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"Out with the old, in with the new" has taken on a stark reality. People are coming and going alright, from NFL coaches to CEO's. Included in the long line of comings and goings are rookie media managers and department heads. We hear from more and more of them. So, here's to the class of 2013's new leaders. Freely offered; a few tenets to consider.
Management doesn't equate to leadership. Good leadership is not the stuff of columbines and wizardry often found in movie scripts. Instead "leading" is an outcome of watching others and studying those who are very good at it. Common sense, intelligence, timing, an obsession to lead, and some luck, all factor into your appointment and over the days that follow.
A leader can tolerate an inordinate number of tactical errors IF the strategy is sound. Perhaps I rely too much on the lessons of history but they can be the ultimate object lesson. In an animated pregame speech, former Buffalo Bills Coach Marv Levy once quipped, "Do you know why Hitler lost? He lost because he couldn't win on the road!" Of all the mistakes this amateur "general" made, worse than all the others--so bad, history forever stands amazed at the fact--in the summer of '40 upon overrunning France and driving the British to their desperate evacuation at Dunkirk, the German army arrived at the English Channel without the slightest idea of what to do next! There they were; millions strong, armed to the teeth, flushed with victory with only a depleted opposing force across the 40 mile ditch. The Wehrmacht was led by a man who had given zero thought as to how one got to the other side! Finis Germaniae. For some, a moment of greatness comes once in a thousand years. Alexander, Caesar, Napoleon, Eisenhower, and Norman Schwarzkoph possessed what Hitler and countless failed leaders lack, generalship. This is the ability to divine and seize a favoring moment with audacity and you must find yours to scale above the rest.
Remember: once you step across the invisible line of leadership you leave behind the need to be one of the group. Your forward promotion does not suggest you're somehow knighted superior to your departmental employees. Just the same, it signals the need to be willing to separate yourself from popularity or acceptance when a tough decision must be made. It's nice to sustain past friendships but it's not part of your job description. You see this conflict in the military when an enlisted rank earns an officer's commission. The discrete dichotomy between who you've been and who you've become is crucial to your success in the days ahead.
Leadership can be lonely. It's nice to believe that having been put in charge your popularity will automatically expand. Nothing could be further from the truth. Admit errors, own mistakes, avoid self-extenuation and move on. I've reminded many a new manager, it can be lonely on the best and worst of days; some of your most shining moments will arrive when you're un-applauded and alone. Since there's no datum for friendship-per-share in your financial reports, "being liked" usually happens when respect turns into results.
In every field respect is earned one battle at a time. You will win it by being truthful, being fair, being decisive, and being even-handed with empathy instead of sympathy. Don't worry too much. Every commander is entitled to his or her nuit blanche fears. Do think about the difference between where you've been and where you're going, now that you've crossed that invisible line.
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