What can we learn from Dolly Parton ?

Well, ladies and gentlemen, to be honest, I am not a fan of country music, but a few years ago I watched an interview with one of its biggest stars and I still remember what Dolly said then. "If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, you are a leader." And so we have the definition of an ideal leader.

We live in challenging and extremely demanding times. Every day we face challenges in both our private and professional lives. This makes the definition and role of a leader in organisations all the more evolving. Paradoxically, this is the perfect moment to verify whether, as a leader, we meet the expectations of our superiors and are able to adapt our management style to the changing reality. What kind of leaders do we need today?

I present few attributes that characterize leaders who can unleash the kind of human magic you see at work at some of the most high-performing companies.

First, be clear about your purpose. Second, be clear about your role. Third, be clear about whom you serve. Fourth, be driven by values. Finally, be authentic.

When I was younger, I thought successful leaders were supposed to figure out all the answers independently. Being smart and ensuring everyone else knew it seemed to be their most striking attribute. The best schools were supposed to lead to the best jobs, which produced the best leaders. That was why I decided to attend INSEAD and Oxford Universities. Power, fame, glory, and money measured professional success.?

This traditional model of the leader-hero who saves the day knows it all, is the most thoughtful person in the room, and is too often driven by power, fame, glory, or money is not appropriate in today’s environment.?

Unsurprisingly, people today expect a different kind of leader. So while each company needs to define its leadership point of view, here’s my definition of the modern leadership principle. It’s based on five attributes — of what I believe characterizes leaders who can unleash the human magic you see at work at some of the most high-performing companies. This philosophy underpins the leadership principles that I think are at heart of the business today.

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1. Be clear about your purpose.

That is, your purpose, the purpose of those around you, and how that connects to your company’s goal.

Over the last several months, the staggering number of employees leaving their jobs or seriously thinking about it has shed renewed light on the pre-Covid realization that individual and collective purpose is at the heart of the business. I’ve written about several aspects of corporate purpose, from how to define and make it into life to why it’s an essential element of motivation. For the corporate purpose to be successful, leaders must first be clear about what drives them and the people around them.

Just as crucial for leaders is understanding what drives people around them.?

?2. Be clear about your role.

A leader’s key role is to create energy and momentum, mainly when dire circumstances occur. It’s to help others see possibilities and potential, creating energy, inspiration, and hope. I would have dismissed this idea 20 years ago, but it’s essential to the role of a purposeful leader. As Dolly Parton is thought to have said: “If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, you are a leader.”?

You cannot choose circumstances, but you can control your mindset. Your mindset determines whether you generate hope, inspiration, and energy around you — or bring everyone down. So, choose well.?

More generally, your role as a leader is to create the right environment for others to flourish in support of the company’s purpose. For example, under Reed Hastings, Netflix, a company whose purpose is to “entertain the world,” has created a culture of “freedom with responsibility” that values people over process and innovation over efficiency, resulting in growth and reinvention defied all expectations.

?3. Be clear about whom you serve.

A fundamental element of purposeful leadership is to be clear about whom you serve in your position during good and challenging times. As a leader, you must help the people on the front lines, driving the business. You help your colleagues. You serve your board of directors. You serve the people around you, by first understanding what they need to give their best so you can do your best to support them.

View?everyone?as a customer. How you treat employees, for example, will significantly influence the service you receive.?

It takes vigilance and a healthy dose of self-awareness to avoid sliding into the trap set by power, fame, glory, and money. So before speaking or acting, be clear about your motivation and whom you’re trying to serve.?

4. Be driven by values.

When I worked for L‘Oreal early in my career, I get leadership advice from one of my bosses. “Tell the truth and do what’s right,” he said.

Most of all, agree on what is right: honesty, respect, responsibility, fairness, and compassion. On paper, every company has great values. But values are no good if they remain on paper. Being driven by values is?doing?right, not just?knowing or saying?what’s right. A leader’s role is to live by these values, explicitly promote them, and make sure they’re part of the fabric of the business.

Doing what is right is not always straightforward, of course, particularly during crises, when overwhelming stress and pressure can obscure our sense of values.?

Being driven by values also means knowing when to leave when you’re not aligned with your environment, be it your colleagues, boss, board, or company’s values and purpose. Have the wisdom to know the difference between what you can and cannot change, as the saying goes.

5. Be authentic.

It’s a long and arduous journey, and it took me a lifetime to embrace the three“Be”: Be yourself, Be vulnerable. Be authentic. Being vulnerable and authentic does not mean offloading everything to your colleagues. For leaders is sharing emotions and struggles when appropriate and helpful to others.

As many of us were forced to work from home over video over the past two years, we revealed more of our whole selves — children, dogs, cats, wifi problems, etc. This was not always comfortable or easy. But we all had to see each other in a new light, as whole human beings. Employees expect leaders too to be human. This starts with making ourselves vulnerable and acknowledging what we do not know. Brené Brown points out that vulnerability is at the heart of social connection. And social harmony, in turn, is at the heart of the business.

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The way we lead has profound implications for people around us and how we do business. However, we cannot transform companies, and more generally capitalism, unless we reflect on who we are as leaders, and particularly on the following questions:

• Have you decided what kind of leader you want to be?
• How would you describe your purpose?
• How would you describe your role?
• What are you doing to create an environment where others can thrive and flourish?
• Whom are you serving?
• What values define you?
• Are you doing your best to be authentic, approachable, and vulnerable?

So, start with yourself. Be the leader you’re meant to be. Be the change you want to see.

BE AUTHENTIC !