Analytical Diaries

But how can you determine a good leadership conversation? Practiced and mature leaders have established a solid social identity through conversations and they apply the following:
- They challenge business as usual and think beyond what’s deemed appropriate and possible
- In speaking for the future they inspire alignment along a shared vision
- They are enabling others and foster collaboration amongst teams and individuals
- They model the way, act as a role model and “walk the talk”
- And they encourage the heart in recognizing success and celebrating it

Obviously putting this guidance into practice will not be straightforward and you will have to be prepared to deal with setbacks and iterations. And that is the crucial point where you really can make a difference. Whenever you and your team commit to a new possibility and run into an obstacle you can choose a response in both speaking as well as acting. So whatever you say or do will either perpetuate the status quo or move you further on the path towards your objective. And to do the latter it is best to seek the active support of your colleagues and to reaffirm the commitment originally pursued. It is this spiral of setting an ambitious objective and dealing with setbacks that takes time and perseverance. To honor this path you will have to take a clear stance towards what you consider realistic and ambitious: “A true leader always speaks respectfully about the past, realistically about the present and optimistically about the future”, says Jack Weber, Professor of Business Administration at the Darden Graduate School of Business at the University of Virginia. In his over 20 years of researching and teaching leadership Jack and his wife Carol have helped many global organizations to manage the transformation towards a leadership driven culture.

Another practice that differentiates the leader from the manager is how this positive attitude towards a great future is established. While managers usually make assertions, leaders make declarations. An assertion is something that can be underpinned by a plan and usually can be proven. And though this is certainly required for many administrative tasks it will not promote thinking outside the box of your trained worldview. When JFK dreamed of putting a man on the moon within a ten-year time frame, people didn’t think it would be possible and he himself had no idea how it could be done. But still in declaring this visionary possibility and by repeatedly re-asserting his commitment to that endeavor he was able to motivate and align a whole nation to work towards a glorious target. And it’s these BHAGs – big, hairy, audacious goals – that fuel many amazing leadership feats. Take for example the young team that decides to turn an average fish stand in a Seattle open air market into a buzzing, thriving and globally known example of business leadership (check out the great videos at http://www.pikeplacefish.com/). Obviously you will have to determine and pursue your own BHAG and be sure to keep a firm grip on it during setbacks and disappointments. One fact that can also help you through these difficult stages is the statistic, that true innovation adoption only requires a mere 16% of critical mass. In his book, “The tipping point”, Malcolm Gladwell outlines how new ideas and trends become mainstream. Usually only 2% of any sizable population can be considered pioneers, who take on risk and try out new ideas early. Another 14% can be considered early adopters who observe and evaluate the experience made by the pioneers and are eager to still obtain a fast-mover bonus in utilizing new trends and technology. And once you have convinced those 16% you will enter the mainstream and late adopters usage patterns where existing trends propel themselves without the need to be actively pushed forward.

To understand the nature and power of ones world-views is an important element in judging, whether an action is fit to lead. We are wired to our experiences and prejudices. What we have seen and learned during our lives determine in large parts how we react to similar or related situations. Mostly this happens beyond our conscious thoughts and without any reflection – whether you judge a clear and loud statement at work, as being rough or firm could be such a wiring. Whether you understand actively selling products to people as a genuine service or as a pushy and questionable practice would be another example. In that sense world-views govern the attitude of people, govern what they think is appropriate or possible. And this attitude in turn rules their behavior and thus guides them towards compliance or commitment.

And while we hardly ever reflect upon our own world-views, they play a large part in who we are as leaders. To a certain extend our world-views form the infamous box that creative minds ask us to think outside of. Past events and experiences have formed rules and stories and conclusions inside our head that we use to interpret and evaluate new events. In our regular day-to-day thinking we are limited by this box and training your mind to extend beyond its borders is called “possibility thinking”. Carol C. Weber of The Cahill-Weber Group leadership institute links this to her favorite saying: “Don’t believe everything you think.”

Leaders have to be aware of role world-views play when they interact with their staff but they should refrain from trying to change people’s world-views. What good leaders can do is to create new experiences and realities that drive their employees to adopt and extend their past views. This approach follows in large parts the famous advise that if you want to build a ship, you shouldn’t order your staff to draw up a plan, cut down trees and sew new sails but instead awake in them the longing for the sea.