How to See Like a Leader
“The greatest thing a human soul ever does in this world is to see something, and tell what it saw in a plain way…” John Ruskin
You do not see like a leader until you see yourself.
How to see like a leader:
#1. Honestly explore yourself.
Explore your biases. Daniel Kahneman’s book, “Thinking, Fast and Slow,” disoriented me. Cognitive bias is a discomforting thought that I love to ignore.
When you hear something new, you feel you already knew it.
You attribute success to yourself and failure to others.
“Leaders who have been lucky are never punished for having taken too much risk. Instead, they are believed to have had the flair and foresight to anticipate success, and the sensible people who doubted them are seen in hindsight as mediocre, timid, and weak.” Daniel Kahneman
Suggestion: Practice structured self-reflection. Ask yourself a set of predetermined questions that speak to relevant issues. Don’t simply sit under a tree thinking whatever comes to mind.
#2. Repeatedly say, “I could be wrong.”
I’ll speak for myself. I’ve been right all my life. It’s shocking to think I could be wrong now. I evaluate myself through the lens of my strengths and others by their weaknesses.
Humility is the best thing that bubbles up when I could be wrong.
Humility is a way of seeing myself.
#3. Consistently expand your perspective.
Your view is the right view until you see through the eyes of another. You still could be right, but at least you’ve evaluated.
Suggestion: Ask people for their perspective. Don’t simply dismiss it. Reflect on it. Ask questions.
#4. Regularly monitor your emotions.
The world looks darker when you’re tired. People seem like problems when you’re stressed. You ignore almost everything when you’re afraid.
You see like a leader when you see things as they are. It begins with seeing yourself.
How could you see like a leader today?
What prevents people from seeing like leaders?
Still curious:
Leadership Identity – Self-Perception Determines How You Lead
How to Bridge the Unseen Gap between Perception and Intent
The balance between the confidence to move and the “I could be wrong” is a tough one… right sizing our ego ‘s part is also a challenge. Leading is making decisions that affect others, and they tend to speak up, not always kindly. Leading with the appropriate dose of thick skin is challenging. Understanding the appropriate dosage of “feel” vs “fact” is a tough call… So why did we ever want to do this?? I think we are drawn – perhaps called – to be change makers, I like your four guideposts. Thanks.
You’re so right about the tension between confidence and “I could be wrong.” I suppose there’s a personal side to this. Some are over-confident, and others are under-confident.
Perhaps the important thing is to have enough confidence to move forward, but not so much that we think we know more than everyone else.
As always, I appreciate your insights. Thanks, Ken.
I love this exchange. I think the word harmony is more accurate than balance. There are times when decisiveness and courage is needed. Having the courage and leaning into your ego is needed to make the “impossible” happen sometimes. We also need to maintain a sense of curiosity and openness the idea that we could be wrong and others might have a better way. This way ideas can be enriched and you can pivot when necessary. These things are never in balance. The key, I have learned is bringing harmony, like in an orchestra, we can know when we should lead in one section versus another. Let’s me conductors of our emotions and leadership skills and let’s make some great music!
Hey Sisep… Wow! That’s a great lens. I’ve never been fond of “balance.” It sounds bland and boring. Harmony sounds big. Balance feels small.
I, too, am a fan of your use of “harmony” rather than balance. One of the phrases an HR partner once shared stuck with me related to what is often referenced as the “work-life balance”. It’s not a balance as that insinuates 50/50 of each. The reality is life sometimes needs more (e.g. death in the family) and sometimes work needs more (e.g. project deadline). The partner used the phrase “work-life blend”, which stuck with me.
Now I see opportunity to use “harmony” instead of blend. Your musical analogy is perfect. Sometimes the brass needs to play fortissimo while the woodwinds play softly in a supportive role, and other times the brass section needs to play pianissimo so the woodwinds can shine through.
Signed,
– A woodwind player whose ears have bled because of trumpets sitting behind her (maybe I’m being slightly dramatic…)
I love the conductor analogy! It is so energizing to work with a team of highly talented and motivated professionals (or volunteers) and help them take on big problems. This is when I feel the most satisfaction with my work. It is such a blessing to have such opportunities!
Leaders face reality. Drop your agenda and see what’s there.
1. Get the facts
2. Determine how you and others fell about the facts.
Draw conclusions but don’t doubt what you know to be true.
Thanks, Paul. Your challenge me with, “drop your agenda.” But, I confess that my agenda is often what blinds me to others.
What prevents people from seeing like leaders? Ego, greed, prejudices, projection, myopia, blame, inability to be introspective, close-mindeness, anger, need for control.
Wow, many things prevent people from seeing like leaders. Thanks, Diane.
I love this. Thank you for the reminder. Here are my random musings…
I work a lot with students transitioning from college to industry. And I also remember being at that stage in my career/life. One of the perspectives at this point in our journeys that is prevalent is that you need to know exactly what to do and exactly where you want to go in order to make a decision and act. Like plugging a destination into a GPS and then following the step-by-step directions. With this you make one decision and everything else is planned out for you. Life isn’t like this. Life requires more engagement. It’s more like orienteering with a map and a compass. You can decide where you want to go but then you need to use your values and ideally excellent mentors/guides to help you navigate each decision along the way. With each decision you can think, “I could be wrong” but act anyway because you trust yourself to adjust and course correct as you learn more.