A Return to Values
If you have been reading my blogs, you'll already know that I am an optimist. I have always believed that change is good. As I have said previously, even this current change in the economy is good. See my blogs for my thinking on this, "Change is Good. Even When it is Bad." and A Bad Economy is Good. In these blogs I talked about the reasons I think change is good:
- a greater focus on personal values and less focus on consumption
- a "clearing of the market" where marginal service providers will leave and great service providers will survive
- the economy as a "burning platform" to drive change
There is an additional reason this current economic change is good. It will change how leaders lead. You will see that that this happening already.
More than 20 years ago, Kouses and Posner wrote "The Leadership Challenge". Over a million copies have sold and it has been translated into 12 languages. I often recommend this book to my clients. Most find it inspirational. I think that that the concepts in this book are even more relevant to leaders today.
The Leadership Challenge is about leading in an authentic, consistent and inspirational way. Kouses and Posner say a number of things in their work. Here are some of my favourites.
- "Finding your voice" is essential to leadership. Your " leadership voice" is based upon your personal value system and is expressed in a clear and inspirational way.
- Credibility is the foundation of leadership. Leaders obtain credibility through consistency of message and consistency of action. Values (once again) are the basis for that consistency.
- The role of a leader is to engage his or her organization in a sense of purpose. "Hope leads to high performance. Against tough odds, leaders sustain hope and offer encouragement." Kouses, Key Messages, 2005
- Leadership is a service. Great leaders are more similar to great service providers than they are to great dictators. They are focused yet humble (Jim Collins wrote about this in "Good to Great").
- Anyone can learn to lead. Leadership is a set of skills and abilities that can be learned by everyone. Leaders get better with practice.
- Leadership is about always learning. One of my most talented clients asks his people all the time for feedback. He is never afraid to ask, he is always specific and he is always gracious in his response. His people have helped him build a very successful business.
I shared all of these thoughts with you because I think you will see how much more important Kouses and Posner's work is in today's economic situation. People are feeling battered and cynical. They are looking for change. They may even feel a little lost. Leaders who can dig deep and inspire true meaning can move organizations forward in this environment. People are looking for a light to follow. Great leadership can be that light and can inspire hope.
I said I'd show that this is already happening. It is happening as Barack Obama takes over the Presidency of the US. If you look at his messages right through his campaign, you will see his value system, you will see a man who appears to care and you will see consistency. His message and his approach didn't change during his campaign. His platform was less about specific programs and more about the value of change. Against all odds, people voted for him because of his leadership.
Here's a leadership challenge for you. If you had to describe your "leadership voice", how would you describe it? Can you describe it clearly and in an inspirational way? Difficult I know. I'll make it a little easier. Start first with a leader you truly admire. Use three adjectives to describe that person's leadership. Now try again, use three adjectives to describe your own leadership. Be clear and inspirational. You are starting to define your own "leadership voice".
Kouses and Posner have some great practical thoughts on obtaining credibility and consistency. I will deal with those in my next blog so you can test if you are putting your "leadership voice" into consistent action .
