Leaders, leading, leadership. Now, perhaps more than ever our ability to adapt and thrive in an often harsh and precarious business environment depends so much on the abilities of the leaders in our communities. When I talk about leaders, I don’t necessarily mean the chief executives. I am referring to the people up and down the chain of command who lead on a daily basis, getting us to question what we are doing and how we are doing things. The people who encourage us to reflect productively and help us make effective change. These people can be anyone, anywhere. You’ve all been in meetings where the delicate issues are deftly circumvented before someone decides to put the important and awkward question on the table...that’s the person showing the lead. Taking the group where the group needs to look.
Actually, leading doesn’t only occur in groups. You exercise personal leadership with yourself. So when you consider the issue of leading and leadership bear in mind that there is a macro and a micro focus to the discussions. For those of you already in leadership positions in organizations you might have to review your own personal self-leadership before you can effectively consider your leading of larger groups.
There are many fine books on the subject of leadership packed with examples of inspiring quotes in difficult circumstances. What many of the books don’t talk about are the personal dangers and challenges that leaders have to endure when they act in a leading role.
You would think that many teams would be happy that someone is there to take the lead, take the strain of doing the key thinking and frequently being there as a convenient buffer when problems hit the fan. Some are up to a point and that point is often the instance where their own values, habits or beliefs get challenged. Then the problems rise; and the problems will arise whether you are leading when you know the answers or leading when you don’t.
Resistance is inevitable
Like many of you reading this, I have seen the occasional episode of Star Trek. There’s a quote that comes from one of the protagonists in the series, “resistance is futile”. Well, having seen the good guys triumph on more than on clash you’d think the Borg would adapt (that’s what they are supposed to be good at...) their mantra. I’d like to propose my own mantra and one which has stood the test of time. I’d like to suggest we all get comfortable with the following, “Resistance is inevitable”. I have found this to be the case time and time again. Even with teams that I have personally steered through difficult times and with whom I have carried considerable credibility. There just seems to be something about groups of people that at certain points fosters reluctance to the leading process.
The roots of this resistance can be deep and many-branched. Often, when you dig down past the superficial bluster the real anchor points are those which make the resistees personally challenged. It’s as though some part of their personal psychodrama is getting re-written and they don’t like it but rather than coming up with valid amendments....they just resist in a wonderful variety of ways. Here’s where things get difficult for those leading. How much energy do you invest in persuading people who fundamentally just want to say no, not just to you, they just want to say no? At what point do you decide enough is enough and simply press ahead and take the risk of being deemed to ride rough-shod over your team? Do you switch-off and just carry on regardless or do you remain open, sensitive to the views of others but relentlessly bring people back on point?
Having a bit more understanding about why resistance occurs gives us more tools to deal with the bumps in the road and helps to minimise the personal impact on ourselves as we steer groups through change. Your integrity has to be your shield in such instances. Holding to your core values and revisiting the purpose of change have to be your guiding markers. Many of the dangers that come from the exercise of leading stem from the core reasons why leading is necessary in the first place. Anything other than changes of a technical nature offers challenge to the habits, beliefs and values of your team. You are forcing people to query openly that which they have often taken for granted. One minute, you are jogging along (happily or unhappily) then you are being asked to question what you’ve always done and how you’ve done it...no wonder many people resist change and being led.
So, my challenge to you this week is to look at yourselves with new awareness and to ask how are you leading? How are you ensuring that you remain healthy in the face of resistance to leading and how are you adding value to the thinking and performing of your team and yourself?
The Sales Controversy
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