Four Keys to Effective Leadership

Leadership is more than just a job title.  I’m a big believer that not all leaders have an executive title or the title of CEO.  Granted, many of the people that hold these titles are excellent leaders but they may not always be the best.

I used to work with a guy that thought his title automatically made him a leader. He did almost nothing to contribute to any projects or clients’ ongoing success. Instead, he was the first to take credit for everybody else’s work and would alienate his team members by not including them in client meetings or updating them on strategy or other information the team needed to know.  His team members were constantly in the dark and left wondering what needed to be done.

When things went poorly, he was quick to point the finger and blame his team for the failure. He regularly would lose clients and the feedback we got from these clients was a lack of leadership, specifically a lack results and a failure to deliver on agreed upon action items.

It didn’t take long for his teams to catch on and resent him.  His teams often just gave up entirely and didn’t want to and didn’t know how to contribute or make a difference. This individual would constantly be frustrated and berate his team for lack of effort and ability to generate results.  It never occurred to him that his lack of leadership had anything to do with the team’s success.

Early on in my relationship with this individual we worked on an account together. The client was one that I enjoyed working with and that had a really cool product we worked with.  After several months of working with this client, one of the agency partners met with the client and at the end of the meeting told him that if he needed anything to just reach out to my colleague.  The client looked at the boss and asked, “Why would I reach out to him?”

The partner explained that my colleague was his account lead and would handle anything he needed.  To this the client responded, “He’s still on the account? I haven’t worked with him or talked to him in months. I thought he was off the account. I’ve been working exclusively with Jeremy and we’re getting great results.”

The partner was stunned. She couldn’t believe what she had just heard. She came back to the office and proceeded to rip my colleague up one side and down the other. He changed his ways for a week or two and then went back to his old ways.

In this instance, my colleague was lucky he had me and others that were motivated and had the ability to take over and do what needed to be done to make sure the client was happy.

This individual believed in delegation. Some, like him, say that delegation is a sign of effective leadership.  I agree, but only to a point.  A good leader does need to know when and how to delegate. However, there is a difference between delegating and pushing all responsibility onto others and washing your hands of any accountability.  In my experience there are four ways to not only think you’re a good leader but to BE a good leader.

• Be there: There is a lot to be said for being there. Perception can become reality and if you’re not there, the perception can be that you’re not doing anything. I’ve worked with people that have mastered the art of not being present until the project is about to be completed.  Years ago my wife was living in California and had family in town.  As my wife’s mom was finishing preparations for dinner for everybody, her aunt walked in and asked if she could help. My wife’s mom responded that no, she was just finishing up. Her aunt then proceeded to say, “Ok. I’ll go wake Joe then.” Joe is her husband and was sleeping in the other room while my wife and her mom prepared dinner. This happened more than 30 years ago but is still a running joke with my wife and her family.

In a work or business environment, there are these type of leaders that wait until the last possible minute to step in and offer help. Often the only thing left for them to do is to, “Go wake Joe.”

I recently worked on an event where the executive in charge of the event did this. He delegated responsibilities to the point that he didn’t have anything to do. The event was s significant event for the business and one that required a lot of hands on treatment. This executive relied on his team, which is good in moderation. The amount of delegation and his lack of involvement left many feeling like he wasn’t doing anything. The team was great about making sure the planning and preparations went well and were handled appropriately. In this respect, the executive was lucky that he had a team committed to making sure the event was successful.

The day of the event it took on a different, more negative twist. As the team was onsite preparing and running around taking care of things onsite, somebody noticed a car parked in the parking lot that looked like the executives. Somebody asked if it was him and it was determined that it wasn’t.  About an hour later, the CEO showed up and upon seeing this, the executive got out of his car and walked up and acted as if he had been there the entire time. The event was a huge success and this executive got a lot of credit and praise for an outstanding event.

The point is, you have to be present to be viewed as a good leader. It’s like the contests where you must be present to win. To truly win and be a good leader, you must be present.

