A Blog about Leadership

Each leader tends to define leadership in their “own” words. It’s not that the definitions are different, but that the words are personalized to each leader. Leaders take the time to dwell on “what it means” and “what it takes” to lead.

Some may be placed in leadership positions overnight, but the ability to lead is developed over a long period of time. Great leaders continue to develop their leadership ability over their entire lives and never stop leading.

Defining leadership with a quote from Arthur F Carmazzi:
“To lead is not to influence others to do something they are not committed to, but rather to nurture a culture that motivates and even excites individuals to do what is required for the benefit of all.”

The main idea I like from this quote is the idea “to nurture a culture” for environmental factors are pertinent for successful leadership. Some corporate cultures are great for developing and supporting leaders; while other cultures are rigidly focused on a hierarchy to the extent that some leaders are stifled and stunted.

Position in a rigid hierarchy becomes the main factor for leadership, but position is only a factor for one facet of leadership – authority. The practice of leadership is not dependent on position. For example, many leaders in communities do not hold positions of leadership, but rather practice leadership socially to better their communities.

More on Defining Leadership:

Peter Drucker was great at defining things in business and wrote many books during his lifetime to do so. He also wrote about leadership: See Beyond the Limits of Experience to the Horizon of Potential and Lead the Journey.

Back in October, I wrote about the need for leadership when the US was starting an economic decline significantly: Now is the Time for Leadership.

Inspired by Michael E. Gerber’s book ‘The E-Myth, I wrote about Three Different Leaders of the Technician the Manager and the Entrepreneur.

Dr. Myles Monroe has a great quote to define leadership: Defining Leadership with a Quote from Dr Myles Monroe.

A quote about leadership from John Quincy Adams was noted in To Lead is to Dream Learn Do and Become More.

At the beginning of the year, I started to look at leadership as a mathematic formula: Formula for Successful Leadership.

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Formula for Successful Leadership

I want to share an idea that I have been dwelling on. It’s a simple formula or model for effective and successful leadership.

Successful Leadership = (Effective Communication + Articulate Vision + Influence + Action) (Ethics)

Effective Communication

3 Dynamics of Leadership

Articulate Vision

The Leaders Vision

Influence

Dr. Myles Monroe on Leadership and Influence

Action

Leadership and Action
Influence and Action

Ethics

Ethics is the multiplier for a very critical reason – anything multiplied by zero equals zero. Without ethics, nothing else amounts to much of anything.

The Relationship of Ethics and Leadership

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John Quincy Adams 

The former US President, John Quincy Adams, who was also the son of the US’s second President, was a man who lived an amazing life and was able to influence several of America’s defining government policies like the Monroe Doctrine, Adams-Onís Treaty, Treaty of Ghent, and, even, Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation. The son of John and Abigail Adams, born on July 11, 1767, was a diplomat with international accomplishments, a Senator, a Secretary of State, a President, and then served seventeen years in the US House of Representatives until his death in 1848.

Quote from John Quincy Adams about Leadership:
“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.”

Learning

Learning is a primary attribute of a leader. To be successful and to be a leader, adopt a lifetime of learning. But, as John Q. Adams’s quote reminds us, leaders beget leaders. So as you mentor and develop leaders, encourage them to adopt a lifetime of learning.

Action

Without a vision and purpose, there is no action, but merely having a vision is not sufficient. Your actions and the actions of others should move the group or organization in the direction of your vision. As the notable, former Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger puts it, “The task of the leader is to get his people from where they are to where they have not been.”

Accomplishment

Your actions as a leader and the actions of those you lead should produce a product, service, or effect that accomplishes your vision. While the goals may change along the journey, the path should be marked with evidence of your leadership and tributes to the success of your team.

Lead

As a leader “…inspire others… (to be) …more…” by being more yourself and dream, learn, do, and become.

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Defining Leadership

Quote about leadership from Dr. Myles Monroe:
“Leadership is the capacity to influence others through inspiration motivated by passion, generated by vision, produced by a conviction, ignited by a purpose.”

Influence

Leadership is about influencing a group or team of people. It is not about power and coercion, although you may influence others to move in a direction that is contrary to their own actions. Influence is creating the want and desire in others to do what you want and desire them to do.

Passion

Passion is contagious and a leader is most effective when he or she is passionate about the team, organization, and the work thereof. Passion is a characteristic that cannot be faked. It has to genuine and portrayed.

Vision

Leadership is action. The vision is the articulation of the action to get to where the group needs to go. The vision should be well defined and effectively communicated.

