“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader”
-John Quincy Adams
This is one of my favorite quotes around leadership. When I read this, I feel challenged to look at my actions towards others and question how I can behave in a way that inspire others.
How would you apply this quote?
In a 2015 survey conducted by CareerBuilder regarding the current employment market, 52% of employers surveyed suggested that effective interpersonal skills were the number one deficiency of recent college graduates entering the workforce.
While smart phones have certainly provided society with a multitude of benefits, I would suggest that there is a strong correlation between the overuse of smartphones for communicating and a deterioration of effective interpersonal skills.
We are becoming a society that is relying too much on our fingers and not enough on our voices to do the talking. This is not just a problem with recent college graduates.
For those of you who remember receiving a new telephone book on yearly basis, you will probably also remember the tag line that the Yellow pages used to encourage people to use their directories.
They would suggest that if you needed to find a number to a business, you should use their directory and “Let your fingers do the walking”.
While smartphones features like Google have eliminated the need for physical phone directories to improve our search for information, the dependence on emails and texts through smartphones has created challenges to the development of our interpersonal communications.
Many times we have allowed our fingers to do the talking, when our voices would be more effective..
It seems that texting and emailing have been the coward’s approach to dealing or not dealing with conflict. Rather than having a face-to-face conversation or maybe a discussion over the phone, we have chosen to let our fingers do the taking through text and email.
Both texting and emailing often allow people to operate at very low levels of civility. As an example, people will say things in an email or text that they would never say if they were face to face.
While emailing and texting may be the fastest forms of communication, they are actually the most inefficient when two people are in a disagreement.
Often times, what could have been cleared up in one phone call or one face-to-face conversation is often dragged out over days because of how the written words were incorrectly interpreted.
When we use text or email as our primary means of communication, we rob those with whom we are interacting the richness and fabric that face-to-face communication provides.
The next time you find yourself in a disagreement with somebody through email or text, take this challenge; if you cannot resolve the disagreement in one exchange, then either meet the person face-to-face or pick up the phone and call them.
The ability to build trust and to bond with another effectively will not happen when we rely on our fingers and not our physical presence and our voices to do the talking. Which are you using?
Joe Louis, the great American boxer once said, “everybody wants to go to heaven, but no one wants to die.” To a great extent, how many managers have subscribed to the same philosophy with their leadership aspirations?
While the majority of managers would like to be seen as leaders, a significantly smaller number seem willing to put in the time and effort it takes to develop effective leadership behaviors.
It’s Not the “Belt”
Somehow they believe that because of their title or maybe their “belt” certifications they have been anointed with leadership status. While managers with this mindset might gain compliance from those they manage, their behaviors will often create employee disengagement, which is far more damaging to the organization.
At its foundation, leadership is about exhibiting behaviors that inspire others to want to follow rather than have to follow an individual with authority.
Getting people to do what you want them to do without their “buy in” is managing not leading. For some menial tasks, this may be effective but it should not be confused with leading.
Employing behaviors such as intimidation, coercion and manipulation are techniques for managing others while eliciting input, displaying empathy and establishing clear expectations are several leadership behaviors that help promote buy in from followers.
It is behaviors that create great leaders. Just as great athletes or performers do not become great without developing their “muscles”, leaders do not become great without developing effective behaviors.
Have you COACHED today?
There is abundant research, which demonstrates that we are able to change our behaviors through conscious effort. That said, there are several behaviors that help foster engagement and “buy in” that are outlined in a model called, COACHED:
- Congruence– an effective leader is seen as someone who follows the same “rules” as they expect others to follow.
- Opinions Matter– an effective leader listens to what others have to say and recognizes their input.
- Accolades– an effective leader continually is aware of the contributions of those around them and credits them appropriately.
- Connection– an effective leader is able to create a personal connection with the follower where they feel the leader is an advocate for them.
- Highlighting strengths– an effective leader is able to place people in roles that highlight their strengths while also interacting with their specific personality in a style that motivates them.
- Empathy– an effective leader is able to demonstrate that they are sensitive to the conditions of those that they lead
- Direction– an effective leader is able to set clear and understandable expectations while also demonstrating their ability to be decisive.
Consciously working on the development of leadership behaviors such as those listed above will help create an environment where those being led will feel more engaged, empowered and motivated to say “yes” to your leadership. In the end, taking the time to develop the behaviors listed above may just create a culture that feels like heaven.
Ask yourself, are my behaviors creating a management or a leadership environment? What am I doing to develop better leadership behaviors? What one behavior can I work on to increase my leadership effectiveness?
Since its introduction over 50 years ago, the “Marshmallow Test” has become synonymous with temptation, willpower, and the prediction of future success. When examining many of today’s leadership development initiatives within organizations, many parallels can be made to the research done by Walter Mischel and his team at Stanford University in the 1960’s with children. Many of today’s executives and organizations have succumbed to the temptation or lacked the willpower to stick with long-term leadership development programs. Instead they have often focused on short-term initiatives that have provided immediate gratification but have often lacked the durability needed to be effective.
