A few thoughts on Inner Independence
Wasko Rothmann
Leadership Advisory & Executive Search I Global Industry & Technology Practice I Egon Zehnder Int.
Today I met a top manager of a large industry client I have the pleasure to serve for many years now. I know the group quite well and it is a very large and complex system, in a challenging market environment; surely deep in a transformation. Most managers of this company act with a lot of caution and consideration, some would describe the system as a rather political one (as almost all large organizations are in a way political systems).?
In this meeting today I was blown away by the boldness of that manager. He was full of ideas and vision, full of passion for a variety of topics, he had sharp descriptions of the market, the competition and the own transformational challenges - and he has not spared critical observations on the status quo of the company. We talked about how he is more and more challenging his peers, is pushing them to face reality, be more consequent in their measures, tackling the unpleasant issues. In my view, this manager is, by acting that way, driving the transformation of this company.?
The one thing I felt is special about this manager in the current situation: He feels great inner independence. He is in the group for decades now, had good success with a variety of topics (of course there also have been failures), he has peers he trusts and there might be (but I don't know) a financial aspect of not having private commitments that keeps him tied to his contract.
领英推荐
We spoke about that and I did ask him, what the turning point in his career was, the moment he started to feel this independence. In his view, it all began with the first visible impacts he had created for the company. Being successful with the things he found to be the right things, being proud of what he created, being recognized for the results, helped him to build this inner independence, which now allows him to step into a more transformational (and surely more risky) leadership role.
Independence is one of the values that inspires me most. Managers who feel inner independence, who are free of fear and anxiety, focus more on what is ?right“, fight for their ideas and passions. The smart and driven managers, unleash enormous potential once they start to feel independence - and they create a lot of value for their companies. The organizational implication: If you want to get your people transforming your business, it’s good to look for their inner independence.
What makes you feel independent?
SVP Strategy & Transformation, ZF Group || Strategic, international leader ?? || Love to lift people ??
1 年Great inspiration Wasko, thank you! For me, fundamental source of independence is the test of timelessness: will a decision/ action/ line of argumentation hold true under scrutiny in all times or is it just following a short term trend #timeless #scrutiny
A thought provoking article Wasko Rothmann ! Inner independence for me comes from knowing my values and leadership purpose and living those consistently. Transformation in organisations and personally is a long game and there are ups and downs on that journey. Approaching it with curiosity and a learning mindset and not taking any set backs personally is helping me on that journey.