• Lead by example: Nobody likes the leader or boss that wants you and the team to do things a certain way, but then changes the rules when it applies to them. I worked with a woman that thought she knew it all. She would bark out orders and take on responsibilities herself which looked good. However, when it came time to deliver, she would demand that everybody do their part but would never perform the tasks she assigned to herself and then last minute pawn it off on others. The team would step up and she would end up looking good.

The agency owner at the time thought she was wonderful but we all knew better. It didn’t take us long to realize that she didn’t know what she was doing. She relied on the team to make her look good. After a few months, she lost the trust and respect of the team as well as most everybody else in the agency as they all had a chance to work with her and experience first-hand the mania of working with her.

Some of us tried to speak to the agency owner but she wasn’t listening. After several months, this woman went to the agency owner with a confession. She lied on her resume and had never done the things she claimed and didn’t have the experience or expertise to lead a PR program as she claimed. To us, it was no surprise, but to the agency owner, it came as a huge shock.

• Effective communication: All good leaders have the ability to communicate their vision and expectations effectively. You can create the greatest strategy ever, but if you don’t communicate it to anyone, it will never be executed or realized. However, if you can share that vision with the members of your team and let them know what the expectations are and when you expect things to be accomplished the process will be far more achievable than just hoping the team will gain this understanding through osmosis.

• Playing to your strengths: Good leaders are often not the best at every aspect of a business, but they understand their strengths and find others to compensate for their weaknesses. I worked at the Salt Lake Organizing Committee of the Olympic Winter Games of 2002 and had the opportunity to work with Mitt Romney on a daily basis for three years. As brilliant as Mitt is, the one thing that stood out to me was his understanding of his strengths and weaknesses. In areas where he wasn’t an expert, he found and hired the people that were the best in their respective areas. He talked about this all the time too. He didn’t hesitate to point out these individuals’ strengths. As it became clear that the Olympics were going to be successful and that Mitt saved the day, he was clear about his philosophy of hiring the best talent and allowing them to do their job.  Mitt created the vision and communicated his expectations and then allowed his team to execute.

Everybody wants to be a good leader. Some are quick to claim effective leadership, but it doesn’t take long to find and realize who the talented and effective leaders really are. They stand out and are admired for their abilities. They all have some common characteristics, including mastering the four traits listed above.

First Seals

Book Review: First Seals

Author: Patrick K. O’Donnell

First Seals tells the story of how, in the Summer of 1942 the US Military formed what was then called the Maritime Unit. Later this unit became known as the Navy Seals. The Maritime Unit consisted of America’s first swimmer commandos that were a combination of soldier and spy that developed the tactics, technology and philosophy that is the basis for today’s Navy Seals.

The creation of the Maritime Unit came in response to other nations, specifically Italy that had existing swimming commandos. These commandos were creating havoc and really making it difficult for their enemies to compete from a Naval perspective.

The US decided they needed to have an answer to these swimming commandos as well as a spy network to provide intelligence needed to build their strategy and know what the enemy was doing.  Other nations and military’s had spy networks in place and the US was lacking in this area.

The US engaged military experts and adrenaline junkies to help create he Maritime Unit. These soldiers didn’t have an existing training program in place so they began training and creating the program as they went.  Training included swimming, boating, orienteering, hand-to-hand combat, weapons training and calisthenics.

There was very little budget for this new division and so the original members had to be creative in acquiring recruits, equipment and even in building new technology to meet their needs. In one instance, the swimmers realized they needed a way to breath underwater so they could stay submerged longer. Even more importantly, they needed a way to do this without creating bubbles so the enemy would know they were coming. The unit enlisted them help of a number of innovators and eventually created what we now know as scuba gear.

I enjoyed the book and the different characters that comprise the Maritime Unit.  It was fascinating to read about the missions they conducted, success they had and even the trials and enemy captures they encountered. One of the things that stuck out to me most was the approach the men of the unit had. There were a lot of obstacles in their way and budgets didn’t really exist. In spite of all the challenges, the men of the Maritime Unit didn’t let that stop the.  They knew what they needed and didn’t let a lack of resources or somebody denying a request get in their way.

