Real leadership is a way of life and it is for everyone

Real leadership is a way of life and it is for everyone
11 Jul, 2008, 0505 hrs IST,Robert H Thompson,

Robert H Thompson
Robert H Thompson
Isn’t that just for the top of the ‘food chain’ ? You just want an entry-level job, a promotion to the next rung, or to simply keep your job in tight times, right? In today’s world, you think to yourself, you’ll be lucky to get to a leadership position in the next five years. Wrong! If leadership is not the most overused and misunderstood word, then it certainly ranks in the top ten in today’s corporate corridors .

It’s time to set the record straight. Leadership is not about title or position or being the decider , That’s positional authority. It’s not about knowing it all, creating a fearful atmosphere, or getting obedience from others even if that seems to be the everyday behaviour in your organisation. No, real leadership is about collaboration, asking questions that promote learning, and creating an atmosphere of innovation. And, real leadership is for everyone . Moreover, it can be honed with practice, but it starts internally and grows from there.

My experience coupled with research helps me understand real leadership is a way of life. It is a choice about creating open, honest, authentic relationships that urge others to want to discover their power and focus on what matters to them and their community. It is about knowing what matters to you and what you want from your life, not just your job. Real leaders ask, “what do I want my life to look like today” not, “what do I have to do today” . Big difference.

There are four simple principles to keep in mind as you begin your new leadership journey. First, Show Up. Be present at all times. Leadership is a moment-to-moment choice. Close the gap between your beliefs and behaviours. If you can’t walk the talk, sit down and zip your lips. Listening deeply to others and considering their perspective is a must. Closing the gap creates a credibility path so that others want to “join” with you and not just be viewed as mere followers. If you reflect on the difference between the words “join” and “follow” , I think you will agree that it’s more than just semantics.

Secondly, Speak Up. Be heard. Discover your voice. Help others find theirs. Speak from your heart and create a vision story that offers a script of a positive future as well as everyone’s potential role in it. Consider today’s story and what the future needs to look like. Keep in mind who or what will assist or oppose. Invite others to join. Just because they are working with you doesn’t mean they feel welcomed. They need to know the benefits of walking the path with you.

Third, Step Up. Be an action hero. Erase your limiting thoughts. Question everything, especially systems, policies and procedures. Urge others to blow up their mental boundaries and see obstacles as opportunities for innovation. Remember , it’s okay to fail, but always fail forward. Not getting the result you thought you would get from an action might be the best learning tool on the planet.

Finally, Serve Up. Be of service at all times. Be an integral part of a diversified cast of talented leaders. Honour everyone’s individuality. Recognise efforts in a creative and meaningful manner. Create your masterpiece and help others create theirs.

What’s the best way to get started? Create a vision. But, not just any plain vanilla vision that’s plastered to the wall and checked off the to-do list. Real leaders create a “Vision Story” for everyone to own. With that in mind, I offer you a quick peek at “The Never Ending Story” , a process that helps others create a vision that is sure to shake up any organisation, rattle brains and cause hearts to roll. Here are the questions in brief:

What are your passions around this new vision possibility?

What is your current reality? Leave nothing off the table.

What should the future look like? Expand your thoughts.

Who are your champions? What are the obstacles?
How deep is your commitment?

Have you invited your team to join? What are the benefits?

Why do you want this?

When you have answered these questions to your satisfaction you are ready to write your Vision Story. Be sure to keep it in draft form until you have shared it with your team. Let them participate in the creative process. That way everyone owns the future. In this multi-step method, you are probed for your thoughts around who you are and what you want to accomplish . Be real with yourself and don’t hold back. If you are not true to yourself, why should anyone care to join you on a journey towards success?

Be sure your story is brief, specific and easily understood by those you wish to engage. Of course, all stories should have the proverbial happy ending. Why would anyone willingly join a march with a terrible ending? Ask for change with a “call to action” , but be clear with your request. Remember , you are asking people to go with you to a new place that might be uncomfortable for them. If you wish, be sure to add some real or imagined characters with dialogue to move the story along. That will certainly enhance the connection. And certainly add any elements from your past successes as ways to prove it can be done. You may also research famous quotations that might help motivate your colleagues.

When you are finished ask yourself, “What is the core theme?” That will be your “sound bite” that everyone will focus on. Have fun with this process. Quiet that small voice inside that harps at you about your lack of creative talent. Allow your creative side to emerge. Let your leader out to play. A great Vision Story is a waste of time for you and others if you are not committed to Showing Up, Speaking Up, Stepping Up and Serving Up… together.

Over the years, I have learned that with commitment , people willingly join with you to climb the highest peak. They will help you challenge the largest obstacles. Without commitment, nothing changes. Not you. Not them. Nothing.

(Robert H Thompson is a speaker and executive coach and the author of The Offsite: A Leadership Challenge Fable)

Flamboyant CEOs get lot of attention

Flamboyant CEOs get lot of attention
11 Jul, 2008, 0536 hrs IST,

Flamboyant CEOs
With ten heads, twenty arms, a flying chariot and a city of gold, Ravan is one of the most flamboyant villains in Hindu mythology. He abducted Sita, the wife of Ram, and was struck down for that. Ravan is the demon-king of the Ramayan, the lord of the Rakshasas, whose effigy must be burnt each year in the autumn festival commemorating the victory of Ram.

