Good Morning!
THE SEVEN MOST POWERFUL WORDS FOR ANY
LEADER
Many years ago, a boss of mine coached me to
use seven words that would in the future have
significant impact on my success as a leader.
He believed it is all too easy for emerging
leaders to try and answer all the
questions
that their subordinates pose to them,
thinking such Olympian wisdom will somehow
enhance their credibility and image.
Actually, great leaders know that their role
is not to be the "Wizard of Oz", who in an
all-knowing manner has all the answers.
I'm sure if you could track down the
executive teams at the three public companies
I had the privilege to lead, one of the
things they would say about me was that "He
never seemed to know anything." This
conclusion comes as a direct result of many
of these executives, who were being paid
handsomely, walking into my office and posing
questions like "Jim, what do you think I
should do about _____?" Over time, I learned
that, for the good of those executives and the
company, my best response was to never answer
their question - but rather to respond "I
don't know; what do you think?"
As leaders, we all know that people will
incessantly try to delegate things upward to
us that they are accountable for. Asking for
solutions to problems that they should be
dealing with is typical, and if we allow it
to happen, we are weakening them and the
organization. Executives are hired and paid
to identify problems and opportunities, weigh
various alternatives, complete ROI
evaluations and make recommendations
regarding the best actions to take. When we
provide answers in the misguided attempt to
help, we remove critical accountability and
growth opportunities for our subordinates.
It was amazing to watch what happened when
they understood what their jobs really were
about, and that my expectation was that they
would bring recommendations and solutions -
to watch how subordinates grew and became
better leaders themselves. And when they did
bring well thought out recommendations, I
would always be willing to listen. It wasn't
easy to learn to bite my tongue and play
dumb, and I'm sure some of them never did
figure out that there was a strategy behind
my response. However, even in those cases,
they became better and stronger leaders, who
understood that their real role was to be
strategic thinkers who took accountability
for solving issues and developing plans to
take advantage of opportunities.
So where should you start you might ask? I
don't know; what do you think?
Have you ever read MacGregor, the
outstanding story by Arthur Elliott Carlisle
about one of the best leaders I have ever
read about? Click on the link below and enjoy!
Arthur Elliott Carlisle's article "MacGregor"
Best regards,
Jim Alampi
Alampi & Associates LLC
phone:
248.349.6045
