of society asking, “Where have all the heroes gone? Where are the leaders we deserve?” Without realizing it, those leaders we have been searching for have always been with us. They have even been us. Our problem has not been an absence of leadership but an inability to recognize leadership as it has occurred.

The root of the problem is in how we define leadership. There tends to be a common assumption in most definitions of leadership; a focus on the leader. Attempts to define leadership typically speak of what leaders do. What is actually being defined is leader not leadership. If leadership is considered to reside in an individual, then we will look for individual leaders. Our efforts to develop leadership will concentrate on training designated leaders. This limited view of leadership is at the root of failed leadership development initiatives.

The key to solving the failure of leadership development efforts is to view leadership systemically. The result is a new definition of leadership:

Leadership is a dynamic, systemic relationship between leader, followers, and context.

Any successful leadership development intervention will need to take into account the relationships among the three components of leader, followers, and the larger environment. To focus solely on the leader is like trying to train someone to play tennis in a classroom without ever letting the trainee get on a tennis court to play a partner.

Leadership resides in the group. Leadership development must therefore involve the entire group. If we want better leadership, we must look to ourselves and each other rather than to a hero to rescue us.

The Hero's Journey

2006-03-05T06:55:00.000-05:00

The developmental process of becoming a leader may be described in terms of the hero’s journey. The hero’s journey begins with separation from the known and common. The hero ventures forth, encounters adventures, is endowed with new powers, and returns to the community to share what s/he has learned while on the journey. What is to be learned? I find four lines from James Autry’s book Life And Work helpful in answering this question. Autry--a business executive, writer, and poet--identifies “Four Important Things in Life and Work:”

Find your people.
Find your place.
Tell your story.
Listen.

These lines capture the essence of the hero’s journey. Find your people. Who is your community? Who are the people you are called to serve? Who is in need of what you have to offer? Find your place. What is your role within your community? How do you fit into the larger whole? Tell your story. What is the message you bring to your community? What is the gift you have to offer your people? How can you best share that gift? Listen. What is the response to your message? Are you having the impact you intended? How are your people’s needs changing? How must you grow so that you may continue to serve your community? The search for answers to these questions is what constitutes the hero’s journey. The answers to these questions are the boon you are to bring back to those you are called to lead.

Leadership's Gravity

2006-02-18T08:24:00.000-05:00

Managers push or pull, leaders attract. People are attracted to a leader’s personality, or vision, or values, or accomplishments. People choose to follow a leader. Leadership is based on attraction not coercion.

Newton’s universal law of gravitation is relevant for those who would lead. Simply put, the law states that as the mass of either object increases, the force of gravitational attraction between them increases. If the mass of one object is doubled, the force of gravity between the two objects is doubled. As leaders increase what about themselves attracts their followers, the leaders will become more compelling to the followers.

There is a second aspect of the universal law of gravitation that is relevant to leadership. This part of the law states that as the separation between two objects increases, the weaker the gravitational force between them becomes. For leaders to remain in the lead they must stay connected with their followers. If leaders move too fast or become too far removed from the hopes, needs, and values of followers, those leaders risk loosing their gravitational force.

Both elements of the universal law of gravitation reinforce the relational nature of leadership. As leaders increase their attractiveness, their role as leader is enhanced. However, the leader’s role is strengthened even more if the followers become more than whom they were previously. According to Newton’s law, if the mass of both objects is doubled, the force of gravity between them is quadrupled. This means that leadership is strengthened more as all parties within the system—leaders and followers alike—grow. The second component of the universal law of gravitation suggests that the path of growth needs to be aligned. If leaders and followers grow in different directions, the leadership system will be pulled apart. It is the aligned growth of leaders and followers that is the source of leadership’s gravity.

Defining Leadership

2006-02-05T06:09:00.000-05:00

What is leadership? A question easier asked than answered. And going to the literature on leadership for an answer is more likely to create confusion than clarity. Following are some examples.

“We want leaders who are credible. We must believe that their word can be trusted, that they are personally excited and enthusiastic about the direction in which they are headed.” So say authors James Kouzes and Barry Posner.

Another author on leadership is Rosabeth Moss Kanter. It is her view that leaders “must be deep thinkers who are smart enough to see new possibilities and to conceptualize them.”

Yet another view of leadership is expressed by Judith Bardwick, who writes that it is the responsibility of leaders to “decide, choose, and act.”

Best-selling author Ken Blanchard provides another perspective. According to Blanchard, “The leader of the future will excel as cheerleader, supporter, and encourager rather than as judge, critic, or evaluator....”

So who is right? What is the true expression of leadership? Well, according to recent research, all of the above.

