The Peanut Gallery on Leadership
Opinions on leadership are quite interesting and often take on a carnival like atmosphere. Everyone has an opinion and some even have ideas, most often not having any formed based from experience. Fueled by opinions and delusions that reflect ‘if I was the boss’ a fit of pack rage insues. Maybe it’s the convoluted belief that opinions heard will result in actions taken. The swift undercurrent of making a difference and the right of opinion overshadow the misdirected path of imparting over listening and learning.
Leadership is hard and also a diametric situation that poses decisions against desires that are richly embellished with emotional baggage. Sympathetic consideration becomes more a case promoted by the ‘to be managed’ that a consideration given to the leadership. The role is one that is best characterized as baptism by fire, enable by past performance that assumes that this will carry forward under a new context. In many cases enterprises simply can’t answer the most question regarding success of leadership. Instead the enterprise relegates outcomes to precipitating situations and overlook root causes. In doing so a continual repetition occurs and blame gets channeled incorrectly.
The Newborn
Although some time ago those that are in leadership positions can remember when we still aspiring leaders. During those formative years we endured the exercising of leadership. Some we felt a connection with and others we did not. It was through this period of exposure that we formulated our leadership persona. Things were not always in agreement with our beliefs and in some cases even with our formed knowledge that had been attained through formal and informal means. In this situation we started to understand that context influenced viewpoints and vantage points, that it wasn’t simply a text book rule based leadership model. This resulted in the need to listen more and increase our perceptive understanding of the decision making process.
Today’s up and coming leadership candidates will need to pass the same gauntlet on their way to attain a leadership role. It is not accomplished by baseless opinions as to how they would exercise leadership or by way of trendy collaborative compassion. Exercising a crafted overthrow based on leadership advice by way of words and lacking in application will not produce role elevation.
Real Leadership
It is challenging, hard and rarely involves a natural trait. Leadership is created from the extent and variety of exposure, attempts (failures & successes), and reliable proving of mastery. It’s from this primal state that leadership is put to an unceasing stress involving the beneficiaries of leadership and the service to higher leadership.
As often touted in topics of leadership it involves all of the emotional care that is needed by employees. These emotions center on respect and consideration with which doesn’t involve abdicating the demands placed on leadership. Someone has to retain vision, purpose, clarity and protection of the decision path. It’s not an opportunity for each decision to come under debate and adoption on decisions, unless called upon to interject. Decisive actions that are within the leader’s domain of capability may require independent insight solely based on impact. In similar fashion when capabilities are deficient this would also suggest the need to solicit value guidance from those with abilities.
So What Do We Want?-What Do We Expect?
In the context of business everyone wants to be heard. Although the dynamics change with geographic location people desire acknowledgement and confirmation. This permits us to adapt our conduct to the situation. But as individuals we must clearly understand our role as relegated by the business and by the norms of commerce. Its only when you reached a level of empowered leadership that you can recast the model of conduct. Until then take full advantage of the opportunity to observe, listen, consider and establish your leadership talents.
As for leaders our operating persona is under constant change that comes about the result of planned and unplanned disruptions. Resting on your laurels poses a threat to your trusted position but also for the harmonic well being of the organization. It behooves, by necessity, to temper and adapt proactively and not as a means of capitulation. This enables leaders to sustain leadership duties by means of being, not by influence.
Decision Points:
- As a employee are you being responsible and respectful of leadership?
- Do you know what leadership entails or are your actions a reaction to self-centered ideals?
- As a leader have you adapted your leadership style to reflect changing conditions and disruptive circumstances?
- How good do you do your job? Are you reliant upon habit and tradition or is progress made through purposeful acts?
- What are the key leadership goals that the organization promotes? How much adherence is there to these ideals?
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Clarity Group Global is an intellectual decision validation institution dedicated to the support of leaders, companies and organizations that face challenging choices. Making right decisions that produce significant value equates to less disruption and chaos, "non-tradition made exceptional".
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