Shortly after the Unit was formed, the team was looking for a ship to train on. They had very little money and the only thing they could afford was a vessel that nobody even knew if it would float.  The team didn’t care. They bought the boat and fixed it up and used it to train Unit members throughout the war.

Once engaged in the war and overseas, Unit members still didn’t have resources, specifically a ship to perform their missions. Unit members worked with indigenous personnel to use their fishing boats and proceeded to perform rescue missions and transport needed supplies to troops.

I loved their approach and their determination to accomplish their objectives.  Many men died during the war.  Many lived to tell their stories and went on to long and prosperous careers both in and out of the military.  i admire the men that created this Unit, served in it and paved the way for what is no the most elite fighting force in the world.

I was also impressed with how quickly the US was able to take a weakness and turn it into a world power that played a critical role in winning the war.  I recommend this book.  It’s a fun read packed with fun and exciting stories of heroism and the men that became heroes of the war.

Have No Fear

I play basketball on Tuesday and Thursday morning with friends and then shower at a friend’s house after before heading to work. A couple day ago I had an interesting conversation with my friend. This friend is retired but has a part time job that falls in line with one of his long time passions. He does this job for fun and works hard at it. However, since he’s retired he is very protective of his personal time.

When he started the job it was supposed to be part time, about 20 hours a week, three days a week. Over the course of his employment the owner has steadily increased his hours. My friend was fine with it at first, especially when the owner told him it was just to compensate for some employee turnover. However, once former employees were replaced, his hours didn’t decrease. Granted, this is due to the fact that my friend works hard and does a really good job. Needless to say, my friend still wants to work three days a week, 20 hours a week.

As we talked my friend told me he was going to talk to his boss later that day about reducing his hours. Here’s where the interesting part came into play. He said he likes the job but that he doesn’t need it and if his boss is unwilling to reduce his hours he’ll simply quite. He then proceeded to tell me how the owner resents him because he can’t intimidate him because he’s not afraid of him. As the “boss,” the owner likes to induce fear in some of the younger employees and intimidate them into doing what he wants. This friend is too old to play these games and the owner knows it.

In another instance, the other day at work, a colleague from another department told me how his boss came to his desk to take something that wasn’t his. As he did this, my colleague jokingly said, “Hey, you can’t take that.” His boss quickly replied, “Oh yeah, who’s the boss here?”

The point was clear. My colleague was not surprised as he said this is common behavior from his boss.

I’ve always felt that fear is poor way to motivate and get what you want. Rarely does it lead to the desired results. Even so, it seems to be the most common form of attempting to motivate employees.

During my career I’ve had many bosses that lead with this technique. As a result, I’ve felt this same kind of fear at work. Sometimes with volatile personalities or leaders and other times with specific tasks I need to perform. In these instances, I’ve found there are three steps that help me overcome this fear and be successful.

• You’ve been hired for a reason, so do it. You obviously have a set of skills and expertise. You wouldn’t have been hired if you didn’t. Trust your knowledge and experience and you’ll be fine.
• Don’ think about it, jump right in and get after it. Sometimes when I’m worried about a project or feeling a little fearful of getting started, waiting makes it worse. I find that if I jump right in and just get started it eliminates anxiety and fear and I can just focus on the task at hand.
• Don’t be afraid to ask questions and seek help if you need it. I know in stressful and anxious moments there is a tendency to say yes and want to make the boss feel confident in your abilities. Often this comes at the expense of fully understanding the assignment and can lead to undue stress. Rather than just saying yes, don’t hesitate to ask for clarification or ask questions to make sure you understand expectations. There’s nothing worse for you or your boss when you commit to do something and it comes back wrong or has missed the mark.

There are a couple quotes that I think capture this very well. Michael Jordan once said, “Never say never, because limits, like fears, are often just an illusion.”

Jordan also said, “I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can’t accept not trying.”

I once read something along the lines of … failure is the only opportunity to begin again, only this time more wisely.

Fear is difficult to overcome and easy to be affected by. Fear is not a good motivator and can prevent true happiness and long-term success. Don’t let fear stop you from achieving success and getting what you want.