Lessons From The Wild - Six Failings Of Leadership
by Mark McOnie
We take leadership teams to some pretty ‘out there’ places. We do this to stretch people. Working and making decisions in a foreign environment forces us to think of what we can and can’t do and helps us to focus our strengths to overcome immediate challenges. These challenges can be environmental - rain, wind, snow, cold. They can be emotional - I don’t want this to happen to me. And, they can be logical - we need to get this done.
Through these experiences I have learned that, as humans, we all make common mistakes. Our immediate decisions represent a response to an environment, emotion or logical problem as we have discussed. Daniel Kahneman would say that these decisions represent our System 1 - quite simply, our flight or fight response. Maybe this is all ok, after all we are only human.
However, as a leader, our mistakes have a ripple effect that extends much further and this can deliver profound effects on the way that our team operates. A deeper level of consciousness is required to assess, analyse and consider options to overcome challenges. Daniel Kanheman would call this our System 2 processing - our ability to apply reason to a given situation.
Commonly, leaders fail to sink to this deeper level of consciousness when they themselves are under duress resulting in a continued break down of team culture.
Failing To See What Is Important
Many of our leadership experiences follow a journey. A start (where we are right now), a middle (the path forwards) and an end (destination). For most, the destination becomes the focus point. When we reach the destination we have succeeded. We have won.
This may be true, but at what cost? In his book, Good Strategy/ Bad Strategy, Richard Rumelt argues that many organisations are great at setting a vision for the future. He continues that many fail or become apathetic to the changing global environment, because they have failed to address and plan for the challenges and risks that they will encounter along the way.
What Could Kill Us?
We could all identify a number of corporates who have been ‘disrupted’ in recent times. Though this disruption does not come from an external forces alone. Rumelt would argue that those organisations failed to create plans and strategies that future proof their business. They have failed to disrupt themselves.
This concept is closely aligned to my own observations in the field working with some of the globes greatest brands and organisations. All too often we are focused on the outcome, rather than thinking about the steps in the journey that will help us to succeed. As a consequence, I see the following chain of events:
Vocal leaders (action) take charge
Quiet leaders (thinking) withdraw
Teams break down (communication, coordination, prioritisation)
Mistakes are made (safety, oversights, resources, diverse perspectives are ignored)
Teams continue to fracture (us and them/ slow and fast/ loud and quiet/ disengaged and assertive)....Trust is lost.
We turn to blame (if only…)
If we reverse the cycle we can see a different story appear.
Vocal leaders use their skills to draw wider opinions from others
Quiet leaders feel safe to share their opinions and thoughts
Communication is open - roles and priorities are discussed and agreed upon
Mistakes can still occur, but the probability is significantly reduced through diverse, inclusive decision making
This team environment encourages trust, commitment, accountability - the foundations of a great team.
Shared ownership for decisions leaves no room for blame.
“Leaders fail to sink to this deeper level of consciousness when they are under duress”
Do you see these kind of attributes in your team? Leadership is a craft that must be exercised continually. If you’d like to discuss the content of this blog, we would love to hear your opinion.
Further Reading
Daniel Kanheman - Thinking Fast and Slow
Richard Rumelt - Good Strategy/ Bad Strategy
Patrick Lencioni - The Five Dysfunctions of A Team