As background, the marshmallow experiments conducted by Mischel in the 1960’s and 70’s were focused on the ability of preschoolers to delay gratification. In the studies, the preschoolers were offered either one marshmallow (several different treats were offered as substitutes) immediately or they could receive two marshmallows if they were willing to wait for the instructor to come back into the room after leaving for up to 15 minutes. After years of follow up, the researchers found that there was a strong correlation between those that were able to delay gratification and positive life outcomes in a variety of areas.
How many times have organizations or executives chosen to take the immediate marshmallow rather than wait and receive two when it comes to leadership development? Rather than invest in long-term leadership development initiatives that combine multiple approaches such as regular group and individual coaching, 360 assessments and actual assignments, they may have opted for an abbreviated online course, a self-assessments, or a single workshop leadership certification. As a result, many of these leadership development initiatives become labeled as “flavor of the month” programs. The argument for such abbreviated programs usually revolves around not having enough time or resources to spend on development. More often this argument is synonymous to taking the immediate marshmallow and wanting quick results rather than not having the resources.
Effective and durable leadership development requires organizations and individuals to delay gratification. Research has shown it can take close to a year to develop a habit and that successful habit formation involves continuous or deliberate practice. As well successful leadership development involves the demonstration of organizational and individual grit. Without these vital attributes mentioned above, it is easy to see how initiatives around leadership development either “wither on the vine” or prematurely discarded in search of the latest leadership quick fix.
In a follow up to this article, I will explore how Warren Buffett’s approach to investing can be implemented to harness the full benefits of delayed gratification in leadership development.
Ask most leaders what their most important company asset is and they will often say it is their people. Although they say this, they often neglect the largest segment of this asset class: the B player. B players are those employees that tend to avoid the spotlight but are solid, dependable contributors who have a considerable impact on a company’s bottom line. They account for approximately 70% of a company’s workforce, tend to be less volatile and more dependable. These employees do not try to call attention to their contributions. They are often misread as being less motivated or less capable than those employees aspiring to climb the corporate ladder.
In a June 2003 HBR article titled, “Let’s Hear It for B players,” the authors suggested that “Companies are routinely blinded to the important role B players serve in saving organizations from themselves” (DeLong, 2006). Failing to recognize and highlight the B player’s potential to the organization is in effect neglecting an enormous company asset. Two highly researched areas leaders can develop to maximize the contributions of their B players include delivering accolades and highlighting their individual strengths.
It has been said that recognition does not cost, it pays. Although B players may avoid the spotlight, they are not immune to the desire for basic human praise. A simple “thank you for your contribution” or “I noticed how much effort you put into this project” creates an invaluable currency exchange between a leader and an employee. Recognizing the contributions of the B player demonstrates that their efforts are appreciated and motivates them to make future contributions, which will further strengthen the company’s position. Not providing accolades to the B player will eventually cause them to become demotivated and disengaged There are those who will suggest that praising too often will “soften” a worker. This is both archaic and flawed logic. Ask yourself if you would be more or less motivated to complete a task again if you had been recognized and shown appreciation for your contribution. Chances are you would be more motivated.
Highlighting a B player’s strengths is the second area a leader should focus on to increase a company’s strength. There are many individual talents in this group that often go undiscovered because leaders misinterpret a B player’s demeanor as a reflection of their limited abilities. This type of negligence is almost criminal. An effective leader will work with their employees to understand what their unique contributions to the organization are and will then identify opportunities for the employee to maximize those talents.
In summary, B players are the majority of the workforce and contribute a substantial amount toward the success or failure of an organization. Leaders that fail to recognize these employees’ contributions or highlight their unique strengths are neglecting their company’s most important asset. How are you treating your worker “B’s”?
DeLong, T., Vijayaraghavan, V. (2003). Let’s Hear It for B Players, HBR No. R0306F. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Publishing
I recently read a quote by an American philosopher from the 1900s named, Eric Hoffer. He said,
“In times of change, the learners inherit the earth while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.”
As I have read and re-read this quote, I have asked myself the question, “when have I been either the learner or the learned?” What has been the positive or negative consequence in each of these roles?
We are certainly in a world that continues to change. I recently asked a group to raise their hands if they had experienced significant change in their business over the last five years. Most of the hands went up and stayed up even when asked if they were currently experiencing change. With that example, how can we expect to address today’s challenges if we are only knowledgable and proficient in yesterday’s solutions.
In the context of this quote and its relation to change, being learned is not a desirable state. Even when large egos are involved, most don’t want to be seen as the person with antiquated solutions that no are longer relevant.
Hoffer’s quote provides an opportunity to develop stronger “why’s” when working with individuals or groups that seem to “know it all.” On a personal level, Hoffer’s quote has challenged me to remain a learner even when my ego has suggested I am learned.
As most are in agreement that the world is in a continuous state of change, it only makes sense to remain a learner. As a learner, you will be equipped to inherit the beautiful world that exists.
Enjoy
Emery Leadership Lessons 