August 25, 2008
I mostly enjoyed the Olympics, especially the swimming and team sports. China pulled off the PR coup of the century and only had to spend $40 billion. That is probably what Michael Phelps will earn selling cereal, eye drops, dog food, chlorine, speedos, insurance, and energy drinks. Good—he earned it with a lot of hard work. I will buy his speedo brand—I just won’t wear them in public or anywhere else—not for all the tea in China.
I just hope he doesn’t do a reality show. T.V. reality shows have nothing to do with reality. Assigning a name to a thing does not make it authentic. Truly, most things that have to be labeled ‘authentic’ are usually suspect. Likewise, authentic leadership has nothing to do with titles or positions. Yet it is breathtaking how people promoted into a position where they have stewardship responsibilities for others feel instantly trans-mutated—usually into the Incredible Hulk.
Freshly minted leaders who only yesterday joked with their peers around the water cooler become instantly transformed into all-powerful, all-knowing beings—like Aladdin’s genie. Why do we think that dealing effectively with people is an intuitive skill? What if we took the same approach with other disciplines? Airlines could hold an employee lottery to select their pilots. One day you could be driving the waste service truck; the next day, you could fly a 757 to Bangkok. People who dreamed of being an astronaut as a kid could redeem their Cracker Jack space license and—boom, fly the shuttle. If you want to be a Doctor, be a Doctor. Just know that surgeons need fine motor skills, so it helps if you eat Chinese food with chopsticks.
It is to be regretted that with a title automatically comes position power. Appropriate authority does accrue to leadership, but without the right approach, the potential for abusing power is significant. Those given the opportunity to lead in a new role should have one primary attitude: humility. The natural inclination is to think: “It’s about time; now I can instantly change the world.” The proper response should be: “Wow, do I have a lot to learn!” Organizations that have not thought it through perpetuate the problem. People are promoted but not trained or prepared for their new responsibilities.
Training for potential leaders is only the beginning. Head knowledge must be put into practice by experience. Leaders cannot be effective without hands-on practice any more than Shawn Johnson could win the balance beam gold medal in Beijing by just reading a book: Olympic Gymnastics for Idiots. The latest issue of HR Management, published by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), has an interesting article titled “Success Factors” by Donna M. Owens. In it, she refers to research by Personnel Decisions International (PDI), a worldwide leadership consulting firm:
…The study found that first-level leaders are more likely to succeed if they’ve had cross-functional experiences; midlevel leaders are more likely to succeed if they’ve had experiences handling tough challenges, such as difficult employee situations; new executive leaders are more likely to succeed if they’ve had high-risk and high-visibility experiences.
Providing the most relevant experiences at the right time—such as stretch assignments—helps create leaders equipped to meet the demands of a high-level position…
Effective leadership has nothing to do with position. It has everything to do with how people are treated with the wisdom and skill that only comes from years of preparation and practice. It is a lifelong journey.
