Our business has 5 fundamental strategies for success that we call: ‘The 5 Pillars Of Success’. These principles act as a sort of daily ’success checklist’ by which we run our business and our lives.
One of those ‘Pillars Of Success’ is ‘The Expectation Of Leadership In Yourself And Others’. (more…)
We all know that the world is made up of leaders and followers. The ratio of which would seemingly be the few leading the many, filtering down through the echelons of control. Leaders would of course seem an essential part of any society, whether via government, business, education etc. The hierarchy of societies since the days of antiquity, have shaped our world.
From inspirational leaders of liberation and freedom, to despotic tyrants, leadership has always been a powerful force, with the potential for good or evil. As Lord Acton famously said to the Bishop Creighton:
“Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”
Upon this foundation it is of high importance that leadership, and the control that goes with it, is instilled with a foundation of morality and equality. Working upon these core foundations, the teaching of communicative skills with other people through leadership mentoring, and especially within a group context, is essential.
Any hierarchical system would of course seem paradoxical to equality, but perhaps true equality cannot exist within the current socioeconomic state which the vast majority of the world population lives within. This said it is by no means an excuse not to continue with the ever necessary striving for true equality amongst the entire human race. Any blatant inequality, especially the obscene levels of which still exist amongst the ‘developed’ and undeveloped worlds, is without question utterly intolerable.
A call to arms, a rally cry to all who care about their world, their fate, lead, if you can, if your made for it, as no doubt some people are, then do so, lead yourselves and those which will follow you into a more positive future with ideals based upon equal harmony for all, a world where individual welfare is prized above pecuniary gain and proliferation.
One of the most highly regarded soccer managers from the UK, Sir Alex Fergurson, has the key charateristics of having a higher than average level of determination to succeed in life and also a natural tendency to lead groups of people. In many interviews, Alex Ferguson has referred to his upbringin in Glasgow as being a key component in these particular characteristics that he posesses.
This upbringing in a relatively poor yet hard working area of Scotland helped bring out his best features and he showed signs of them during his first job on the docks in which he was amonst men who had to work hard to keep their jobs and ensure that the docks remained. He was a steward in a toolroom aged twenty one and this meant that he had to fight for the rights of his people and he says that he needed his natural ability to be decisive during this period of time.
Arsene Wenger is another leading soccer coach plying his trade in the UK. He used his upbringing, which involved meeting lots of different people in the family pub that he was brought up in and was a sort of leadership workshop, to take English soccer forward and increase the playing careers of many of the older player at Arsenal. He used this psychological knowledge to get the best out his players through knowing what makes them tick and so leading them via this.
He places enthasis on his players analysis their performance and being independant in this sense and he also has a natural rapport with people which stems from his upbringing in which he met different people and watched how they acted with each other, particularly after the influence of alcohol which has lead him to educate his players to live healthy lifestyles to become the best athletes that they can.
A look at what makes a great leader from Desmond Tutu. It’s always great to hear what people of outstanding achievement say about leadership and management as they’ve obviously applied what they think to their own lives with success. This video proves to be a fascinating insight.
You can view the video here and it would be great to get your thoughts on this blog post via your comments here. A quote from the video is “Dream. Dream that this world can become better as you do dream, in fact. I mean, when these young people go off and work as Peace Corps and other volunteering groups in poverty stricken places where they don’t get any better headlines for dreaming the good things.” Impressive stuff.
By way of that which they represent, a leader, in whatever form, is a symbol; a singular icon of the group, mass, ideal etc. This symbol can be used as propaganda e.g. The iconic photo of Che Guevara, representing freedom and liberty and the communist ideal.
It can be used in a religious context. Icons have been used for centuries in western religions; images of Jesus, images of saints etc. The use of such icons is also apparent in more esoteric religions such as Buddhism, Buddha statues being a very popular item, one that can even be bought in supermarkets.
The power of these icons, is that they represent something greater than what they inherently are. These leader symbols, are a conduit between the follower and the ideals of the leader and their coaching abilty.
A different form of leader symbol is that of the pop/rock band, particularly epitomised by the lead singer/guitarist such as: Elvis Presley, Mick Jagger, Robert Plant, Morrissey, Matt Bellamy. Thos are just a small set of examples of famous lead singer and guitarists that symbolise the look and sound of their respective bands.
The rock star icon is a major symbol of the culture which they represent. Many people look up to these leader symbols and revere them, aspire to what they have achieved or represent.
Of course eminent persons in any discipline can have the same effect, can achieve the same iconic status to those who adhere to their views. These followers may well then choose to follow in the footsteps of their chosen leader symbols.
The image of a leader can be generated as a powerful tool in symbolising what the group stand for. It can be used to inspire the group and represent that group to wider audience and context.
Executive Coaching
Executive coaching can cover a number of different activities but at its core it is helping a person to become better at leading other people and them to overcome the various challenges that they are faced with.
During education, there is not often a subject that is based around the subject of leadership but it is required in so many different parts of life. You sometimes have to lead in a relationship, when looking after children they expect you to lead and, what this article will focus on, to generally succeed in your career you will have to lead in some capacity.
However, most people who come into the position of leader have not been taught how to do this and some of them have a natural tendency to lead but most people who find themselves in this position do so because they were good at the individual skill that their previous role focused on (e.g. research, customer services, writing) and they had a level of command within that organisation.
