Leadership as an Activity - Wildthoughts

Ask people to define leaders or leadership and I'm willing to bet they will think of it in terms of people. Figures of authority. Historical figures who have led countries, movements, armies. There is no doubting that the people they mention will have been leaders (good or bad). But it misses the point about leadership. Leadership is not defined by the position or authority one possesses or has been granted. It is better thought of as an 'activity'. Leadership is evident in the behaviour displayed by people and is measured largely by the extent to which the activity mobilises others to accept responsibility for owning issues, changing conditions and tackling tough challenges. Note, the important point here is about mobilising others. True, leaders can and often do take action and make decisions, but I believe the most significant measure of leadership is the extent to which leaders are able to focus other's attention on the need to take action. That is the mark of true Leadership. That is what causes real change and alters mindsets, and, very importantly, does not encourage dependence.

I recommend a great read on this topic. Ronald Heifetz who wrote Leadership Without Easy Answers.
If you want to hear a review, have a listen to the attached file which I have recorded. It is less than 15 minutes in duration and will give you more insight to the content of this great book.
BookReviewLWEA.wav

What does it mean to vote? - wildthoughts

One of the things that depresses (distresses) me is that there are a growing number of people who reject the right (or the need?) to cast a vote that will help determine the way in which their country is governed, the way society develops, which laws will be passed, how educational policy is shaped and whether we engage in wars.

But we are seeing a simultaneous growth in the volume of the population who give not a second thought to spending 50p or £1 to vote for one singer over another in any number of talent shows. And, if there is even the slightest suggestion that this vote is in any way rigged, and their favourite is beaten into second place, we see a level of passion and anger roused that politicians could only dream about.

Makes you think - doesn't it?

Is it tough to sack your friend? - wildthoughts

During a recent workshop I was running, a thorny issue arose. How do you deliver 'bad news' to someone who is not only a work colleague but a friend. People sometimes struggle with giving people a low performance rating on their appraisal, or even worse, like dropping them from an assigmment or even dismissing them from employment. Especially when there is a conflict of interest arising from the person being someone they have known a long time. They may be friends, their familes may be friends, they may play golf together. They may even have intimate knowledge of each other's financial affairs and know exactly what a poor appraisal mark will mean to plans for holidays or the kids school fees. This discussion reminded me of an interview I heard a few days earlier on the radio. The QPR chairman, Gianni Paladini, had recently sacked his manager (John Gregory). When asked by the interviewer how he got on with John, the chairman answered by saying, "they were good friends, their familes socialised together and they played golf together". The interviewer suggested that it must have been very hard to take the decision to sack John and to deliver the news. The answer from Paladini was, I think, extremely mature, well thought out, and a moment of fantastic 'clear-headedness' to me. He simply said, "What would you rather I did? Wait for things to get worse and reach the point where we are no longer friends". He clearly valued his friendship too much to jeopardise it by not sacking his friend. Think about it. It makes sense.

13....unlucky or not? - wildthoughts

Recently I was in a lift in a Hong Kong hotel. As I climbed smoothly to the 24th floor, I noticed that there was no 13th. So I was really on the 23rd, I thought? Then I thought who's being fooled here? Surely the people on the 14th know they are really on the 13th. But the best bit was when I spotted the metal safety plate on the the opposite wall. Maximum Occupancy - 13 Persons !!!!

Two Father's Days in the Year? - wildthoughts

Australia's Father's Day was on 2nd Sep this year. The UK Father's Day was earlier in the year, but I jibed my kids relentlessly about the fact that I should really benefit from a) being their father and b) being in Australia on that country's Father's Day. I was told in no uncertain terms to stop pushing my luck.....but when the day came I was delighted to receive a book as a gift (genuinely unexpected despite all the hints I had dropped). It was the classic "Feel the fear and do it anyway" by Susan Jeffers. A great little book which I would recommend to anyone. We can all benefit from the inspiring messages and exercises it describes. A great addition to my collection of little gems.