Conviction

Leaders believe that what they do is important and purposeful. The belief is the conviction that drives the leader’s actions and passion. The conviction is communicated in the vision and nearly every statement of the leader.

Purpose

Leaders have purpose for their actions and what they influence. Leaders seek what is best for the group and not what is best for the individual. Leaders are inherently selfless and hardworking. They are driven by their conviction and purpose and resonates the passion in their vision statements.

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Michael E. Gerber 

Michael E. Gerber wrote the groundbreaking book, The E-Myth, as a discussion about the obstacles that entrepreneurs encounter in starting a business. One part of the book discusses three different roles in an organization – the technician, the manager, and the entrepreneur. Gerber assigns a definition to each of these roles with a focus on time.

Technician = Present

The technician is the one who is focused on the present – what needs to be now and what needs to be done next.

Manager = Past

The manager is the one who is focused on the past – what was done, how it was done, and how to improve how it was done.

Entrepreneur = Future

The entrepreneur is the one who is focused on the future – what can be done and what can be accomplished.

The Leader

There are leadership traits in each of these three roles, but one attribute about the leader is the encompassing of all three traits.

The Leader = Present

The leader builds on the ability of the technician to look at what needs to be done as an ability to get things done.

The Leader = Past

The leader also builds on the refined practice of the manager to learn from what was done to improve how things can be done.

The Leader = Future

The leader most closely relates to the entrepreneur in looking toward the future – where is the market going, what is happening in the economy, how will this affect the organization, and how should the organization prepare for the future.

The Leader’s Experience

Experience is the strongest attribute of the leader. The leader has experience as the technician working in the organization and has mastered the primary focus on determining what to do and getting it done. The leader is also experienced in management and possesses the ability to assess strengths and weaknesses of practices and procedures. And the leader is continually aware of what is happening for the future and is able to steer the organization on the best path for long-term success.

 You can get Michael E. Gerber’s The E-Myth here.

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Persistence

Persistence – the act of enduring despite… regardless of… in the face of… even with… even though… A leader is persistent. If there are setbacks, if there are obstacles, if the going gets tough, a leader is persistent. It’s the act of determination that stems from the depths of confidence and the strength that is derived form experience.

Leadership quote from Peter Drucker:
“It is easy to look good in a boom.”

Right now, in the US, we are faced with the prospect of a recession – technically defined as two or more consecutive quarters of negative growth. So, right now, we need a greater emphasis on leadership in organizations. We need those business man and women, who through experience and knowledge, are able to drive our businesses through this economic period where only select businesses will “look good” while others are merely positioned to endure through this an economic downturn and still others will crumble under the weight of tough times.

It takes leadership to look good in a decline.

Creativity and Innovation

When economic times get tough, then it is time for leaders to rise to the challenge and find creative solutions to the problem. This is not as straight forward as cutting costs or cutting jobs. These, short-term solutions may cause more long-term problems. Sometimes the solution is a realignment, restructuring, or, some other, repositioning of the business.

No “One” solution

There is never a one-size-fits-all solution. Some corporations have a problem of too much money on hand, like Berkshire Hatheway, while others may have cut costs a bit too far and are now losing value, the Dell and Wal-Mart problems.

Leadership

It’s the job of leadership to determine the best path. It’s not as black-and-white as to say the correct path, for there may be more than one correct way to go. Rather, it’s an indeterminate measurement of “best.” It’s a matter of core competence in conjunction with the market’s evolution and countering competition. Sometimes the best answer is to R & D an entirely new product, modify the existing product, or add a service to complement the buyer’s experience. Whatever the “best” answer, the job is leadership.

Rise to the challenge and persist.

Leadership quote from Thomas Edison:
“Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.”

The leader does not give up.

For assistance, see Creative Problem Solving for Leadership.

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Peter Drucker

Peter Drucker was world renowned for definitive knowledge and wisdom about business, management, leadership, and the changes and progression of business. He had a unique ability to define changes in business before many were even aware of them. His prolific writings on the topics are tributes to his influence on a great many businesses.

Leadership quote from Peter F. Drucker:
“Leadership is not magnetic personality, that can just as well be a glib tongue. It is not ‘making friends and influencing people’, that is flattery. Leadership is lifting a person’s vision to higher sights, the raising of a person’s performance to a higher standard, the building of a personality beyond its normal limitations.”

Leaders help others realize new potential.

There are too many people who settle for a simple par or, even worse, are content with sub-par. A leader impacts those around him or her to realize the full extent of what they can accomplish, to see beyond the limits of experience to the horizon of potential and lead them on the journey toward that destination.

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