The Power of Context in Leadership

Clients often ask me how to deal with specific leadership issues they are experiencing with their teams. And I’m glad to help them. It’s a big part of what I do in my consulting work.

And I want to tell you a story of how I worked through a problem a young middle manager was facing when trying to motivate some of his long-term, more entrenched staff, and one employee in particular.?

But first we need to talk about Context.? I define Context as being “how we show up” and as we shall see, it's hugely important in leadership. And there is a powerful lesson here, not just for managers, but for individuals feeling stuck and stale in their jobs.?

So what does Context in leadership mean to you?

For many, when we think of leadership, we focus on the people at the top.?

After all, they are in charge of leading the rank and file by issuing the necessary orders to execute the stated goals and purpose of the organization. That’s why they get paid the big bucks, right?

This is the traditional hierarchical model we’re familiar with. It’s also a model that fails to make the most of the human capital in a business or non-profit organization. It fails because it assumes that a hierarchical and paternalistic approach will produce the best results.?

There’s a great quote from Mark Sanborn’s 2006 aptly named book “You Don’t Need a Title to Be a Leader: How Anyone, Anywhere, Can Make a Positive Difference.”

It goes, “Genuine leaders make things better not just for themselves but for others, whether or not their contribution results in financial reward or popular recognition.”

And for a purpose-driven organization, those without titles are just as critical as those with corner offices and executive roles. Leadership should flow up, down, and across the org chart. But how to arrive at this place can be a tough nut to crack.?

Now, here’s that story I promised you.?

A while back that young manager approached me for some coaching on how to break through to his front line workers, many of whom had been on the job for many years and had ownership over what was going on at ground zero. But it wasn’t ownership in the good sense, where they were leading by example and matching their purpose in the workplace with the purpose of the business as a whole.

As it happens, this was a transportation business. And the leader of the “bad attitude” crew was a truck driver.?

The manager was stuck. How could he get through to this long-time employee? I invited him to start by helping each of his employees get clear on their own individual purpose and suggested that he embark on a series of one-on-one conversations with his employees to do just that.?

So he sat down with the employee for a purposeful conversation. And what did he learn?

He discovered his driver’s true purpose in life. It was to improve the quality of life of his physically disabled granddaughter. And while she had specialized transport to and from school, she couldn’t attend the extra-curricular activities most kids take for granted.?

So the manager asked him for ideas on how to connect his personal why with the purpose of the company. And the driver said, well, we’re a transportation company. What if we could put buses in service of disabled kids and get them to the after school activities they’d love to participate in but can’t because they don’t have transport?

So they made a plan. And the driver enlisted co-workers to create a volunteer roster of drivers willing to take these kids to their activities free of charge.?

Long story short, within three weeks the driver became a champion of the company’s purpose. And his new found enthusiasm became infectious in the workplace. He had an entirely new context for coming to work – and he became a leader whose personal purpose became connected with the company’s purpose. He was no longer just a driver, he was a champion of not only the volunteer program but of the company itself.?

This week, think of creative ways to help you change the leadership context in your work and business.?