Off to the weekend. Looking forward to having my kids teach me.
What I learned from Kendra, my almost 3 year old girl. Last night we walked to the park. Kendra is a cautious little girl, but still loves to do things on her own. I am her Dad, I love to help her all the time. As most of us do, she can climb her way up ladders, but she has a harder time coming down. I would like to go over and teach her how to get back down and spot her along the way. She would rather figure it out on her own and like last night she will tell me, “Daddy go sit down on the bench.” I did, she climbed down a couple of stairs, doing it her way, got scared and then called me back with a little quiver in her lip. I helped just enough for her to get down and then we celebrated her success.
Do you currently have help that you do not use? Do you recognize that those who would help loved to be asked? I know I do.
Leadership is always about people. No matter how much technology we have, the big question is did we connect with followers and do we have influence. Not the influence of power, while sometimes that may be used, an influence that is sustainable, one of leadership.
The aligning of followers aspirations to a higher goal is the process of leadership. The effective leader balances a vision for a better future with the practical realities of their relationship with followers and the relative persuasion that the followers represent. The transformational process has many contemporary and historical examples where societal change is initiated or represented by leaders.
Enduring attributes should remind us to look at the legacy and impact leaders have made. We can learn from the exercise of power, that of influence and the resulting legacy of the different styles.
In Canada, culturally we do not celebrate our leaders. I have always been interested in American heroes/leaders. In Canada, our historical figures do not take on the hero status of the American founders. Our founding Prime Minister is remembered as much for his drinking as he was the political achievement of connecting our country.
My cultural proclivity makes me wonder if my caricature view of American historical figure is accurate. Lincoln is a case of where the more I learn about his leadership, the more remarkable he becomes. He may be a hero that we can learn from and seek to aspire to his leadership abilities.
Here are a few things that struck me about his leadership:
Patience
The emancipation proclamation was the right thing to do. In Lincoln’s day it was politically unattainable. At a time of civil war, the north and bordering states needed a unifying message. Large scale social change would not be the most practical agenda.
It appears that from early on in Lincoln’s career he showed sympathy to the abolitionist movement. He was the person in a position to make this change. He had the emancipation policy laid out and shared with his cabinet six months in advance of announcing it. The cabinet was not sure if he was wavering with his delay. Lincoln was focused on getting the popular support to have this change come to be a reality. He was taking the steps to frame the decision as one of saving the union and depriving the enemies of resources. Not the same aspiration of the abolitionists, but the same result.
He had the patiences to wait until the north would follow. He still had detractors, but he needed the populist mood to be on his side to make this happen. His timing was spectacular. Lincoln’s patiences enables strong support for a tactical change to win the war that became a transformational change to the American society.
Humility
Lincoln was an underdog. He was underestimated and built a reputation as a conciliator. He did not let ego get in his way of progressing an agenda. The best example of this was his interaction with one time presidential rival and then Cabinet member Salmon Chase. Chase bad mouthed Lincoln; he kept his own leadership ambition alive and many times threatened resignation.
Lincoln had a purpose for him and he needed Chase’s influence to achieve his goals. He did not turn Chase’s attacks into a personal battle. Most of us would have sent Chase away for disloyalty, inconsistency and sensitivity. Lincoln recognized his value and was humble enough to do want needed to be done to progress his agenda and that of the nation.
Shaping the story
Leaders have to suffer defeat and criticism (this may be a good reminder today). Lincoln had many defeats and in the darkest days of the civil war he stood firm. He worked to unify fighting Generals, encouraged a dejected Cabinet and continued on working the plan. As quoted from Doris Kearns Goodwin’s book Team of Rivals “Lincoln withstood the storm of defeat by replacing anguish over an unchangeable past with hope for an uncharted future.” We do not lead with defeat, but from the hope of a better tomorrow and the belief that our actions will make the difference.
Lincoln leaves me with the intentions to be hopeful. I know that we have achieved great things before and will again. I need to be humble in the face of adversity. I will see the right time to act and not just the right action. These lessons will be helpful when guiding businesses or my family.
It is fair to say that we have big challenges around the world today, but the challenges of a fractured country in Lincoln’s day would be more than daunting. I hope our leaders have the similar characteristics to that of Lincoln. It may be possible for the pragmatist to be the one who delivers the vision.
Thanks to Ronald Kustra (Proud torch carrier Vancouver 2010 Olympics) for recommending the Team of Rivals, The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln. It was a great read.
The second book that I am reading for the second time is Leadership by James MacGregor Burns (1978). Great books have timeless insights and that is true for this book.
Many parents I know try to treat their children the same. Christmas presents should cost the same and if one child has a hockey lesson the other should get equal opportunity in another pursuit. This seems only fair. Is this common sense cultural norm good for our kids, our work teams and our organizations?
I have a few clients that use the survey question “The same rules are applied to everyone equally.” The result of a negative finding is a dialogue that ends with “Of course they are not applied to everyone equally, the situations are different.” The result is managers become more aware of how they do not treat everyone equally. Frontline employees regularly agree that rules should be applied differently. They recognize that we are all different and our collective goal is the point. We are not trying to achieve equality unless it is a means to our end.
