Three Tasks for Every Leader

Whether you’re the CEO of a large company or the head of a small production team, all leaders share similar responsibilities. To work effectively with a group, big or small, every leader must manage meaning, set the emotional tone, and put people in the right emotional range for their best performance. These three core leadership tasks came up in a recent conversation I had with my colleague, George Kohlrieser, as part of an upcoming video series on emotional intelligence competencies necessary to develop organizational and individual leadership skills.

What is Resonant Leadership?

Resonance literally means sound moving on the same wavelength. In contrast, dissonance occurs when waves of sound bump into each other and don’t flow together. Leaders’ emotions are like sound waves, impacting the emotional states of people around them. Resonant leaders help everyone onto a positive wavelength. In contrast, leaders who are negative and don’t manage their emotions create dissonance.

In Primal Leadership, which I coauthored with Richard Boyatzis and Annie McKee, we describe four styles of leadership that create resonance in a group: Visionary, Coaching, Affiliative, and Democratic. Each style positively impacts a group’s climate and, used appropriately, can produce results. The three tasks are key parts of each of those styles.

Managing Meaning

Leaders manage meaning every day. Effective leaders provide people with a clear understanding of the mission of the group or organization. Framing day-to-day events in the context of that mission helps group members understand what’s going on and how to make sense of their situation. Perhaps most importantly, resonant leaders help everyone know where they’re going.

Setting the Emotional Tone

All leaders set the emotional tone for their groups, for better or worse. A resonant leader maintains a positive tone, first by managing herself or himself. Such a mood flows outward from leaders who are calm, clear, and know where the group is going. Contrast that to a leader who broadcasts their agitation and lack of direction. Even in the midst of challenging circumstances, a leader can steer the group toward calm.

Positive Performance

What supports people to perform at their best? Sigal Barsade at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School has conducted research on the impact of emotions on work performance. Barsade and other researchers have found that employee performance improves when leaders spread enthusiasm, motivation, and a shared sense of meaning. Negative emotions such as fear or anger used carefully may provide a brief boost in performance but become toxic in the long-term.

How Well Do You Handle These Tasks?

How well do you handle these three core leadership tasks? Ask yourself:

• How clearly and succinctly can I name the mission of my team/organization?
• How often do I frame my requests of my team/organization in terms of how they relate to our mission?
• Does everyone in my team/organization know how the work they’re doing this week relates to that mission?
• How emotionally self-aware am I? Can I name what I’m feeling?
• How well do I manage my emotions?
• What emotions do I broadcast at work? On a good day? When I’m stressed?
• What is the emotional atmosphere in my team/organization?
• How do I convey positive emotions as motivation for performance?

You can give yourself even more data by asking a trusted colleague to review the questions and give you feedback on how they see you in relation to each task. Information from others, either just one-on-one or in a full 360-degree assessment, can be invaluable in helping you see areas where you can improve.