Leadership doesn’t mean martyrdom
Shiva Roofeh
Facilitator, Trainer, Learning Design Specialist | Leadership. Culture. Power. Systems. | TEDx Speaker | Pirate
Leadership doesn’t mean martyrdom
With notable leadership books titled:
“Leaders Eat Last”
“Surrounded by Idiots”
And “Dare to Lead”
It’s no wonder our understanding of leadership revolves around things like:
It’s because we’ve been fed this very individualistic view of leadership that is centered around personal power, empowerment, hoarding power and personal development.
So of course we’d think of leadership as a sort of martyrdom for your teams, colleagues, people, community, etc.
But what if leadership didn’t mean martyrdom and instead was synonymous with COMMUNITY and COLLECTIVITY?
The advocate, activist, and accomplice example
Folx who work and live in the social justice sphere will be familiar with these terms, but let me give a quick definition so we’re all on the same page (also note, these ain’t THE definitions, just SOME possibilities.. Please do add your own):
Advocate - An advocate is someone who has organized efforts aimed at influencing attitudes, policies, and laws for a more socially just society.?
Activist - A person who works to achieve political or social change, especially as a member of an organization with particular aims. (Oxford Dictionary)
Accomplice - A person who aims to tackle social injustices on an institutional level. (YWCA Women)
The thing about being an advocate, activist, or accomplice is that you CANNOT do it alone. There are larger systems at play, structures in place, and whole policies and more that one person couldn’t take on, on their own - it would cause burnout, exhaustion, and can dampen hope and resiliency... Aside from simply not being possible to do it alone.
If you are part of the social justice movement, you know that there is more power and strength in numbers, community, and collectives. We know that when we work together and across lines, we can make far more impact than if we were one person.
Some examples of this look like: strikes and marches, groups and networks calling their legislators for policy change, unions, cooperatives, and communities coming together to provide support and care for one another during challenging times.
Leadership CAN be like this, too.
Who said leadership meant you had to be ‘the chosen one’? (yes, that’s a reference to The Matrix)
If we learn from social justice movements, we can see that ONE person shouldn’t and can’t hold the burden of change alone - we need to do it together to make the most impact and change in our communities.
Some examples of leadership in community: Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), teams and colleagues coming together to demand policy change, and managers and teams working alongside each other to create more sustainable systems for work and productivity.
The common excuse in corporate leadership
I’ve worked with various Fortune 500 companies, teams that span the world, and over 1000 leaders in various levels of their organization and one of the most COMMON excuses I hear from corporate leadership is:
“Even if I show up this way, the organizational culture isn’t this”
And I get it.
When we’re in Leadership Development programs, my goal is to create a psychologically safe space for all participants to explore new ways of being and doing - so that they can SHOW UP in these new ways of being and doing that are more aligned to the culture they want to see in their organization and companies.
The reality is, when they leave those Zoom rooms, workshops, or spaces we’ve created through the program, organizational culture is so drastically different than what we’ve just developed together that it’s almost a shock. (Culture shock, anyone?)
My pushback, however, is that if you’re quick to share this comment with me, I challenge you to think about your reports, teams, and colleagues that can say the same about you.
And trust me, they do say the SAME thing about you… because it is the organizational culture.?
So if we’re all using this excuse, could this be why things aren’t changing in your organization? ??
If you’ve thought this during a leadership training or in passing thinking about how you can change your organizational culture - I’d like to share a question with you…
“How many more people in your organization feel the same way you do?”
“How many others in your organization want to change the company culture?”
“Do you even know who and what those organizations and people are? Have you reached out to them?”
领英推荐
And this is when Curious Rebel Shiva takes over and loves to go down the rabbit hole and connect with people to see what they’re thinking and feeling.
I want to remind you that your organizational culture might not be the way you want it to be, but it’s not your job to create change alone (I know, a huge blow to the ego, right?).
Change doesn’t come from you, it comes from community. You are not a savior or martyr (yikes, another blow to the ego?).
Take a look around at your colleagues and teams to see who else is noticing things about organizational culture you don’t like and want to do things a different way - now, get together and see how your power in numbers can really make change.?
You cannot have culture change without systems change
Let me say that one more time, you cannot have culture change without systems change.
The two go hand-in-hand.?
If you want to change your organizational culture…
Look at your systems.
Want to change your systems?
Look at what you’re prioritizing (or not), what the criteria for performance and success looks like, what you’re measuring (or not), and what you’re tolerating (or not)
Do you have sustainable and supportive systems that can create change?
Do you have sustainable and supportive systems that foster community?
If not, what can you, together with others, create?
Most of the time, organizations that struggle with culture DON’T have the systems to support the change.
Individualism, the false promise of security
Let me tell you a secret about individualism…
It is a false promise of security.
Capitalism and cultural imperialism have made us focus on individualism.
Why? Because these systems breed feelings of:
Most of the countries with the most power have gotten us to focus on individualism, which has removed us from working together.?
Collectivist cultures already figured it out though, they’re pushing against individualism and focusing on collectivism, community, and interconnectedness.?
Ancestor-in-the-making, leader - you and I, whether we know each other in real life or not - are all interconnected. Your liberation is dependent on my liberation. Your authenticity is dependent on my authenticity. We are all connected and interdependent.
Your leadership is dependent on my leadership.
You are not a martyr or a savior.
We are doing this together.
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Changemaker and full time Believer. PhD | Facilitator | Career Mentor | Experience Design Consultant | Speaker
1 年Great topic!!! Since I discovered that there is "Great Man Theory of Leadership" this martyrdom and other symptoms made lots of sense... there is lot of undevelopment work to be done in this sense.