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The Big Tick: Leadership Simplified
post by Tina Crouse
President, Women in Leadership
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| From Download Clipart |
There's a raging debate on LinkedIn on a Theory of Leadership. My take is to keep things simple: Leaders should do what no one else can and bring others with them. We can find examples of poor leadership and examples of poor outcomes but those do not negate leadership skills; they merely pose as an answer to a subjective experience of whether someone 'liked' it or not. For me, it doesn't change the fact that leadership was present and it was exercized otherwise nothing would have happened. So, does this definition tick your box?
The whole discussion around defining 'leadership' has expanded over the last few years and there is still a lot of subjective experience and judgment. Does the CEO who increased profits by slashing 30% of its staff deserve a leadership medal? Do politicians grinding government to a halt show leadership by proving that yes, government can be brought to its knees? Do elected and non-elected dictators (rigged elections) show leadership by maintaining their positions? Are any of these things new? No? Do you see leadership in any of these examples?
I would like to engage you, yes you the reader, to shape leadership anew. Can we find examples of where people have never tread before? We can in tech like Elon Musk and Richard Branson. Do people realize how many times they have failed or how many years have passed before an idea could be actioned? Is failure a component of leadership and would you support someone who has failed many times in order to try something new?
You are part of leadership. Regardless of whether you follow or lead, you are helping to define what leadership is. I invite you to comment on what it is (or could be) by refraining from what it is not - bad, criminal, injurious, harmful. Bad examples are easy to come by: I'm asking you to add to the body of what leadership can be. Good Luck. Bonne Chance. The discussion rages on.
I'll suggest Donalda Charron. She came up from nothing and worked for a big match company, eventually becoming head matron of the factory - overseeing the match girls in the factory. She wasn't just a supervisor, she cared about her girls and helped them attend reading classes, union meetings, etc at the church. When the match company wanted to halve their wages, she took her girls on strike. In the end she lost her job, and the girl's salary remained untouched. (She went on to organize other unions, so it wasn't the end of her career)
ReplyDeleteGreat 'unknown' example Catherine. And the thing about leadership is that there are no guarantees - ever. That's the fallacy; that a good leader will win every time. Not so. The Leadership was in the doing - my point above.
ReplyDeleteAnother really interesting example could be found in Rachel Decoste. We'll be interviewing her for Sister Leadership in December. Rachel has run for a Liberal nomination in the past. While she didn't succeed in becoming elected, she's gone on to work with/support new Canadians, fundraise for the Haiti Relief, and more. So there's an example of a local Ottawa leader who keeps pushing despite the setback of a lost election.
ReplyDeleteTina, I am inspired by your words: "You are part of leadership. Regardless of whether you follow or lead, you are helping to define what leadership is." What if we really soaked in this view of leadership? What if we really viewed failing as "failing forward" i.e an opportunity to evolve and grow and create new possibilities as a result of what we now know/learned. What if as we lead at home or in the boardroom or on teams, we celebrated failing forward...how much would it add to our leadership? What we see, learn, discover...I am excited to share this with my executives that I coach and see what it inspires in them...thank you Tina!
ReplyDelete"Failing Forward' - love those words Dale. You'll be my number one share for awhile.
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