Is Your Leadership Philosophy Obsolete?

In a fast-moving turbulent marketplace, leaders who do not consider context quickly become irrelevant or obsolete. Context is one of the most undervalued and underrated elements of leadership. Not knowing how to leverage context or failing to understand the importance of context threatens leadership ability. Failing to fully integrate context into one’s philosophy of leadership may sabotage future leadership opportunities.

Many of our leadership philosophies center around the leader and a follower and the alignment between the two. For sure these are relevant factors. However, excluding context from the equation will always leave a gaping hole in leadership effectiveness. Without developing an acute appreciation for context, the right questions can never be asked.

In realty, it is context that dictates both the behavior of the leader and the follower. Context is the lens through which leadership effectiveness must be evaluated and seen. Context is important because it is the fabric and texture of every situation, and it is what makes every situation unique. A leader’s capacity is dependent upon being able to diagnose the uniqueness of every situation. The word context comes from the Latin, which means to weave together. It is where we get the words textile and texture. Understanding the context means being able to identify all the different kinds of fibers, fabrics, and colors that are sewn into a backdrop.

Every situation, even if familiar, or redundant have unique fibers sewn into them. Making even the familiar unique. This is precisely why the same interventions don’t work with different people and why those same interventions do not work with the same people in a different setting or at a different time. Failing to recognize how critical a role diagnosing context plays in problem solving, brainstorming, framing the right questions, performance, and delegation can be disastrous. But, diagnosing the context correctly can lead to leadership mastery!

When contextual factors are considered equal to leader and follower dynamics the probability of meaning making increases dramatically. This is the core tenet behind contextual intelligence. Leaders who are contextually intelligent have a significant advantage when it comes to leading well and inspiring those around them.

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Matthew R. Kutz, Ph.D., ATC is an author, speaker, and clinical professor at Florida International University. For more about Matt and his books, research, and speaking visit www.matthewkutz.com