Miriam Kragness, Ph.D., has been studying leadership since the 1970’s. In research conducted for Inscape Publishing, an international publisher of human resource materials, Dr. Kragness undertook to answer the question, “What do leaders do when they lead?” The results of her research help bring coherence to what otherwise appear to be contradictory views on leadership.

The model to emerge from Kragness’s research identifies four focuses of attention taken by leaders--Character, Analysis, Accomplishment, and Interaction. Each focus, in turn, is comprised of three modes of expression resulting in what Kragness refers to as twelve “dimensions of leadership.”

A leader’s “focus of attention” identifies from where that leader takes her lead. The leader with a Focus on Character is especially attuned to her own conscience. Such a leader looks inward and takes direction from personal values and beliefs. Organizationally, this leader is likely to keep the focus on the shared mission and values. The Focus on Character is expressed through the leadership dimensions of: Enthusiasm--the display of optimism; Integrity--an adherence to personal values; and Self Renewal--a commitment to continuous learning.

A second focus of attention is Analysis. Here the leader’s concerns are intellectual; responding to ideas. This person leads through his grasp of the issues, ability to envision the future, and confidence to move ahead. The dimensions of leadership associated with a Focus on Analysis include: Fortitude--persistence based on reasoning and intuition; Perceiving--the ability to envision future possibilities; Judgment--using information and analysis to decide on a course of action.

A leader more concerned with external results displays a Focus on Accomplishment. This individual is a problem-solver interested in getting things done. The three leadership dimensions associated with this focus are: Performance--making improvements, meeting needs, creating systems; Boldness--taking a powerful stance in meeting challenges; Team Building--accomplishing results by organizing others.

Interaction is the fourth focus of attention. The leader with this focus is cued to the needs and wants of followers. Such a leader may respond by: Collaborating--achieving success with others as a group member; Inspiring--stimulating followers to act; Serving Others--representing the interests of the group without regard to self interest.

Inscape Publishing has embodied the results of Kragness’s research in an assessment tool titled The Dimensions of Leadership Profile. The instrument may be used by individuals to identify what they value in themselves as leaders, how they perceive the leadership of others, or to determine the dimensions of leadership needed in a particular role or situation.

The point of Kragness’s model is to create an understanding of leadership as a dynamic relationship between leader and followers. There is no one way to lead. Nor is there necessarily only one leader. The success of leadership depends on matching leadership behaviors with the needs of followers and the situation. As circumstances change, so must the expression of leadership. This may be more effectively achieved through shared leadership rather than expecting one individual to be able to display all dimensions of leadership.

We return to our original question. What is leadership? Now we can confidently answer, “It depends!”

The Dimensions of Leadership Profile is a registered trademark of Inscape Publishing.

Self-Empowered

2006-01-14T14:05:00.000-05:00

Empowerment involves pushing decision-making responsibilities further down the organizational hierarchy. Empowerment is facilitated by creating an environment in which individuals are given the responsibility and skills to be self-managing. Empowerment is not bestowed upon another. It is an inside job. Individuals empower themselves by claiming the power already present within themselves. The key source of that power is choice.

We will often justify our actions by saying we had no choice. We always have a choice. What we are really saying is that we didn’t like any of the available options so we chose the least painful one. Leaders can assist people to become more empowered by helping them expand their options. Brainstorming and other creativity-enhancing processes can expand people’s possibilities. Leaders can facilitate decision-making processes to guide individuals to more informed choices. The leader does not empower but helps followers recognize and apply the power inherent within themselves. When individuals recognize they are responsible for claiming the power already available to them, they then possess the possibility of becoming self-empowered.