Yet, there is much about Ravan to be admired. He was a poet who composed the Rudra Stotra in praise of Shiva, the asceticgod ; he was a musician who used one of his heads and one of his arms to design a lute called Rudra Vina, in honor of Shiva. When Hanuman entered Lanka, in search of Sita, he found the demon-lord lay in bed surrounded by a bevy of beauties, women who had willingly abandoned their husbands, drawn by Ravan’s sexual prowess.

Rishi Agastya informed Ram that Ravan was only half-demon : his father Vaishrava, was a Brahmin whose father was Pulatsya, one of the seven mind-born primal sons of Brahma himself. So after killing Ravan, before returning to Ayodhya, Ram went to the Himalayas to perform penance and purify himself of the sin of killing of a Brahmin.

Ram, by comparison, is a rule-upholder who never does anything spontaneous or dramatic. He always does the right thing, whether he likes it or not, and does not seem like much fun. It is natural therefore to be a fan of Ravan, to be seduced by his power, to be enchanted by his glamour, and to find arguments that justify his actions.

In the corporate world, flamboyant CEOs do get a lot of attention , especially if they also happen to be successful CEOs, with their very own city of gold built on rising stock markets. One is dazzled by the cars they drive, the lives they lead, their swagger, their confidence, their individual aura that makes them giants amongst their peers, powerful men like Trilochan-ji who command authority and demand allegiance. Trilochan-ji’s team admires the way he can pick up the phone and get things done.

He has the money to buy anybody who stands in his way. And the political clout to get all the clearances. He has, in a short while, managed to grow his business at a rate that his predecessors could only imagine. Trilochan-ji’s organisation is in awe of him. And everyone fears him.

By contrast, Asutosh-ji , Trilochan-ji’s cousin, is a very mild man. His business has grown rapidly too, but no one knows about it, because he does not push his public relations department too much. Why? “Because press coverage has no impact on my business.” He meticulously gathers data, plans his strategies with his team, empowers his directors to implement them thoroughly, keeps a hawk’s eye on deviations, and ensures the numbers are met. Few would notice him in the office.

He dresses like others do, uses the same toilet as his employees, loves spending his Sundays only with family, and is happiest when he can give his employees a good bonus and his shareholders a good dividend. Not the best results in the market, but much better than last year. The point, he says, is not show spikes of brilliance but a steady sustainable growth. His speeches are boring, too accurate and lacks the glamour of Trilochan-ji .

And when in crisis, Asutosh-ji will not pick up the phone to call a politician nor will he look for people he can buy out. He will meticulously plan his action to solve the problem without looking for short cuts. “Because,” he says, “Short cuts always have long term repercussions and I will not risk it while am the custodian of my company’s future.”

It is simplistic to call Trilochan-ji a Ravan and Asutosh-ji a Ram simply because the former is flamboyant and commanding while the latter is boring and task-oriented . What makes Ravan the villain of the Ramayan is not his heads, or arms, or flying chariot or city of gold. It is his strategic intent.

What does Ravan stand for? He never built the city of gold. He drove out his brother, Kuber, and took over the kingdom of Lanka. He went around the world killing sages and raping women. Why? To establish his dominion and generate fear. Why did he abduct Sita? Avenging his sister’s mutilation was but an excuse; it was the desire to conquer the heart of a faithful wife. And during the war, he let his sons die and his brothers die before entering the battlefield himself. His desire for victory over Sita, and Ram, mattered more than the lives of his people.

Ravan lives only for himself. His pleasure matters the most. Ironically, he is the devotee of Shiva — the god who demonstrates his disdain for all things material and sensuous by smearing his body with ash and living atop a desolate icy hill. Ravan may sing praises of Shiva and bow to him, but despite having ten heads is unable to internalise the wisdom of Shiva.

Maybe he does understand Shiva’s ascetic philosophy intellectually, enabling him to compose potent hymns, but he is unable to follow Shiva’s way in spirit. For all his prayers and poems, he remains attached to power and pleasure and wealth — all things material, and all things transitory. He is no nihilist. He is simply a weak man, a talker, not a doer. In Hindu mythology, a leader is not one who is rules a city of gold or travels on a flying chariot. It is one who lives to make a positive impact on the lives of others. Leadership is not about self-aggrandisement . It is about creating a society where people can live a full life.

Ram is a hero and god, not because he is a boring obedient son, but because by being an obedient son, he demonstrates his commitment to ‘others’ . He lives not for his pleasure, as Ravan does, but for the pleasure of those around him. And the journey is not easy, for one can never please everybody. Trilochan-ji’s empire is a by-product of his desire to dominate and be feared while Asutosh-ji’s establishes businesses to satisfy his internal and external customers to the best of his ability. It is the difference in strategic intent that makes one Ravan and the other Ram.