Inventory of Strengths

A mark of a good leader is a knowledge of personal strengths and a willingness to  to cultivate the strengths of others so as to balance out the weaknesses. 

The knowing the full extent of our strengths is a difficult insight to achieve. And so I am grateful to David Lidster for pointing me in the direction of the VIA Survey of Character Strengths. 

To have a full appreciation one's leadership predisposition is a rare and good thing.

http://www.authentichappiness.sas.upenn.edu/default.aspx

Where will this knowledge take you?

Emotional Work

The last posting urged getting to know and accept oneself. I've come across a study of over 3000 leaders conducted by IBM in 2008, which intimates out why this is so important. 

Astonishingly, almost 60% of respondents reported that change projects partially failed or failed completely and that the main reasons related to people. Moreover, "most CEOs consider themselves and their organizations to be executing change poorly."(1)

Why does the human dimension cause so many leaders to retreat into tangibles - technology, systems, strategy and hope for the best?

I suspect it is because to do otherwise would involve more than assuming the role of leader: it would require becoming a leader. And therein lies the rub. My friend Brian Krushel touches upon the heart of the matter when he speaks of a personal journey from:

"fear to faith [in oneself]...[it] does not come instantaneously, it comes after much deliberation and meditation, it comes after conversations of doubt and maybe even despair. It comes only after body, mind and spirit have been engaged, after intellect and experience have had a chance to dialogue".

Only then, can the task of leadership begin, namely: embracing humanity, aligning aptitude to  performance and establishing a compliment of leaders; only then, can we hope to manage the pace and complexity of change.

So Gen Y, depend not upon leaders to guide you. Begin your journey from fear to faith. Look not for those who offer to teach you. Rather, find those who will facilitate you and trust you will arrive.  Along the way you will gather those insights by to nurture another human being to move from 'fear to faith'.

(1) Making Change Work, IBM, Continuing the Enterprise of the Future Conversation (2008), p.1

"Tell me, I forget; Show me, I remember; Involve me, I understand" Confucius

I've recently reconnected with someone whom I admire for her unceasing quest for solutions to social problems.

At the end of her email she added the oft quoted saying of Confucius: 

"Tell me - I forget,

Show me - I remember,

Involve me - I understand."

It prompts me to think about how we achieve a higher level of consciousness? Then it struck me - as generations, we are shaped by different experiences and therefore, see and experience the world in different ways.

What if in involving Gen Y in the task of leading, we were to explore these different perspectives  and combine it with thoughtful questioning, designed to facilitate self-examination and self-discovery as leaders? Perhaps together, Boomer and Gen Y leaders could illuminate what is known, what can be, and how it can be achieved. 

Moreover, the level of consciousness gained is more likely to go beyond the accumulation of information toward knowledge.


If this were to happen, what level of creativity would be unleashed?

What Is Leadership?

Is it a bit late to stop and ponder what is meant by 'leadership'?


It appears there is "no widely accepted definition of leadership... and remarkably little evidence of the impact of leadership or leadership development on performance and productivity; [furthermore] most initiatives appear to actively avoid addressing these issues [opting] for doing something about it… whatever ‘it’ may be!".(1)


Maybe an audit of leadership performance in using more than 30% of talent is a good place to start? How about clarifying leadership styles most beneficial in optimizing performance and understanding why, through critical reflection? Only then will it be possible to create a template of traits and skills upon which to create a meaningful leadership development framework.


Or, maybe it should start with envisioning what 'impact' all this effort might have in the world. Maybe then, leadership will come to be an alignment of values with talents in pursuit of goals that are meaningful and worthwhile. What mosaic of possibilities could we recreate?


In knowing what 'impact' means, growing Gen Y leaders at a service and team level will have a focus and provide a filter by which they can work out where and how they are most effective. 


In time the 'growing' may take them to a place of  operational or strategic oversight or it may mean extending their purview to maximise their contribution and impact upon performance. At all levels the process demands an educative relationship based on trust and mutual respect. Only then, will we get away from "doing something... whatever 'it' may be!"

Richard Bolden (p.4), What is Leadership? Research Report, Centre for Leadership Studies, University of Exeter and The Windsor Leadership Trust (2004)

Releasing Energy A Step At A Time

Talking to leaders here  in Canada, I find the same level of fatigue as in the UK. 

There is a profound awareness of the need to sustain their work but the years have ground down their capacity to initiate a liberating leadership development process.

On the other hand, I witness as much of a yearning here, as in the UK, among the Gen Y to be given an opportunity to discover their potential. 

And so, I am lifted by an email from a young person, apologizing on behalf on his Executive Director for a late reply. It positively fizzed with excitement and joy at being part of something big and ambitious and despite the effort involved, it was clear there was no other place to be.

I can't recall a more uplifting encounter - which makes lament how rarely people's talents fully explored, let alone used.  Why are so many people kept boxed in their role? There is a cornucopia of talents and abilities to be found and people waiting to be asked.

If only exhausted leaders can find the energy to look at problems anew and work with Gen Y to pilot one solution at a time. How much energy will be released if their talents were to be recognized, used and celebrated?

A New Kind of Leadership

The global crisis of leadership of recent years is an opportunity to rethink what kind of leaders we want to see in the second decade of the 21st century.

So I want to ask you, the young generation, to envision yourself as a leader. I want to know:

"If you knew you were going to be successful as a leader in the next ten years, what kind of help and advice would you ask of today's inspirational leaders?"

I want to know because there is much talk about mentoring or coaching as an effective approach in leadership development. However, there doesn't seem to be any clarity as to the purpose of either.

I think it should be about anticipating future challenges and working together to take what is useful from the past and combining it with new and innovative ideas to create something new.

What do you think?