The Holographic Team

2005-12-03T09:11:00.000-05:00

Our paradigms--how we view our world and ourselves in it--hold enormous power over our thoughts and actions. The central paradigm of Western culture has been Newtonian physics. Newton viewed the physical world as made up of isolated and impenetrable atoms colliding with each other like billiard balls. Everything in Newton’s universe is reducible to individual atoms and the forces acting between them.
Following Newton’s lead, scholars from other disciplines began to adopt this mechanistic world-view. Upon its principles have been organized our schools, corporations, technologies, economies, politics, even our religious institutions.
Our paradigms also determine how we relate with each other. From Newton’s atomistic perspective developed a model of relationship founded on conflict and confrontation. The whole is seen as nothing more than separate, conflicting parts. This view stresses separateness, isolation, hierarchy. Newton also believed that reality could be reduced to one truth. This leaves little place for diversity.
What we see is what we get. Seeing ourselves as separate individuals, we organized our workplaces to accommodate this reality. This culminated in the principles of “scientific management.” Workers became viewed as interchangeable parts in a production machine. To motivate others, managers were to push and pull at followers. People were moved by external forces; much like billiard balls being knocked about.
Today we consider ourselves more enlightened about how to manage the workplace. We recognize the need to involve people and to work cooperatively. However, the Newtonian paradigm continues to shape how we relate with each other. We organize ourselves into teams, but we still relate as separate individuals. We come together holding our separate opinions with the goal of persuading others of the rightness of our particular views. We continue to believe that there is one right answer to each problem. We have brainstorm sessions to “bounce ideas off each other” and expect to discover the solution. After making a decision, we part unchanged by the experience. We remain separate billiard balls; occasionally clustering together but always remaining impenetrable. Just like Newton’s atoms.
Psychiatrist Leonard J. Duhl states that change involves learning to see alternative realities. Post-modern science offers us other ways to view the universe. One of the models that gives us a different perspective on reality is the hologram.
The hologram is a form of photography. Information is stored as a network of interference patterns, which represent the interaction of energy frequencies from light. These interference patterns are distributed on a holographic plate. The resulting “holographic blur” has no recognizable form as we would expect to see on a normal photographic negative. Yet when the holographic plate is placed in front of a laser beam, the original wave pattern is regenerated and a three-dimensional image of the object photographed appears.
A unique characteristic of a hologram is that if the laser beam is shone on only a small portion of the pattern, the entire image still appears. Each part of the hologram contains information about the whole.
Physicist David Bohm took the holographic model a step further to what he called holomovement. Bohm combined “holo” and “movement” to express the view of physical reality as an undivided whole that is in perpetual dynamic flux.
Holomovement consists of two fundamental aspects--the explicate order and the implicate order. The implicate order is the primary reality, although it is not visible. The explicate order is the physical universe we experience. This manifest reality is a pattern on the surface of the implicate order.
Compare this to the waves on the ocean. The depths of the ocean are the implicate order. The waves that appear on the surface represent the explicate order. The surface is constantly changing and emerges out of the primary ocean depths.
Scientists have been applying the holographic model to give us new insights into a variety of fields. This model can also be useful in informing us on how to work in teams.
Let us begin with the holographic plate. Present on the plate is a network of patterns that represent the interaction of energy frequencies. The plate is the implicate order. On a team the implicate order would be the shared meaning--the mission, vision and values. This shared meaning emerges from the interaction of the energies from the team members. The team’s purpose must represent the commitments of the team’s members; what each person has energy around.
The information on a holographic plate is spread throughout the whole. The team mission, vision, and values must be internalized by each individual on the team. Each team member will have also contributed from within himself or herself to discern the group’s purpose. In the resulting “holographic blur” the team members find their individual meanings overlapping and entering into each other to form the overall purpose.
When we look at a holographic plate, we cannot discern a specific image. The plate must be placed before a laser light and then a three-dimensional representation appears. So it is with a team’s mission, vision, and values. These remain vague proclamations until expressed by people. Each team member represents a part of the explicate order. Each person makes manifest the shared mission, vision, and values. The three-dimensionality is the body, mind, and spirit of each team member. These dimensions are expressed through each person’s actions, thoughts, and energies.
When a laser beam is shone through any portion of a hologram, the entire image is projected. However, more detail will appear when more of the holographic plate is used. While each member on the holographic team is an expression of the team’s shared meaning, more aspects of that meaning are expressed when the team is working as a unit.
What makes the holographic team unique is the members’ realization that they are all expressions of a unified whole. Each member is within every other member. All are different manifestations of a common underlying reality.
Listening is a critical skill in developing a holographic mindset. Our listening must go beyond understanding another’s message. We must allow that message to enter into us and become a part of our thinking.
David Bohm believed that dialogue was the means to this type of communication. Bohm made a distinction between dialogue and discussion. In discussion, different views are presented and defended. Ideas are analyzed. Discussion is meant to facilitate a decision.
Dialogue is an exploration of issues. Different views are presented as a means to discovering new perspectives. While discussion is meant to lead to action, the purpose of dialogue is to cultivate a deeper understanding of issues. Each person’s contribution to the dialogue contributes to a more holistic understanding of an issue.
Certain conditions must exist for dialogue to occur. First, all participants must suspend their assumptions. This does not mean suppressing our assumptions. Rather, we are to put forth our assumptions for examination. Second, participants must consider each other as colleagues. This requires an environment of mutual trust and respect. The third requirement is a facilitator who will keep the group in dialogue and prevent people from straying into discussion. I ask you to read this entry in the spirit of dialogue.

