Leaders Create the Conditions
Josh Gratsch
Behavioral Health Tech CEO | Leadership Development | Husband & Father of 3 | Empowering People to Align Decisions, Actions, and Behaviors With Values and Principles.
Leadership isn’t about authority—taking that approach immediately sows the seeds for a dysfunctional team and culture.
Leadership is about responsibility, a critical distinction.
Authority relies on holding power and issuing commands to achieve compliance and results (where people become resentful and hate coming to work).
It’s control-based, where behaviors are rooted in ego.
Responsibility creates accountability but removes the need for power. Instead, it shifts the paradigm from holding power to giving it—EMpowering others to make decisions and take ownership.
It’s influence-driven, where behaviors are rooted in values.
Making this shift creates a more fulfilling environment where people have a choice. Identifying a “good fit” for the team becomes more natural and evident.
When leaders let go of rigid control and instead focus on influencing their team to succeed, they create an environment where people feel trusted and empowered to take ownership.
When a team is given agency, they have a choice:
“Leaders create the conditions where people choose new actions. The choices are voluntary. They're made by people who see a new landscape, new opportunities, and new options. You can't make people change. But you can create an environment where they choose to." -Seth Godin, from Seth's Blog
We can’t force change, but we can shape the environment so people see the value in choosing it. Leadership in this sense means:
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Pragmatic leadership isn’t about control (authority); it’s about influence (responsibility).
We don’t always have control, and that’s why it doesn’t work. Trying to force control where it doesn’t exist creates more problems.
Still, we always have influence, which allows us to lead with our values and principles and gives people the agency to decide whether or not they can commit to following our vision.
Teams thrive when the environment invites them to.
Our job as leaders is to create the conditions and issue the invitation.
"Control leads to compliance; autonomy leads to engagement" -Daniel Pink
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I work with leaders to uncover our best selves so we can do the same for our teams | 21+ Years of Leading & Developing Teams in the Navy | Leadership Coach | ICF ACC
1 个月This resonates deeply, Josh Gratsch. Influence. We influence outcomes. We don't control them. We influence them with our actions. We influence them with how we treat people. We influence them by considering multiple perspectives. We influence them by fostering safe environments for people to thrive.
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1 个月I think being a successful leader involves having influence, which comes from building authority through knowledge, insights, and understanding—earning trust and respect by showing you truly know your stuff. But it’s not about authority in the traditional sense of controlling others.
Leveraging Technology and Data to Empower Leaders With Behavioral Insights | Improve Performance | Improve Mental Wellness In the Workplace | Veteran
1 个月Josh Gratsch your article really resonated with me...as all of your articles do. I have always believed that leaders have to create the right conditions and proper motivations...which is part of the right conditions for growth and success in an organization. Your insights are spot on in my opinion. Thanks for sharing!
Dayton VAMC Healthcare Technology Manager
1 个月Love this! Well said.