I have just returned from the BNI International Conference in Long Beach, California at which there were many references by a number of people to the importance of leadership – to include presentations from Brian Tracy, the CEO of BNI and from the Founder and Chairman of BNI, Dr Ivan Misner. It is such an important subject that I have decided to start up a separate topic on this blog to explore leadership – and what true leadership really means. This will not be a review of what the various books that already exist on the subject have to say about leadership – what great leaders do, how they operate etc. Such books, and there are many; are packed with seemingly practical advice about what individuals and organisations should do differently – yet few penetrate to deeper insights into the nature of real leadership. This will be an exploration of what is possible when we move away from the traditional approach to leadership – which is founded in hierarchy and ego based thinking – and chose instead to see leadership as an opportunity to serve – and what can start to unfold when leaders create an environment which empowers their team members to continually deepen their understanding of reality and start to participate in creating new circumstances.
As Einstein said – “The world we have created is a product of our way of thinking”. Nothing will change in the future without fundamentally new ways of thinking. As the goal of this blog is to demonstrate that any change that is going to occur in the world today is going to be driven by business – this seems a great place to start.
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With the recent changing of the guard in both the US and New Zealand, what a perfect time to bring this up. In politics, just as in business, leaders have their different styles.
Some are autocratic, like New Zealand’s most recent ex-Prime Minister. Other’s recognize they don’t have all the answers and seek to draw upon the talents of their team, or even from their customers.
Here in the US, Barack Obama has taken advantage of the Internet to ask directly to US citizens (and non-citizens) what they’d like to see change in government. You can email his transition team directly with your story or your vision for a better America at http://www.change.gov.
It seems clear that he sees himself as a servant of the American people, and possibly humanity, given the large footprint America leaves upon the world. He comes in at a time when the American economy is undergoing dramatic change, with Citibank announcing a further 50,000 layoffs just today, and mass job losses being the norm of late.
New Zealand has a new leader also. His first steps seem assured and sensible, and he seems the right person for these times in New Zealand also.
However, in this environment, while it’s comforting to believe that government will help us through, eventually we will come to realize that we are the leader we have been looking for. We are the creator of our reality, and only we can improve our lot in any meaningful lasting way.
The economic news reflects a mass consciousness of fear, however, we don’t need to buy into that, and when we choose optimism over fear, and personal and business creativity over clinging to the old ways of doing things, we will create our own security and prosperity.
Now that’s leadership! If it’s going to be, it’s up to me.
Both New Zealanders and Americans are pioneers at heart, with rugged individualism at our core. Now is a time of great opportunity, as is any time where there is great change. With a positive attitude and eye for opportunity, we will demonstrate the kind of leadership our countries need…fearless, positive, courageous.
Creativity is limitless unless we allow ourselves to become paralyzed by fear. Expect the best and be the leader you’re looking for!
I think that “Leadership” is quite often understood to mean “Teamwork”, and if you know anything about working with groups of people, you’ll understand this saying: ‘Teamwork is where everyone does what I say!”.
Leadership involves leading by example, refining your example by conferring and listening to others, and constantly improving your actions based on regular and frequent assessments.
Do we have a new “leader” in NZ? Maybe. Let’s hope he is at least listening!
Today I came across this interesting quote from visionary psychologist Carl Jung:
“Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.”
What he means is that everything we see as reality is actually a projection of our own consciousness. As a result, if we are having problems with teamwork we need to look at our mental model that is a proxy for “team”. This comes mostly from our childhood observations of our family.
Likewise our mental model of leader is more likely than not to come from our childhood observations of our mother.
So our experiences of team and leader come from related but different roots.
Also, when you think about it, how much does a Prime Minister really influence your day to day life? Not much I’d suggest, particularly if you turn off the news and start working on consciously creating your desired life. At that point politicians will be pretty irrelevant (unless your desired life involves politics) 🙂
Show me someone for whom “teamwork is where everyone does what I say” and I will show you someone with a domineering mother.
I agree with several of the points (in particular) which Murray has made; specifically that now is a time of great opportunity, and that this time of change demands strong leadership.
Strong leaders see options or even opportunities where other people cannot see past interim struggles and barriers. They remain positive and forward-focused, and communicate this to their team. They value and listen to their people in order to understand their wants and needs. Their vision will inspire others because it will be delivered in a way that is real and meaningful to these individuals, enabling the leader to capture their hearts and minds and in doing so lead people towards a common goal/success. Individuals follow great leaders because they believe that achieving that vision will deliver outcomes they too personally value.
So, how do you do this? The Top 4 rules of thumb I’ve heard/followed in regards to leadership are:
1) Seek first to understand, then to be understood
2) Know what is important and never, never, never give up (Good old Churchill)
3) The process is as important as the outcome – So look after your people, give them the chance to shine, support them in achieving the vision.
4) Your communication is defined by the response you get. It doesn’t matter if you had the best intention or strategy in the world, if your people don’t get it; you aren’t likely to achieve it! So communicate regularly and meaningfully.
People look to leaders most in times of challenge and change, so now is a time for leaders to step up, look ahead, and get people excited and focused on what they can control and achieve. Motivation is created when people identify something they want and believe they have the capacity or resources to achieve it. At its core, leadership is really about motivating others toward a shared goal and direction.
There’s a lot more to it of course, leadership is an art as much as it is a skill, but these rules of thumb are a good start in my experience.
What great feedback – many thanks for this. I couldn’t agree more with you. When a leader can look beyond ego and start to see what is best for the people – you have the possibility of achieving extraordinary results.
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