Leadership

We all get frustrated when things don’t go our way but -with the premise that the world is probably going to get more unpredictable than less- our ways of thinking (that have gotten us where we are) will be even more insufficient going forward. We need a “new way of thinking”. One that complements NOT replaces the way we were taught to reason.Starting well before we enter school, we were all taught what can best be described as prediction reasoning. It is a pattern of thinking and acting based on the assumption that the future is going to behave in a way similar to the present and the immediate past.

Leonard Schlesinger, in his wonderful book: JUST START, states that “treating an uncertain world as if it were predictable only gets you into trouble”. But if you can’t predict the future (and increasingly you can’t) ACTION and inspiring others trumps everything else.

Connect and collaborate, don't command and control

The days of leading companies via a one-way conversation are over. Power has shifted and our leadership must shift with it. The old system of "command and control" to exert power over people is fast being replaced by "connect and collaborate" -- to generate power through people. Leaders and managers cannot just impose their will.

 Inspire, don't only motivate or coerce

There are three ways to get people to do things: coercion, motivation or inspiration. Leaders need to focus more on inspiration and less on coercion and motivation, since external rewards and carrots and sticks have limitations (particularly in hard times when there are fewer carrots to go round). Business today faces an inspiration deficit as demonstrated recently by "The How Report," an independent study that the company LRN conducted with the Boston Research Group and Research Data Technology.

The report found that CEOs are six times more likely than "average workers" to believe they work in a company where people are inspired. Employees said they were primarily coerced (84%) or motivated (12%) by carrots and sticks at work rather than inspired by values and a commitment to a mission and purpose (4%).
Yet the study reveals that companies that do inspire their people through values significantly outperform those who don't. These companies experience higher levels of innovation, employee loyalty, and customer satisfaction, and lower levels of misconduct, employee fear of speaking up, and retaliation.

Behavior as offense, not defense

The most successful sports coaches have shown that behavior is no longer a defensive tactic. Instead, behavior is now an offensive strategy that inspirational leaders need to deploy all over the pitch to create the conditions that result in the game being won, not just being played. There are simply too many shots on goal for them to block in our radically interconnected world. The best defense is to keep the ball.

Behavior has become a powerful source of excellence and competitive advantage. Bosses can no longer get away with telling subordinates, "Just get it done -- I don't care how." Today's successful leaders are those who flip the switch and replace task-based jobs (which are about what people must do) with values-based missions (how we get things done).

Recognize and reward for "how" and not "what"

Leaders and managers should go out of their way to recognize employees for how they do what they do, not for what they do or how much they get done. This could consist of starting their next meeting not by asking "What is on the agenda?" but "How are we going to connect and collaborate to make a difference?"

Or it could be emphasizing a principled decision that a colleague has made for their company in the interests of long-term sustainability at the expense of short-term expediency. Today's most successful leaders realize the need to relinquish traditional modes of control and set an example to their employees for how they lead, speak and manage performance.

Hire for character, not just skill

"Who" is an anagram of "how" and in a world where "how" matters more than ever, it takes "who" to do "how."
The Greek philosopher Heraclitus said, "Character is fate" and it is the responsibility of leaders to enlist employees who can contribute their full character and creativity to perform their best work and whose reason and purpose for going to work every day extends beyond their paycheck.

By inspiring their employees to pursue a higher, more meaningful purpose and achieve real sustainable value, leaders can achieve significance, not just long-term success.

China’s most famous philosopher, Confucius, said over 2,000 years ago: "The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." The leaders who commit their companies to go on a journey to find new ways to innovate in "how" will be those whose organizations thrive, not just survive.

Joe Velarde
Managing Director
eglobal.joe.velarde@gmail.com

E-global Solutions. 2011.

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