Leadership Reflections #2

The first two reflections about leadership regarding anyone leading in any area of life, in personal life, business, in thought, in innovations, etc. are these 1) envisions and sets visions about the future, a bright dream and then 2) will be both loved and hated for that, Given this, this leads to the next reflection which is a tough one, especially for those newly stepping up to a leadership role. Namely,

3) Leaders have to be able to take the heat.

This third reflection arises because leaders dance a thin line between the present and future, they have to be sufficiently grounded in today to know what’s happening and the needs that are desperately felt. They also have to have a vision of the future regarding applying some solution that will create a better world or situation. A leader who is too far “ahead of his or her time,” will not be recognized as a leader at all, but as a kook, as a wild-eye visionary, an impractical and dreamy illusionary, and therefore easily dismissed. A leader who is following the wave of the next important development, well, that person actually isn’t leading at all.

An interesting phenomenon of most leaders is that in hindsight what the leader saw, discovered, invented, facilitated, or expressed the next generation sees as “obvious.” People comment, “Why didn’t I see that?” “It was there all the time.” None of what Martin Luther King, Edwards Deming, or Nelson Mandela said or did was “revolutionary” in that the ideas were available. The leader is the one who sees first a new and exciting application and acts on that insight. The leader sees a solution, or at perhaps the application of a solution, that others had already suggested. The leader takes at least one step forward into the future and from that position pioneers the next new step. Sometimes this alone describes the genius of leadership.

In doing this, the leader stands up for something important. That stand then galvinizes the minds and hearts of others so they also catch the vision. They also now see the future. For this the leader is loved by some; hated by others. For this, some provide the support that allows the person to be recognized as a leader; for this also others find the person threatening the status quo and so fights to resist the proposed change. In this a leader has to be a person with conviction, determination, confidence, and the gall to stand up for his or her vision.

A caricature of this is the “politician” who wets his finger, puts it in the air and tests which way the wind of opinion is blowing to determine his view or position. That’s not leadership. Anyone who can read a poll could do that. Leaders take a stand about a direction. Of course, leaders also need to be liked, even loved and admired by some people, in order to be a leader. If no one is following, a person is not a leader. Leadership arises as a social construct of recognition. Yet it is in taking a stand that every leader at every level of every society will also be disliked, and even hated and despised, by some.

What does it take to be a leader and to lead out into a new area? For one thing, you have to be able to take the heat. Those who fear criticism, rejection, difficulty, conflict, embarrassment, and so on will not endure as a leader.

So what is a leader-in-training suppose to do? How do we prepare ourselves so that we can handle the heat? We can use such patterns as “taking criticism positively,” “un-insultability,” “distinguishing map from territory; person from behavior,” “optimism,” “developing ego-strength, and “resilience,” to develop the ego strength necessary. This also is where the ability to receive feedback comes a magical trait for ongoing development for leaders (see the series, The Magic of Feedback).

How did Nelson Mandela handled the heat? Or Martin Luther King Jr.? How about Jesus of Nazareth? You may not know it but Jesus was repeatedly accused of associating with drunks and whores and yet he answered not a word. He spent not a minute defending himself. Instead he stayed his course to fulfill his vision about love, faith, hope, and sacrifice.

If you respond to the call for leadership (and in Neuro-Semantics, we see the roles of training and coaching as leadership roles), then get ready for the heat. Get ready for the pressure of criticism and accusations. If you’re doing anything significant, you’re giong to face it. Leadership, in the end, is not about wealth, fame, glory, and recognition, it is about serving people, adding value, and being true to your vision.