The Leadership Response

2005-11-12T22:20:00.000-05:00

Systems cannot be directed but they can be disturbed. A system is a pattern of relationships. The leverage point for your influencing the pattern of relationships within a system is your own behavior. Your own actions can have an impact on a situation and influence how people respond. While you do not have control over others and the environment, you can control how you respond to people and circumstances. Since everything within a system is interdependent, a change in one part of the system will have a ripple effect to other parts of the system. A change in your behavior will commonly prompt a change of behavior in others. This opens the way for achieving different results in the environment. If we are to proactively change our situation, we must change our behavior. Since leadership is the relationship between leader, followers, and context, a change in any part of that system will change the leadership. The leadership response is the conscious influencing of the leadership system to achieve a desired result.

Dialogue

2005-11-10T19:41:00.000-05:00

Our assumptions are the source of our results. Our behaviors are simply the means by which we manifest our assumptions. Lasting and significant change occurs when we change our assumptions. A useful process for uncovering individual and group assumptions is dialogue. This process differs from the usual mode of group discussion. The intent of dialogue is not to come to conclusions but to explore the rationale behind people’s perceptions of an issue. In a dialogue, as we share our views on a particular topic with each other we also share the data upon which we base our conclusions. We then invite the other group members to ask questions to help clarify the assumptions that underlie our view. This process is repeated with each member of the group. The purpose is to understand the experiences and information that have led each person to his or her stance. By suspending judgment and debate, dialogue helps create a pool of common meaning. The group can then synthesize from this reservoir of meaning new assumptions to support the achievement of the intended goal.

Creating Reality

2005-11-08T16:53:00.000-05:00

Reality is not an objective static state but a dynamic creative process. Reality is what we perceive it to be.

The subjectivity of reality is illustrated by a tribe in the Kalahari who know that the world ends 250 yards beyond their local area. It is reported that if you take them to that boundary, they will see nothing beyond it but a void. If you step over that line, they are no longer able to see you and mourn your departure until your return into the existing world.

We may be quick to judge such beliefs as pathetically ignorant. However, all of us have our 250 yard limit; that point where we believe something to be impossible, untrue, or nonexistent. Some examples. In 1880 Thomas Edison, commenting about his own invention, declared, “The phonograph...is not of any commercial value.” Noted astronomer Simon Newcomb stated in 1902, “Flight by machines heavier than air is unpractical and insignificant, if not utterly impossible.” In 1913 the American Road Congress decided, “It is an idle dream to imagine that automobiles will take the place of railways in the long distance movement of passengers.” It was the opinion in 1920 of the Nobel Prize winning physicist Robert Millikan that, “There is no likelihood man can ever tap the power of the atom.” In 1977 president of Digital Equipment Corporation, Ken Olsen, stated, “There is no reason for any individual to have a computer in their home.”

Our reality is built upon our assumptions--the way we perceive ourselves, others, and the world around us. Our assumptions drive our behaviors. Our behaviors, in turn, determine our results. Our outer reality is ultimately a manifestation of our thinking. To achieve significant and lasting change requires us to address our assumptions. Psychologist William James recognized this when he wrote at the turn of the twentieth century, “The greatest discovery in our generation is that human beings, by changing the inner attitudes of their minds, can change the outer aspects of their lives!” What we are to learn, then, is to identify the assumptions responsible for our current outcomes and alternative perceptions that will support the achievement of our desired results.

The first step in this process is to evaluate our current results. If we are satisfied with the present outcomes, there is no need to do anything different. If we keep doing what we have been doing, we will keep getting the same results. However, if we want different results, then we need to examine what actions have led us to where we are now and what assumptions have been generating those behaviors. We then must identify the outcomes we desire, the new behaviors that will achieve those results, and the assumptions that will be congruent with the behaviors. What we must learn is to be ready to change our minds.

Moving Through Change

2005-10-31T19:48:00.000-05:00

There is no place to hide from change. However, we can choose how to deal with it. Change moves us into confusion. One way we deal with the discomfort of this stage is to hold onto what we know. In this case we continue to define competency according to what the past required. To move with change we need to redefine competency according to what the new circumstance requires. Gaining new competencies gives us a greater sense of control over our situation. This sense of control bolsters our confidence. As our confidence continues to grow we become more comfortable with our circumstances. Comfort can lead to complacency. We begin to coast. We either initiate a change to keep us growing or change will find us. Either way the cycle begins anew:

Change/Confusion/Competence/Control/Confidence/Comfort/Complacency/Change

It's About Time

2005-10-23T09:45:00.000-04:00

Leaders promote disequilibrium, change, and growth. These occur within the context of time. Following are musings on time. I offer them as thought starters.