I have coached football for eleven years at a high school in Vancouver. We coach football. That does not change. Our offense and defense have minor changes each year. Our team is trained with incremental improvements in content and style. Our boys are the same age and in the same school setting. This year, I was reminded once again that the individual players change everything. Creating a high level of performance changes every year with the players. As coaches, we need to get to know our players as individuals and as a group.
Kendra watching the post game prayer.
We have the same team rules for everyone. These rules are simple and universal. They cover the obvious things (i.e. don’t be late). Some rules are never used and others have to be frequently applied. When applying rules we must ask ourselves, what is best for this person and what is best for the team? Our goal is to transfer our discipline to their intrinsic motivation. We desire every player to submit to the rules so that our team can function and perform. To get there, our players are on individual journeys and this requires a variety of interventions to progress. Our principles and rules do not change; however our ability to achieve growth collectively depends on our ability to apply the rules with wisdom and grace.
The process our team takes to be self determined has multiple stages. We seek to create a community around the common goal of winning a championship. We start soon after the ending of the previous season with off-season training sessions. Before we get to training camp the next year we have two off site events, one is a tournament and one is a football camp. These activities work on football skills and build personal relationships.
When fall camp starts we have a two day retreat where we facilitate a team charter. This charter is created by the players to determine who and how they want to operate for the season. At the end of this session we have a ceremony to celebrate the official formation of our team. This year we had each player sign an axe handle as a commitment to themselves and each other. At the end of the regular season, the handle was awarded to the player that most resembled the attitudes and behaviours the players decided they wanted to achieve.
Charter created by the players during unity camp
Rules are the norms we aim to follow. We need to work together so we can perform. The rules are not the purpose and should only act to facilitate our growth and protect our ability to operate. At work we need a process that enables employees to intrinsically apply rules. Fairness comes from our responsibility to each other and our collective goals. Applying rules need to facilitate individual and collective success. How are you preparing your people to do this?
Tony Dungy in his biography talks about having to treat his players differently. It is a good read and has some memorable quotes.
“The first step toward creating an improved future is developing the ability to envision it. VISION will ignite the fire of passion that fuels our commitment to do WHATEVER IT TAKES to achieve excellence. Only VISION allows us to transform dreams of greatness into the reality of achievement through human action. VISION has no boundaries and knows no limits. Our VISION is what we become in life. “
Once upon a time, when management communications happened in person, a term was coined to describe the blame we attach to negative outcomes – in a single explanation. It was the fundamental attribution error. This error was identified whenever someone was not motivated to perform a task the right way.
Example: Bob didn’t load the truck. His manager assumed he did not want too.
Human behaviour was reduced to a simple view of motivation. The motivation movement grew as we bought into this world view. You may have bought a book on motivating yourself. We might have believed that we failed our diet, exercise programs, school exams, simply because we didn’t want it bad enough.
I want to make all my shots but that never happens
I am not sure if enlightenment happened but we discovered that our ability, social relationships and culture could have an equal influence on our behaviour. I fear, in our technological age, we are at it again – blaming a single thing when it is much more complicated.
When we build online communities, we conduct usability studies to test the impacts of our tools. These tests often determine the tools to be insufficient. We add functionality, fix navigation, simplify the look, make the site more logical, and add a much improved database. We do all this because the behaviour and influence we expect our sites to cultivate, did not occur.
The reasoning – if the site was constructed better it would have delivered the desired result?
Don’t make this mistake – see the kaleidoscope that is human behaviour. Use diagnostic tools and approaches that enable a balanced and layered view. Take a page out of the Balancing Act and apply it to our communications, technological or not.
My memory was triggered by the book I read on my flight to Toronto. The book was the story of Mike Flynt who at age 59 returned to play his senior year of college football. Mike Flynt reminded me of a good friend of mine who passed away this summer. Mike and my friend Larry Burke had a lot in common. They were both tough as nails, loved training in the gym and had a passion for what fitness could do in people’s lives. Mike has a great story and I encourage you to check it out. Larry’s story may not be told so this post will focus on him.
Larry, in his early years, was not the easiest guy to get along with, but with age and experience he became a social hub that attracted all who met him. With his personality, athletic feats and generosity he became legendary in the Vancouver weight lifting community. He was a leader even if he did not intend to be. His personal history includes being a world class weight lifter and a Canadian record holder. In 1979, he tried his hand in body building and won the Mr. Vancouver title. During his competitive years, Larry built relationships and influenced those around him. After competing he found a passion for rafting, but his real legacy is the influence he had on those around him. He drew people together. Larry had some leadership lessons for all of us:
Attitude– Aim high and work hard. He told me that small goals limit you and to enjoy life we must be the best we can be and that meant to aim for the sky.
Lead by example – Larry did it first. He worked harder than others and would try anything. This was true right to the end. At 59, Larry would try new training styles and would still challenge the youngest guys in the gym. With his effort, he gained credibility from those who did not know his story and they would follow him.
