Teacher

I want to continue to share wisdom coming from Admiral Stockdale. His ideas come from his lessons learned as a prisoner of war for 7.5 years in North Vietnam. His views come from his book, Thoughts of a Philosophical Fighter Pilot. 

In his words regarding Hanoi, “” In that atmosphere of death and hopelessness, stripped of the niceties, the amenities of civilization, my ideas of life and leadership have crystalized. I returned home with a simple almost sparse concept of what qualities a leaders should have. And I believe with the utmost conviction that these traits are right.””

The next trait/role is that a leader must be a teacher. It is in this role where a leader must set the example for his/her “charges” in everything that they do. They do not have to be the best player, the best technologist, the best person at their respective field but they must be continually striving to be the best that they can be. They must demonstrate a desire and take the actions required to be the best version of themselves. If we as leaders, ask our people to be the best they can be, then we must exceed that effort in our role. For me, this comes back to trust. Great cultures have great trust. If we ask something of them, we must demand and deliver the same of ourselves. Stockdale said, “a leader must aspire to strength, compassion, and conviction several orders greater than required by society in general.” A tall order indeed but certainly one worth striving for. 

As a fighter pilot and a leader of maintenance Marines, I was never going to be able to fix the hydraulic systems of an F-18 but it was critical that I know as much as I could about the hydraulic system both for my safety knowledge and for the example it set for my Marines. They loved it when I’d ask intelligent questions about the systems and what they did to fix them. It made me a better pilot too. There is a phrase that goes around of “lead by example.” I am not suggesting that our example alone is leadership but what I do believe to be true is that your example is your “permission to play” as a leader. You must set an example that is worthy of their followership. 

Additionally in the teacher role Stockdale believed “”it requires the sensitivity to perceive the philosophic disarray in one’s charges and the knowledge of how to put things in order.”” This is sometimes referred to today as “leadership by walking around.” Leaders must know what is going on with their people on the “third floor”, on the “manufacturing floor”, at the “southern plant”, or for an athletic coach, in the “locker room”. This takes time, effort, emotional intelligence, and the ability to listen well. Stockdale called this “” …the sensitivity to perceive…””

Time. Leaders must make the time to be present at various times in the day, week, month, and year to take the pulse of the organization. Effort. It takes effort to consistently move yourself to where your people are doing the work of the organization. Emotional Intelligence. As we listen, and I mean level 3 listening, we need the ability to understand what we are hearing, witnessing, and experiencing. 

Are these fixable problems or are these just issues that leaders need to know about, understand and ones that our team simply needs to endure. If it is the latter, just giving your people an empathetic ear, appreciating their effort, and encouraging them will increase trust. If it is the former, we need to compassionately invest in solutions and communicate that you will find a remedy to their challenge. 

I do not believe we can underestimate the criticality of this leadership role. Stockdale nailed this one. Leaders who do this well, set themselves and their organizations apart from the pack. It creates trust, belonging, and loyalty. When trust, belonging and loyalty grow, so will performance and so will Organizational Will. It is truly a competitive advantage.