We have all the time there is. Time is democratic. We all have the same number of seconds in a minute, minutes in an hour, hours in a day, days in a week, weeks in a month, months in a year. What differentiates us is how we choose to use the time we are given.

Want to live a full life? You already are. Each moment of your life is occupied. You may be eating, sleeping, working, playing, thinking, relaxing, whatever. It is your responsibility to choose how you occupy each moment. You have a full life. With what have you filled your life?

We usually think of time as linear--past, present, future. Yet the past is present in its influence of our current reality, and how we view the future influences the present. If I view a goal as possible or impossible, that perspective will influence how I act in the present. What I have done in the past determines my present and future circumstances. What I do now influences how I perceive the past and future. My present influences how I interpret the past. My view of the future impacts how I perceive the present and past.

There is only the now. We create our past through memory and our future through anticipation. Both are imagination. We image our past and future from the now. Time flows from the now. When is the now? We can’t nail it down. If all there is is the now and we can’t identify that, we have eliminated time.

Life is messy. It is disorderly. We attempt to gain order out of the disorder by gaining control. Control restricts. It eventually strangles the life out of life.

We say that things change in time. But time is change. Without change there would be no time. Change is life. We seek change to avoid boredom. Yet we try to minimize change to gain control. Our attempts to control lead to slow suicide.

We seek to control by knowing. We are limited by what we know. Knowledge locks us in to the past. We can only know what is or has been. Knowledge limits change, which limits life. To stay within the known is to remain in the past.

Knowledge brings clarity. We are unclear about that which we do not know. Growth involves change. This means having to venture into the unknown, which is unclear. Insight is clarity emerging from confusion. Questioning leads to certainty. Certainty eliminates questioning.

Life requires growth, which requires change. This calls for openness. Closed systems experience entropy and die. Perfect equilibrium is death. Open systems evolve to higher complexity.

If you know what I am talking about, I am then simply reiterating what you already know. This reinforces stagnation. If what I share confuses you, then I have moved you into the unknown. It is from the realm of the unknown that growth emerges.

Our situation remains the same when we continue to operate from the known. We simply keep getting what we have always gotten. We may rearrange the furniture, even replace the furniture, yet we are still living in the same house. We must change houses if we are to live in a new place. By changing our minds, we change our lives.

When To Manage, When To Lead

2005-10-18T19:47:00.000-04:00

The success of any organization depends upon both good management and good leadership. The question facing managers is, “When am I to lead, and when am I to manage?” Miriam Kragness, Ph.D., author of the Dimensions of Leadership Profile published by Inscape Publishing, offers some guidelines to help managers respond to this dilemma.

According to Kragness, the management model focuses on the command and control functions. These include planning, executing, evaluating, communicating, and motivating or persuading others to support organizational plans and objectives.

Leadership is concerned about helping people identify the needs and opportunities to which they want to respond and determining how they may best make a contribution. Leadership also addresses creating a work environment where everyone can learn from each other and build on each other’s talents.

An organization needs an emphasis on management when it:
· is inefficient
· can’t seem to make decisions
· has trouble setting priorities
· does not follow through
· produces inconsistent results
· is foundering financially
· lacks a sensible business strategy

Leadership is to be the primary focus when an organization:
· is trying to stay abreast of a rapidly changing environment
· is experiencing high turnover or employee dissatisfaction
· is losing customers or failing to attract new ones
· is continually making mistakes
· faces one or more obstacles to survival or success that it does not know how to address
· lacks a sense of meaningful purpose

Kragness points out that there is a third role that also needs to be exercised--followership. “An organization needs to develop followership,” says Kragness, “when it needs to sustain present effort, increase it, or plow new ground; in other words, in any organization that wants to survive.”

The Dimensions of Leadership Profile is a registered trademark of Inscape Publishing.

Flexibility and Versatility

2005-10-13T16:45:00.000-04:00

To be a leader, someone needs to be following. To know if you are a leader, take this test. Look over your shoulder. If there is no one there, you are not a leader.

You are a leader when others choose to follow you. It is the followers who make you a leader. This requires that you have the ability to induce others to follow your lead, even in the face of changing circumstances and fluctuating needs.

To assume and retain the lead of a group requires flexibility and versatility. Flexibility is the willingness to adapt your approach to the requirements of each specific situation. Versatility is the ability to meet those requirements. Flexibility is a matter of attitude. Versatility is about skills. If you want to lead, you must be willing to change your approach with each shift in the environment and have the ability to implement the needed approach. The key to being a leader is knowing what each situation requires and how to meet those requirements. In other words, you must know what needs to be done and how to do it.

