Wouldn’t it be great if your employees followed you because they really share your goals and not just because you are the boss? Do you sometime wish they understood more deeply what you are trying to accomplish? Maybe you sense a lack of commitment to your values, and attempts to rebuild it has been difficult if not fruitless?
One reason for this mismatch in standards could be that your people don’t share your beliefs because you are unclear about them yourself. Communicating effectively what’s important to you and your business philosophy is a science in itself; before that, however, you need to be very clear what message it is that you want to convey. None of your attempts to claim authority will be as strong as it can be without your transparency. No leadership style, whether authoritarian, democratic or laissez-faire, can be as appropriate as bringing your own personal set of values to the table. Don’t try to copy other successful leaders but become an original; you will have followers for life.
One strategy as suggested by Israeli anthropologist and business scholar Shamir and Eilam is to work with your past, to figure out why you are who you are today. Reflection on your life-story, they argue, makes you gain self-knowledge and self-concept clarity; these are important features of an authentic leader who is aware of priorities, values, goals, strengths and weaknesses. The act of reflective thinking is ‘the process of creating and clarifying the meaning of experience (past or present) in terms of self.’ (Boyd & Fales, 1983).
Esoteric nonsense, you say? Think again. Try to remember an instance in your history as leader, be it a very successful moment or an unpleasant memory of failure. Then ask yourself:
1) Why did I act like I did? (e.g. external pressure, experience, knowledge etc.)
2) What was the impact of my behavior on others?
3) Which values do I still maintain/which ones have I abolished?
4) (And many more)
Analyzing and re-evaluating your actions at the time is a rational act of understanding yourself better on a multi-dimensional way. By thinking through the events of the past, you might discover more of your strengths, or your limitations; you might not want to repeat certain actions, but don’t miss asking yourself: why? You will certainly want to revive some of your special characteristics that made you a great, and proud and strong leader of others. Self-knowledge is one thing, and the formation of your personal value-system is quite another. Figure out (an this is not easy, believe me) where you want to go from here. Which priorities do you have for yourself and your business? What are the thoughts and actions that you want embedded in your employee’s behaviors, because they represent you? What is your vision for the next few weeks and months ahead, and what do you not want to see as consequence of your leader behaviors?
If you don’t have an answer to these questions, how should your people have? They might ask themselves:”Who is my boss?”
And yes, it’s getting personal, like the nature of leadership is. You have only two options: letting your followers float around working on their own agendas yet on your payroll, or involve them in your idea of the business. The main message is to find your own clarity, so that others know the person they should follow. And they will, that’s for sure.
For links, articles and references contact andrea@derlercoaching.com
P.S. An easier way than doing it yourself is to work with a leadership coach, who simply asks the right questions so that you have more time to find your answers. For inquiries about the different coaching options, contact me at andrea@derlercoaching.com
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