He was a servant – Larry wanted to help others. He did not have a lot of material wealth, but he gave his time, skill and effort. This was without expectation. I am sure he received what he wanted, which was to share his passion for life.
Larry’s example
He loved to raft, but could not always wait for someone to go with him. His passion meant finding a way to do what he loved. He would leave a bike at the bottom of the mountain and drive his raft to the top. On this ice cold river, Larry would pilot his raft through the rapids and at the bottom, pull his boat ashore. From there he would ride his bike to the top of the mountain, drive down and get his raft and do this all over again. He loved it and the effort was worth every trip.
The reason Larry was so passionate was not clear to me. Something in his life focused him on excellence and giving back. His love for people helped him share experiences with his friends. That included taking them rafting and camping. He built a community of people who would have not met without him. A hole is left at the gym with Larry gone, but if some of us take up his example, his leadership will continue.
I love reading in the summer. A cup of coffee and a patio at my favorite coffee shop is the best place to let my mind wonder. As life is busy, I try my best to slow my thoughts down and I do that by reading. This summer I ran through two books I found equally enjoyable and insightful.
The Water Boy is the story of Bobby Ackles. He started his career as a water boy and rose to the President of operations of the BC Lions Football Club and then went on to help build the Super Bowl winning Dallas Cowboys.
Three Cups of Tea, tells the story of Greg Mortenson. He was a mountain climber that through a failed climb discovered a passion for educating boys and girls in the most remote regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan. His journey in this pursuit offers lesson and inspiration.
While both these men had much different paths they were both exceptional leaders. The definition of leadership I would use for both these men would be that they had many followers. These men raised expectations, provided extraordinary efforts, engendered great loyalty and had a tremendous impact on the communities they served.
Their demonstration of leadership in some ways is similar and in other ways very different. These books underlined to me that sustainable leadership has some basic core elements that cannot be removed and other characteristics that are determined by the situation.
The similarities: The love factor: Both men cared for the people they worked with, those they served and those they worked for. Humility:They exhibited a humility that allowed them to engage with all audiences. Everyone was important and all people had value. They were confident, but not in a way that reduced others. Determination: Both experienced obstacles that for many would have been the end.
The differences: A plan:Bob had a plan. He built a plan. He taught others how to plan. They had job descriptions, roles and responsibilities. No plan:While I can assume Greg had tactical plans and he definitely had a clear vision his organization remained informal and organic.
Their situation dictated the need for a unique leadership – most do.
So what situation should you lead people through?
Do you hold these core attributes that will make your leadership lasting?
Quotes:
Advice from Haji Ali, Greg’s mentor “Listen to the wind.”
Coming back to the Lions, Bob remembers “As a water boy, I wanted to be the assistant equipment manager. As assistant equipment manager I wanted to be the equipment manager. And so on. It was time for me to sit down and establish my goals for the Lions.”
As much as I am an optimist, I know that our business world is in a funk. Here is the thing, it is summer and my optimism grows when the sun shines in Vancouver. So if you want to gain that positive momentum back into your work place here is one trick in the leadership trade: Use symbols that support who you want to be and where you want to go. They work to focus and encourage the positive. When done well, they become a point of celebration and encourage progress.
Four great reasons to use symbols:
• Motivational
• Fun
• Values re-enforcing
• Unites
Key things for successful symbol implementation:
1. Be right for the group and the organization
2. Have a story
3. Leader shares the story and builds the process
4. Award it to those that epitomize its symbolism
5. Build a routine
6. Look for opportunities for the team members to champion the process
7. Select things that need to be celebrated
The video tells a story of two different approaches that football teams have used to encourage and celebrate what they wanted to be. Sports teams do this the best in my experience and that is why I use their stories. We can do this at work; it will just be a different symbol, one that is right for you and your team. Screaming Eagles – D Line Golden Bears – Defence
This week, I look at how our history can get in the way of achieving goals by questioning the practices of continuous improvement. This has impacted the effectiveness of how corporate sustainability initiatives have not succeeded and how we view employee engagement. What do you think?
Quote of the week: “An open system doesn’t have central intelligence; the intelligence is spread throughout the system.” The Starfish and the Spider by Brafman and Beckstrom
Every once in a while you see a great illustration of a concept that is hard to communicate. Leadership should be about walking along side people and progressing together. Far too often it becomes a well meaning person dragging others behind them.
It has been hot here in Vancouver and we have been spending the evenings outside with friends watching our kids play. Keon, the little boy in the picture below, is a great big brother. He watches out for his little sister Mya and tries to keep her safe. He knew she was suppose to stay on the grass and off the road. He went over and said “Mya we need to stay on the grass.” She knew that, but has a mind of her own. Keon ever so gently took her arm to lead her to the grass. Then he pointed his eyes to the goal he had in mind and dragged her there screaming. When this happens and it happens often, she is likely to fall on the pavement and scrape her knee. The other thing she is likely to do is go the opposite direction when she sees Keon the well meaning leader coming.
So how often when you intend to be a leader, do you engender this response from would be followers?
