A521.9.4.RB
Reflections
on Leadership
Stoic
looks and the “whatever” look. That’s
what I see in the picture above. General
George S. Patton has a “whatever” look on his face as General Omar Bradley and
General of the Army and Supreme Allied Commander, Dwight D. Eisenhower, stare
at him with stoic looks. It is well
known that Ike and Patton did not get along.
Patton was a renegade. Patton was
well known for his unconventional leadership style. He could care less about what his superiors
thought. He went so far as to create his
own uniform and carried two “non-government issued” pearl handled pistols. However, Patton was a great interactive leader.
In chapter
12 of Denning’s text (Denning, 2011, chapter 12), Denning puts emphasis on the “interactive
leader”.
·
The interactive leader works with the
world rather than against it.
·
Interactive leadership both adds and
subtracts elements from the leadership palette.
·
Interactive leadership builds on personal
integrity and authenticity.
·
Interactive leadership doesn’t depend on
the possession of hierarchical authority.
·
Interactive leadership benefits from an
understanding of the different narrative patterns that can be used to get
things done in the world.
·
Above all, interactive leadership entails
active participation in the world rather than detached observation.
Throughout
my years of leading Soldiers, I have always been participative. I have never been one to say “do this” or “do
that”. I have always said, “let’s do
this” or “let’s do that”. I have never
had a problem with getting my hands dirty.
Denning
continues in his text with the following:
·
Leadership that participates
·
Leadership that connects
·
Leadership that is like conversation
·
Leadership that is possible
·
Leadership that fits the modern need
·
Leadership that is not for everyone
·
Leadership that is relatively free of ego
·
Leadership that is like Judo
·
Leadership that has feeling
·
Leadership that avoids “Apollo run amok”
·
Leadership that includes beauty
So,
as mentioned earlier, I am an interactive leader. This guy does not sit on his laurels. I also find integrity of both myself and my
follows so very important. Being real
and being honest has helped me in many situations. I have had many situations in my past
military experience where I had to fall on my sword or have others fall on
their own. This is the way I was
raised. I have always been a believer
in, “honest is the best policy”.
Empathy
and sympathy are also very important to me.
As a leader, being “cold hearted” doesn’t get you far. Being empathetic and sympathetic sends a
message to the follower that you are approachable, understanding and
compassionate. I have used this as a
military leader and a school teacher…probably more so as a teacher.
Moving
forward, I have a plan to adapt “leadership that is not for everyone”. Since I already have no problem stepping on a
few toes, I think that status quo needs to sometimes be pushed back again. Change is usually good, after all. I also plan to adapt “leadership that is like
judo”. If I plan on “rocking the boat”,
you have to put up a “fight”. One
statement from Denning really hit home with me – “You don’t fight your opponents: you invalidate them.” (Denning, 2011, page 282)
Reference
Denning, S. (2011). The leader’s guide to
storytelling: Mastering the art and discipline of business narrative. San Francisco,
CA: Jossey-Bass
