Value #2
LEADERS ARE NEEDED AT EVERY LEVEL OF THE ORGANIZATION
In 2004 I was invited to teach a session on leadership to NFL coaches and scouts at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama. It was quite an experience. One of the things I taught that day was the Law of the Edge: “The difference between two equally talented teams is leadership.”
After my session, I talked to a general manager of one of the teams, and he confirmed my observation. He said that because of the parity of talent in the NFL, the edge comes from leadership—from the owner, the head coach, the assistants, and right on down to the players. Leadership is what makes the difference at every level of the organization.
WHAT HAPPENS WITHOUT A LEADER
I know I say this so often that some people are tired of hearing it, but I believe it down to the core of my being. Everything rises and falls on leadership. It really does. If you don’t believe it, just put together a group of people without a leader, and watch them. They will drift. When there is no good leader on a team, in a department, at the top of an organization, or heading a family, then the following results are inevitable.
WITHOUT A LEADER, VISION IS LOST
If a team starts out with a vision but without a leader, it is in trouble. Why? Because vision leaks. And without a leader, the vision will dissipate and the team will drift until it has no sense of direction.
On the other hand, if a team starts with a leader but without a vision, it will do fine because it will eventually have a vision. I say that because if you had to define leaders with a single word, perhaps the best one would be visionary. Leaders are always headed somewhere. They have vision, and that vision gives not only them direction, but it gives their people direction.
WITHOUT A LEADER, DECISIONS ARE DELAYED
I love a story that President Reagan told showing how he learned the need for decision making early in his life. When he was young, a kind aunt took him to have a pair of shoes custom made. The shoemaker asked him if he wanted his shoes to have square toes or round toes, but Reagan couldn’t seem to make up his mind.
“Come back in a day or two and let me know what you decide,” the shoemaker told him. But Reagan didn’t go back. When the man saw him on the street and again asked him what kind of shoes he wanted, Reagan said, “I haven’t made up my mind yet.”
Not all good decision makers are leaders, but all good leaders are decision makers.
“Very well,” the man responded. “Your shoes will be ready tomorrow.”
When Reagan went to pick them up, he discovered that the toe of one shoe was round and the other was square. Reagan later said, “Looking at those shoes taught me a lesson. If you don’t make your own decisions, somebody else makes them for you.”
Not all good decision makers are leaders, but all good leaders are decision makers. Often it takes a leader to make decisions—and if not to make them, then to help others make them more quickly.
WITHOUT A LEADER, AGENDAS ARE MULTIPLIED
When a team of people come together and no one is clearly the leader, then individuals begin to follow their own agendas. And before long, all the people are doing their own thing. Teams need leadership to provide a unifying voice.
WITHOUT A LEADER, CONFLICTS ARE EXTENDED
One of the most important roles of a leader is conflict resolution. In the absence of clear leadership, conflicts always last longer and inflict more damage. Often it takes a leader to step up, step in, and bring everyone to the table to work things out. When you lead others, you should always be ready to do what it takes to help your people resolve their conflicts.
WITHOUT A LEADER, MORALE IS LOW
Napoleon said, “Leaders are dealers in hope.” When leaders are not present, people often lose hope and morale plummets. Why is that? Because morale can be defined as “faith in the leader at top.”
WITHOUT A LEADER, PRODUCTION IS REDUCED
The first quality of leaders is the ability to make things happen. One of my favorite stories that illustrates this truth comes from the life of Charles Schwab, who once ran U.S. Steel. Schwab said:
I had a mill manager who was finely educated, thoroughly capable and master of every detail of the business. But he seemed unable to inspire his men to do their best.
“How is it that a man as able as you,” I asked him one day, “cannot make this mill turn out what it should?”
“I don’t know,” he replied. “I have coaxed the men; I have pushed them; I have sworn at them. I have done everything in my power. Yet they will not produce.”
It was near the end of the day; in a few minutes the night force would come on duty. I turned to a workman who was standing beside one of the red-mouthed furnaces and asked him for a piece of chalk.
“How many heats has your shift made today?” I queried.
“Six,” he replied.
I chalked a big “6” on the floor, and then passed along without another word. When the night shift came in they saw the “6” and asked about it.
“The big boss was in here today,” said the day men. “He asked us how many heats we had made, and we told him six. He chalked it down.”
The next morning I passed through the same mill. I saw that the “6” had been rubbed out and a big “7” written instead. The night shift had announced itself. That night I went back. The “7” had been erased, and a “10” swaggered in its place. The day force recognized no superiors. Thus a fine competition was started, and it went on until this mill, formerly the poorest producer, was turning out more than any other mill in the plant.1
Leaders are creative in finding ways to help others become productive. Sometimes it means laying out a challenge. Sometimes it means giving people training. Sometimes it means encouraging or putting up incentives. If the same thing worked for every person in every situation, then there would be no need for leaders. Because every person is different and circumstances are constantly changing, it takes a leader to figure out what’s needed and to put that solution into action.
WITHOUT A LEADER, SUCCESS IS DIFFICULT
I believe many people want to dismiss the importance of leadership when it comes to organizational success. They don’t see it—and in some cases they don’t want to see it. That was the case for Jim Collins, author of Good to Great. I’ve met Collins, and I can tell you that he is an intelligent and perceptive guy. But he did not want to include leadership in the study that formed the foundation of the book. He wrote:
I gave the research team explicit instructions to downplay the role of top executives so that we could avoid the simplistic “credit the leader” or “blame the leader” thinking common today . . . Every time we attribute everything to “Leadership,” we’re . . . simply admitting our ignorance . . . So, early in the project, I kept insisting, “Ignore the executives,” but the research team kept pushing back . . . Finally—as should always be the case—the data won.2
Collins goes on to describe level five leaders—leaders who exhibit both a strong will and great humility—and how every great company they studied was led by one such leader.
Leadership comes into play, even when you don’t want it to. Your organization will not function the same without strong leaders in every department or division. It needs 360-Degree Leaders at every level in order to be well led.
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