The Courage To Lead

2005-10-10T19:58:00.000-04:00

A leader moves people to create that which does not yet exist. This requires moving from the known into the unknown. This can be frightening for leader and followers alike. As the pressure mounts, the leader is increasingly tempted to surrender to the fears. A critical trait of leadership is courage.

The first step in developing the courage to lead is to become aware of your fears. Self-knowledge precedes self-management. Only by knowing your fears can you manage your response to them.

What ultimately carries a leader through the inevitable pressures and fears to be faced is an unshakable belief in what is being created. The leader must be driven by a mission that is deeply rooted in the leader’s values. To lead courageously, discern your purpose and clarify and commit to your values.

Coping with stress and maintaining a healthy lifestyle also contribute to successfully dealing with the pressures of leadership. To strengthen your resolve, practice stress management and other processes that contribute to your physical, mental, and spiritual well-being.

The goal in developing courage is not to eliminate fear; it is to learn to act in spite of the fear.

What We Are To Learn

2005-10-06T20:39:00.000-04:00

Organizational learning has been promoted as a necessity for organizations expecting to contend with today’s rapid pace of change. The question that comes to mind, though, is what are organizations to be learning?

Peter Senge, who popularized the concept of organizational learning with the 1990 release of his book The Fifth Discipline, defines the learning organization as one “that is continually expanding its capacity to create its future.” According to Senge, “A learning organization is a place where people are continually discovering how they create their reality. And how they can change it.” This implies that reality is not an objective static state but a dynamic creative process. Reality is what we perceive it to be.

The subjectivity of reality is illustrated by a tribe in the Kalahari who know that the world ends 250 yards beyond their local area. It is reported that if you take them to that boundary, they will see nothing beyond it but a void. If you step over that line, they are no longer able to see you and mourn your departure until your return into the existing world.

We may be quick to judge such beliefs as pathetically ignorant. However, all of us have our 250 yard limit; that point where we believe something to be impossible, untrue, or nonexistent. Some examples. In 1880 Thomas Edison, commenting about his own invention, declared that “The phonograph...is not of any commercial value.” Noted astronomer Simon Newcomb stated in 1902, “Flight by machines heavier than air is unpractical and insignificant, if not utterly impossible.” In 1913 the American Road Congress decided, “It is an idle dream to imagine that automobiles will take the place of railways in the long distance movement of passengers.” It was the opinion in 1920 of the Nobel Prize winning physicist Robert Millikan that, “There is no likelihood man can ever tap the power of the atom.” In 1977 president of Digital Equipment Corporation, Ken Olsen, stated, “There is no reason for any individual to have a computer in their home.”

Our reality is built upon our assumptions--the way we perceive ourselves, others, and the world around us. Our assumptions drive our behaviors. Our behaviors, in turn, determine our results. Our outer reality is ultimately a manifestation of our thinking. To achieve significant and lasting change requires us to address our assumptions. Psychologist William James recognized this when he wrote at the turn of the twentieth century, “The greatest discovery in our generation is that human beings, by changing the inner attitudes of their minds, can change the outer aspects of their lives!” What we are to learn, then, is to identify the assumptions responsible for our current outcomes and alternative perceptions that will support the achievement of our desired results.

The first step in this process is to evaluate our current results. If we are satisfied with the present outcomes, there is no need to do anything different. If we keep doing what we have been doing, we will keep getting the same results. However, if we want different results, then we need to examine what actions have led us to where we are now and what assumptions have been generating those behaviors. We then must identify the results we desire, the new behaviors that will achieve those results, and the assumptions that will be congruent with the behaviors.

A useful process for uncovering individual and group assumptions is dialogue. This process differs from the usual mode of group discussion. The intent of dialogue is not to come to conclusions but to explore the rationale behind people’s perceptions of an issue. In a dialogue, as we share our views on a particular topic with each other, we also share the data upon which we base our conclusions. We then invite the other group members to ask questions to help clarify the assumptions that underlie our view. This process is repeated with each member of the group. The purpose is to understand the experiences and information that have led each person to his or her stance. By suspending judgment and debate, dialogue helps create a pool of common meaning. The group can then synthesize from this reservoir of meaning new assumptions to support the achievement of the intended goal.

To remain competitive in an ever-changing environment, it is necessary for people, individually and collectively, to continually examine their own thinking. What we must learn is how to always be ready to change our minds.

Tapping Your Inner Wisdom

2005-10-04T19:36:00.000-04:00

You have heard it said many times, “We learn from experience.” Well, we don’t. If we learned from experience, we would not keep making the same mistakes.

You may know someone who has been at the same job for ten years. Yet that person describes performing the role in the same way as it was performed a decade ago. That individual does not have ten years of experience at the job but merely one year of experience repeated ten times.

