There are plenty of memorable soundbites that have been developed over the years intended to tell us what leadership is and how leaders are distinguished. For example:
- Leadership is an art as opposed to a science
- Leadership is something you do with people, not to people
- Leaders do the right things compared to managers who do things right
Should Leaders Be Consistent Of Flexible?
In short, yes! While at first, these topics may appear mutually exclusive, they are not. Both consistency and flexibility have a role to play.
Consistency In Leadership
There are some qualities, characteristics and perspectives leaders need to bring to the table every time. Below are three important areas for a leader to be consistent in:
- Assumptions/Predispositions/Mindset: Effective leadership emanates from a belief system or a set of values that could most succinctly be described as “people are good.” As such, people have innate talent that forms the foundation of their true potential. Leaders see through the layers that often mask that potential and are energized by the opportunity to get their hands dirty molding that raw clay
- Objectivity: Effective leaders are thoughtful people. In general, they are less likely to get swept up in the emotion that invariably accompanies an individual’s development or regression on a task that truly matters. They stay grounded in the present.
- Courage: Leadership really isn’t all that different from any other discipline. Understanding it is one thing, doing it is something altogether different! Many thought leaders in our industry have made this distinction explicit over the years, but no one has done it better than Brené Brown.
Flexibility In Leadership
When it comes time to engage as a leader, there is no uniform, sure-fire way to do it. As a matter of fact, the most inconsistent thing you can possibly do as a leader is to treat everyone you encounter the same. It simply doesn’t make sense!
The approach you employ needs to reflect the unique circumstances of the situation and the person you find yourself attempting to influence. In general terms, that translates to developing both comfort and proficiency at executing the following approaches:
- Empowerment: Contrary to popular belief, there is absolutely nothing inherently good about empowerment. As a matter of fact, there are some in positions of leadership that have been known to employ this strategy as a mechanism for setting others up for failure or distancing themselves from projects they believe are fast-tracked for failure. When properly deployed, empowerment can be an active accelerant for trust, engagement and retention
- Collaboration: Effective collaboration is typically a function of competent individuals representing diverse perspectives that are tackling a complex problem. In that regard, the leader needs to be able to set the stage, create an atmosphere where those present can articulate suggestions to address the challenge, and then facilitate the mess that invariably accompanies passionate people lobbying for conflicting courses of action
- Providing Direction: People that don’t know what they are doing are frequently reluctant to make that reality public knowledge. By the same token, they are the first to breathe a quiet sigh of relief when they are approached by a leader who tells them what to do and how to do it. This approach is typically a short-term strategy intended to create movement with those that do not have task-related competence, confidence or commitment
Each of these approaches works and doesn’t work depending upon the nuances of the situation the leader is attempting to impact. Perhaps it’s easiest to think of it this way:
When it comes to leadership, doing certain things consistently increases the probability of your success when it comes time to be flexible!
APPLICATION CHALLENGE
- Consider the three subsets of consistency identified previously:
- What is your strength?
- Where do you need development?
- Consider the three leadership approaches described previously:
- Which one “comes naturally?”
- Where do you struggle?
