It's an interesting day in the United States. Martin Luther
King Day is being commemorated across governmental institutions, finance and banking systems. Politically motivated
combatants are debating the real meaning of King's message.
Yesterday afternoon the CEO of the free world was
administered the oath of office during a quiet family and close-friends
ceremony in the White House. Today, maybe a million or so will gather along the
parade route and in the grand stands erected for the observance of the public inauguration
of Barack Obama in the nation's capitol.
At our home yesterday morning, for the first time in many
weeks, we tuned into the Sunday morning talk shows. In the past we even DVR'd
one or two and would watch them after returning home from Sunday services. Several
months ago we concluded there were just too many more important things to do...Green
Bay Packer games, autumn walks and bike rides, a round a golf, time with the
grandkids. Weary of the ongoing combative nature of everything political, we resolved
that whatever would rise to the level of importance could be read about later
in the day, or the next.
COMBATIVE, PERHAPS - QUESTIONABLE OUTCOMES
What struck me though, as I flipped between networks, was a
fascinating question posed by different moderators that went something like
this; "Given the tone of the
President's recent comments and speeches, will what appears to be a combative
determination, succeed in changing the course of Washington?"
Be reminded, that is not a quote. I'm simply paraphrasing
what I heard asked of the guest or panels these moderators were addressing. Heck,
I don't know if the 44th POTUS is combative.
All I know is that the Gallup organization released its latest poll today that
shows this country's CEO four-year approval rating at 49%, third worst since WW
II - just above Ford and Carter. Some
may argue that "approval" is not an indication associated with
successful leadership and we could go round and round on that topic. But, if a
Board of Directors or a lending institution's loan committee had anything to
say about that weak a showing, I'm afraid an executive search or a called loan
would result.
Then again, things could change. Historians may be a
position to record something that is quite different, quite better, four years
from now.
It seems fair to say that in today's world, politics and
business are worlds apart. Do we all agree on that or am I missing something?
Good, then lets' go with that.
NO LONGER JUST "SELF-HELP"
You are either reading this post of mine because you are a
leader determined to become a better leader or you are as I am, an experienced
leader, coach or consultant interested in how our community is working to
assist those we work with in their pursuit of becoming better at what they do.
Due to the fact that my childhood included a great deal of
team play and competition and that I had some terrific mentors like my grandpa,
my mom and some memorable coaches along the way, I am elated that "player
development" is fully embraced by the industry and its ultimate
beneficiaries, executives and business owners, along with their charges. We are
rapidly moving beyond "self-help" to helping others becoming better
at what we need them to do.
MORAL AUTHORITY TO
LEAD
This is a great time to be a leader and as great a time to
be in a position to work with leaders who are self-determined, life-long
learners. My experience of once owning hundreds of wonderful books but facing
the reality that I couldn't take all of them with me when we made the decision
to down-size and join the condominium 'circuit' is not a concern. Now I can
re-capture, re-stock and reunite with any of those older books and combine them
with all the current thoughtful stuff that's right here in an ethereal library.
For instance, the subject of "Emotional Intelligence" (EI) as a
leadership quality wasn't in the forefront of leadership attributes when I was
thrust into my first business leadership role. Servant Leadership, as a
leadership quality, though conceptually dating back to the late 70s, escaped
the notice of many of us who may have been in leadership positions. For me anyway,
"moral authority" wasn't yet on the radar screen, so to speak. All of
these subjects and great thinking are at my fingertips. I am grateful.
[We were young
entrepreneurs, brash and admittedly, (of course I should speak for myself only)
in the school of having "more guts than brains."]
Take the late Robert K. Greenleaf's "Servant
leadership: a journey into the nature of legitimate power and greatness,"
first published in 1977, now in its 25th edition with collaborations with Larry
Spears, Peter Senge and Steven Covey in 2002. Greenleaf is said to have coined
the term, "Servant-leader" and passed away in 1990. In 1970 he published "The Servant as Leader," an
essay which launched the servant leadership movement in the United States.
Note the book's jacket description
of the March 1977 edition: "Servant Leadership helps leaders find their
true power and moral authority to lead.
It helps those served become healthier, wiser, freer, and more autonomous. This
book encourages collaboration, trust,
listening, and empowerment. It offers long-lasting change, not a temporary
fix and extends beyond business for leaders of all types of groups."
(Italics, mine)
When moral authority is exercised
accordingly, prosperity of every kind, follows.
LEADERSHIP MATTERS
Today's leaders have a tremendous
opportunity to learn how to become outstanding leaders not only by embracing
that which people like Greenleaf believed and taught but by paying close
attention to what great teachers are teaching and what the very best leaders
are doing to succeed.
Nothing I've ever read, not Sun
Tzu's "Art of War" and its various "For Mangers" editions or
any other purposeful lesson on leadership has suggested a combative approach to
management will succeed. I'm happy about that and I for one would not be
comfortable if the example being set by the CEO of the largest, perhaps unwieldy
organization in the world, would ever become lionized. Political will aside,
leadership matters and the more real leaders learn to lead, the less the
unknowing will be led.
Our mutual responsibility then is
to collectively move one another to better ground whether in our endeavors to
become better leaders, better teachers, mentors, friends, husbands, wives and
grandparents.
Jim Naleid
is a Life-long Entrepreneur,
Change-Agent and Thought Leader, Managing Director of Naleid & Associates
and Regional TEC (“The Executive Committee”) Chair leading a
group of executives to become Better Leaders, Making Better Decisions with
Better Results. http://www.linkedin.com/in/jimnaleid
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