We do not learn by simply having experiences. To learn, we must reflect upon our experiences. Too many of us live life in a semi-comatose state. We interact with others and our environment. If a situation turns out in our favor, we credit it to luck. If circumstances turn against us, we bemoan our fate.

To live life fully, we must live consciously. We need to continually review our thoughts, behaviors, and results. We need to determine what is helping us to reach our goals and to express our values. Those are the actions and attitudes we want to reinforce. When we find thoughts or behaviors that create negative outcomes, we need to take the initiative to think and act in more positive ways.

A helpful exercise is to review your day before retiring each night. Identify your accomplishments for the day. Congratulate yourself on your successes, no matter how small they may seem to you. Determine what you did that contributed to the positive outcomes so you can reinforce those behaviors. Review what you want to do differently. Decide what actions might bring you more positive results in the future. This simple daily exercise is one way you can tap your inner wisdom.

To Be A Leader

2005-09-25T10:07:00.000-04:00

To lead involves the application of one’s abilities. To be a leader involves the expression of one’s identity.

Being a leader emerges from having a clear mission, vision, and values. A leader has a purpose, a reason for being. The leader knows why s/he gets up in the morning. The leader has envisioned the purpose fulfilled. There is clarity about the principles that direct the leader’s decisions and actions. The leader’s actions are an expression of personal identity. Through meaningful action the leader achieves outward success.

Too often would-be leaders initially focus on what they want to get. They then decide what needs to be done to attain their goals. What they do not consider is who they are. Their grasping for achievement rests on a hollow core. Their self-serving striving eventually collapses.

The courage, persistence, and passion needed for long-term achievement are fed by a clear understanding of who one is. This clarity provides strength of action. At the same time, the leader cannot be obsessively attached to a static identity. The leader must be open to personal growth. To be a leader involves an ever evolving process. While genuine action emerges from a sense of personal identity, the leader at the same time must question the source of that identity. This is the tension between being and becoming. Living within this tension is required of those who would be a leader.

Leader As Clown

2005-09-24T21:25:00.000-04:00

The typical image of the leader is of one who is strong, certain, and commanding. There are times, though, when certainty and seriousness must be disrupted if there is to be growth beyond what is. It is during such times that who is needed is the leader as clown.

The clown and trickster figures in mythology break through taboos, create chaos and disorder, disrupt the fixed and staid. The trickster initiates change and becoming. They shatter boundaries. In Paleolithic times, trickster was the archetype of the hero, the teacher of mankind.

In Carol Pearson’s model of development, the Fool is the most advanced stage. She describes the fool as at the root of our sense of vitality and aliveness. The Fool is also irreverent. When the Fool is active in our lives, we are motivated by curiosity and want to explore and experiment with life. When there is too little Fool in our lives, we become priggish, repressed, uptight, anorexic, tired, bored, depressed or lacking in curiosity. The contribution of the Fool to our lives is resilience.

According to William Torbert’s hierarchy of development, Clown is the next to highest stage. Individuals at this stage of development do not find their identity in a particular mindset or structure. Those at this stage embrace a reframing spirit that continually overcomes itself and divests itself of its own presuppositions, seeking the “common sense” and motivating challenge of each situation. Unpredictability and uniqueness characterize much of their work and play.

Henri Nouwen praised clowns for evoking in us a smile and awakening our hope. They live out the part of our being that wants to play, dance, smile, and other such “useless” things. Clowns remind us that what really counts is something other than the spectacular and sensational. They show us that many of our preoccupations, worries, tensions, and anxieties need a smile. In other words, they help us to lighten up.

Those who come to master any practice often come across as fools because they no longer adhere to the rules. They don’t fit the norm. They shed their self-consciousness and dare to express the fullness of who they are.

It takes courage for a leader to embrace the Clown. The Fool is willing to go beyond the proven, the safe, the expected. The Clown dares to play and experiment. Sometimes a leader must lighten up and recognize the absurdity within a situation, thereby fostering a fresh perspective. As the ancient philosopher Anacharsis said, “Play so that you may be serious.”

