The kind of leaders we need

I teach leadership lessons to thousands of junior, senior and even board-member executives all these years. The one observation I’ve made is that many people still don’t understand what leadership is all about.

Most people equate leadership with positions. I can assure you that that’s the farthest thing from what true leadership is all about.

Who is the leader then? What makes a good leader?

Car manufacturer Henry Ford said, “‘Who ought to be boss?’ is like asking, ‘Who ought to be tenor in the quartet?’ Obviously, the man who can sing tenor.”

The leader is obviously the one who can lead. The one who has the influence. And someone who’s willing to serve.

We often equate leadership with expertise. The leader is supposed to be the person who would come in and fix things. But in this interconnected world we live in, it’s almost impossible to rely on just one person to be that. That’s why we need more leaders.

We need to have more leaders who would take time to listen, who would take time to try to understand what’s going wrong from the perspective of the people they’re supposed to serve, be it the customers or the people for whom they want the world to change.

Every time I come across complaints and concerns from my seminar participants that their leaders are not listening, or that they are selective in what they want to listen to, I’m inclined to think that their leaders may be stuck in groupthink.

Leaders stuck in groupthink think they’re right and that they don’t need to listen to other people. That leads to a lot of suboptimal solutions in the world.

The kind of leaders we need should have the courage to reject ideology and trite assumptions, and to challenge the status quo.

The kind of leaders we need are open to listening to solutions from people no matter how low they are in the corporate food chain. Show me a person with a high position whose motto in life is: Rule No. 1 – The boss is always right. And Rule No. 2 – If in doubt, refer to Rule No. 1.” That person, who says, “It’s either my way or the highway,” is trapped. And he’s certainly far from being a good leader.

Listening to people involves the whole of one’s being, because thoughts are noisy and they’re in constant chatter. But good leaders can listen well. Good leaders can also interpret body language. They are sensitive to the feelings of others.

A true leader has competence, communication skills, compassion, consistency and unquestionable character. These characteristics enable the leader to exert influence on people. These same characteristics enable people to respond and follow the leader.

A good leader also provides his or her team with outsized goals that would stretch them. A good leader understands that the best way for people to learn is to do so while working on it. A good leader is always there to provide counsel and guidance. A good leader is not afraid to commit mistakes. He or she also has audacity and humility.

The two qualities work together. Audacity sets big stretch goals. Humility recognizes the work isn’t easy, and that you may not get there after all.

Careful recklessness and built-up fearlessness – these are qualities I see in great leaders, not only in business enterprises but also in different successful institutions.

(Attend “Inspiring Excellence” on March 1, 2013 at the SMX Convention Center. Learn best practices and be inspired from the industry’s best featuring Butch Jimenez, Alex Lacson, Chinkee Tan and Francis Kong. For further inquiries, contact Inspire Leadership Consultancy Inc. at 632-6310912.)