Performing well as a leader can often be very different to performing well at a single role. This is why getting leadership coaching can be great for a person as the best way for many people to learn and cope with challenges is to discuss them with people who have gone through or are currently going through those same challenges. The world of business may change constantly but some things remain similar and leadership is one of these.
The Executive Coaching Conversation
Because executive coaching is all about a conversation between the leadership coach and the client, there are some basic communication skills that the coach must employ throughout the leadership coaching sessions. The coach must be succinct when speaking to the client by getting the message across using as few words as possible. This reduces the temptation to go into a story and add unnecessary details that can literally bore the client and cause them to lose focus. In addition to this, the coach needs to be precise in his/her meaning so that the leadership coaching client knows exactly what the message is that the coach is trying to convey. If the coach’s language is too broad, the client may misunderstand the exact meaning.
A great leader can be the difference between failure and success. The easiest demonstration of great leadership can be seen in sports teams. How often does a great leader leave a team only for that time to take a dramatic dip in form and look like a completely different set of players? A great leader gets coaching and tips from other, experienced leaders and mixes this with their own views and personality.
The ability, within a business, to grow leaders from your own workforce is extremely beneficial to a company. Having to get leaders in from outside the company can be an extremely expensive process and then there is the cost in terms of time spent for that new person to have to get to know the your company. Most importantly, it is difficult to assess a potential leader, especially if they do not have an extensive experience of leadership but it is something they are looking to move into.
Growing a leader from within your own business means that they already know the business and the people that make it tick, develop a loyalty with this company during their time with your company and can be watched as they develop and you assess their strengths and weaknesses in the area of leadership on a daily basis. This will allow you to place them in an area to lead in which they will feel comfortable and able to express themselves.
It is commonly known that there is a growing leadership gap and developing leaders within your own company means that your business isn’t open to this difficult challenge or recruiting leaders in an environment that is short on them. Leadership is not something that is traditionally learned within the education system but is something that people pick up here and there. This means that there is a huge variation in people’s leadership skills.
However, there are many ways that people can learn the art of leadership. Leadership coaching is one way as it allows people to discuss their daily or weekly problems with someone who has experience them all before and can give a potential great leader confidence in knowing how to handle various situations. Having a structured educational system within your own company is another great way as it lets your employees come together and discuss their leadership knowledge together and share this thus improving everyone’s leadership abilities as a whole.
Providing potential leaders within your company with a chance to experience leading is a great way to assess who they might be as well as letting them find out what is required in order to be a leader within your company and what they are good at and what they need to improve on. Leadership is certainly a skill that is most successfully learnt particularly well both through doing and discussing.
I hope that gives you more of an insight into growing leaders within your business and, if you are considering how to implement systems within your business to do this, I hope you now feel more confident in doing so and have generated more ideas through the reading of this article.
What is a mentor? According to the Greek legend, the goddess Athene enjoyed coming down to Earth disguised as a man named “Mentor” so she could advise the young son of Ulysses. In these days, a mentor is a highly and experienced counsellor, anyone who guides and encourages another, most often to someone younger.
Mentors and guides, just like people in all forms of business, management and/or leadership coaching, come in a wide variety of forms, both formal and informal. Usually your mentor is someone who takes a personal interest in your progress, seeing your potential and regarding you as just a bit more capable and talented than you think you are. Not too much better, or you’ll ignore their opinion and regard it as unrealistic. Not anything less or you won’t be able to realistically see it as something to aim for.
In my own life, I’ve had some great mentors — Very good managers and employers who showed me the way and interesting clients who encouraged and demanded that I be the best I could be. We all have mentors who don’t know they are our mentors. They are all around us as we watch and learn from what they do and say. Many people have told me I had been their mentor the first time we met.
Good mentors are the people who give you encouragement and show you the way to success.
Leadership mentoring can cover a number of different activities but at its core it is helping a person to become better at leading other people and them to overcome the various challenges that they are faced with.
During our school and formulative years we attend classes that are not based around the subject of leadership but it is used in so many different parts of life. We have to take charge and lead on occasion in a relationship, children want you to lead and, what this post will look at, to generally succeed in your career you will have to lead in some capacity.
However, most people who come into the position of leader have not been taught how to do this and some of them have a natural tendency to lead but most people who find themselves in this position do so because they were good at the individual skill that their previous role focused on (e.g. selling, computer programming, journalism) and they had respect within the company.
Performing as a leader can often be different to performing well at a single role. This is why getting leadership coaching can be great for a person as the best way for many people to learn and cope with challenges is to discuss them with people who have gone through or are currently going through those same challenges. The world of business may change constantly but some things remain similar and leadership is one of these.
An excellent leader can be the difference between success and failure. The easiest demonstration of great leadership can be seen in sports teams. How often does a great leader leave a team only for that time to take a dramatic dip in form and look like a completely different set of players? A great leader gets coaching and tips from other, experienced leaders and mixes this with their own views and personality.
So, as this article has shown, leaders who are successful often have great coaches that they, themselves learn from and use when they face challenges that they are intimidated by. It is an extremely tough role and one which is best faced with similar minded and experienced people.
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