Managers and Leaders

2005-09-08T16:32:00.000-04:00

To excel, an organization needs both managers and leaders. Following are some ways managers and leaders compliment each other.
Managers attempt to control people, processes, and results. Leaders attempt to influence through their responses to others and the environment.
Managers attempt to motivate people by external means. Leaders draw followers in a direction by standing for something that followers value.
Managers concentrate on the tangible. Leaders operate at the level of the intangible.
Managers are concerned about external actions. Leaders concern themselves with contributing to a sense of identity.
Managers put their faith in the concrete. Leaders look to an underlying source of meaning.
Managers focus on achieving specific results. Leaders concentrate on fulfilling a larger purpose.
Managers hold a mechanistic perspective. Leaders think holistically.
Managers provide defined channels for the accomplishment of work. Leaders provide a reason for doing the work.
Managers are aware of limits. Leaders expand the limits.
Managers seek equilibrium. Leaders encourage disequilibrium.
Managers maximize the use of resources to achieve a result. Leaders assure the proper results are achieved.
Managers concentrate on doing things well. Leaders emphasize doing that which is worthwhile.
Managers are motivated to satisfy wants. Leaders are moved to fulfill values.
Managers aim for immediate results. Leaders seek future achievements.
Managers work in the present. Leaders build for the future.
Managers manipulate resources. Leaders are stewards of resources.
Managers concentrate on extending proficiency. Leaders focus on attaining mastery.
Managers motivate through position. Leaders motivate through relationships.
Managers subordinate individuals to the organization. Leaders promote people over institutions.

The Ecology of Leadership

2005-08-24T05:29:00.000-04:00

Definitions of leadership typically refer to something a leader does to, for, or with followers. The emphasis is on the leader. I view leadership as a system. This system has three components—leader, follower, and context. Leadership is not about the leader but about the relationship between these three components. Remove any part of this system and you destroy leadership. I refer to this dynamic as the ecology of leadership.

Ecology refers to the relationship of organisms to each other and to their environment. The ecology of leadership is about the relationship between leaders and followers within a particular context. Context refers to the situation or environment within which the leaders and followers find themselves.

Someone becomes a leader when others choose to follow. The followers determine who leads. There is no leader if no one is following. If there are followers, then by definition there is a leader. Otherwise you simply have a group of people wandering around. A leader is successful only if the followers are effective. If the followers fail, so does the leader. What is effective depends upon the context. What may work in one situation may not be appropriate in another circumstance. All three elements of the leadership system—leaders, followers, context—are interdependent.

This also means that leadership is an emergent process. Who leads and follows emerges as individuals interact with each other within a particular context. There may be a “designated” leader but that person may not be the true leader. Having a title does not make you a leader. The authority to lead is given by the followers. You become a leader when others choose to follow you.

Recognizing leadership as a system explains why many attempts at leadership development fail. Such efforts usually consist of designated leaders being isolated in classrooms or retreat centers and undergoing assessments, role plays, case studies, rock climbing, and rope courses. These individuals are then returned to their workplaces and expected to lead. The entire development process is disconnected from the leadership system. This is equivalent to trying to teach someone to be a championship tennis player by subjecting the individual to classroom instruction, video lessons, and assigned readings. The trainee may even get to role play in class by swinging a tennis racquet. Upon completing the training the individual is put on a tennis court with an opponent and expected to perform at a championship level. Not likely! Leadership development must take into account the leaders, followers, and the circumstances in which they find themselves. This does not mean leader skills cannot be taught. Such training can be useful. But such training does not constitute leadership development.

We need to be mindful of the distinction between leading and leadership. Leading is what a leader does. Leadership is the systemic relationship between leader, follower, and context.

Background

2005-08-23T08:32:00.000-04:00

Leadership has been a lifelong interest of mine. It may be helpful to anyone who may read this weblog to have some background on me explaining my interest in leadership.

I began taking a leader role as a child. I could say I started at birth since I was the first-born. What I had in mind, though, was my position as lieutenant of my elementary school’s safety patrol. As a teen I was the first Master Acolyte of the Episcopal parish of which I was a member and served as Captain of the Acolyte Guild. In college I was president of my fraternity. While still a graduate student, I initiated the start of a community action group for the community in which I lived; this lead to my later election to the Village Board. During this time I also was elected to leader roles in my church. Professionally I have served as chapter president of several professional associations and been formally recognized by my peers for my leader abilities.

Leadership also has been a focus of my work as a consultant and teacher. I have provided leadership training for audiences from North America, South America, Asia, Australia, Africa, and Europe. I founded the Center for Transforming Leadership. I teach leadership courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

I do not consider myself a leadership expert. I will always have more to learn. To say I “know” leadership is to confine myself to the past and present. We can only know what is or has been. If we expect to lead others we must first lead ourselves. We must move beyond our own personal boundaries into the realm of the unknown. It is there that learning takes place.

This journal is to document my own explorations into the realm of my unknown. Others have already journeyed to places I have not yet been. I welcome hearing from those who may wish to share what they have learned about leadership. “To know the road ahead, listen to those coming back.” (Yang Li An) I look forward to sharing and listening.