What is Leadership?

Today I had posted the following tagline on Linkedin:- "A true leader neither needs a decorative designation nor does he needs a team reporting to him". Some disagreed with this statement and commented to express that. I am sure there might be others who are also confused. It is quite natural, as leading without a team and a proper designation appears quite counterintuitive. Hence, I thought, it is my responsibility to clarify. This is the purpose of this note. So what is leadership all about? Let's investigate.

Leading up the chain

Leadership is not just about leading down the chain, but also about leading up the chain. Leading up the chain means supporting your supervisor (leading the team) to execute well. It also means asking the right questions and understanding the plan accurately before you execute. This is important as all people managers (other than the CEOs) are reporting to someone or the other in the organization. Hence, every individual whether he leads a team or not has plenty of opportunities to demonstrate leadership skills.

Taking extreme ownership

Leadership is about taking extreme ownership. It means you alone are responsible for all mishaps. You cannot pass the blame. Let's say your supervisor has failed to communicate the plan, then it is not the supervisor who is responsible, but you are, as you did not ask the right question and clarify before executing. A leader never passes the blame to others but takes it all upon himself. This gives an opportunity for improvement and forces one to think out of the box.

Being proactive and not reactive

Leadership is not about just taking direction from your supervisor and executing blindly. It is about educating him about your plan, i.e what you would do under the circumstances. In the case of disagreement, it is about executing the larger plan (as told to you by your supervisor) as if it was your own. This will help you win the confidence of your supervisor and increase your ability to contribute moving forward, as he will be more receptive to listen to your ideas the next time.

Passing the credit to others

Leadership is about taking the blame on yourself and passing the credit to other team members. In this way, you can win the trust of your team members - most crucial for executing to win. A team having no trust between members can never execute well. It is destined to fail.

Adding value and managing expectation

Leadership is about focusing on adding value. One should never let quantum of reward cloud his enthusiasm. As adding value will increase your influence within your team, and your ability to execute better. The rewards may get delayed but will surely come, the form and the timing you can never guess. 

Stepping back to make opportunities for others

Leadership is about knowing when to step back and make opportunities for others. You can use the time to do something else or learn new skills. Also, leadership is about knowing when to let go, and not to hold everything to your chest. After all, we are all working to for the larger objective, and if someone can execute better than us then why not? This also opens up new opportunities for you to grow, otherwise, you spend the time doing the usual stuff again and again.

I hope it clarifies. While writing this note, I have only focussed on the skills needed to lead up the chain. I would also like to encourage you to read the book Extreme Ownership: "How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win" by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin. Most what I have stated above is described vividly in the book.