Good leaders keep their feet grounded
FOR ALMOST a decade during the 90's, both the business world and society had a fixation for aggressive leaders. The willingness of such leaders to flaunt rules with daring flair fascinated the public. However, these bold, high-flying leaders found themselves falling hard and fast owing to determined pursuit of power, lack of self-restraint, and reckless leadership amongst others.
In their rapid climb up the ladder, `star' leaders display characteristics like intelligence, resourcefulness and the drive to reach the pinnacle. They are tactful in overcoming the obstacles that come along their way. They charm the investors, media and their employees with their charisma, vision for success and unmatchable strategic knowledge. Not too far from positive characteristics is the shadow of dark leadership. Top performers may sometimes demonstrate lapses in professional judgment and personal behaviour.
One factor responsible for demonstration of leadership folly, as management and psychology experts observe is the acquisition of power. Many leaders seem to fall a prey to recklessness once they hold powerful positions in the organisation. Attributing recklessness to lack of morals seems easy and convincing but then these flaws would have emerged much earlier in the leader's career graph.
Symptoms of reckless leadership
Ignoring the big picture: In disaster prone organisations, reckless leaders lose sight of the big picture. Their role boils down to staying off immediate disasters while substantive problems are swept off. Leaders justify this behaviour saying that they are buying time to tackle the big issues later.
Discouraging whistle-blowers: Reckless leaders do not encourage whistle-blowers and hence fail to recognise troubles brewing in organisations. This cold shoulder to whistle-blowers will only make the latter flee from calling a spade a spade.
Illusions of grandeur: It definitely helps to ask oneself whether his behaviour has changed after assuming power.
Power hungry: Leaders have the `winner-wants-all' mindset. A voracious appetite to acquire more dominates every decision, which in turn hampers both progress and success.
Snap decisions: Snap decisions taken by leaders during their busy days often lead to irreversible consequences.
Leaders who have overcome these symptoms of recklessness and remained effective for long possess a certain combination of psychological and behavioural habits that helps them stay grounded.
Principles of effective leadership
Principle 1: Simplicity: Normal behaviour may seem too lacklustre but it helps leaders to remain in touch with themselves, their employees and customers. Leaders must exhibit some amount of humility. Then they can view their accomplishments and their misdeeds without bias and attachment. The best way to develop humility is to understand what matters in life. When famous American investor and stock market guru Warren Buffet was asked how he learnt to handle his enormous power and wealth, he said, "I live now the way I lived 30 years ago".
Principle 2: Acknowledge mistakes: All leaders have shortcomings. However, the natural tendency to mask those shortcomings must be overcome. Leaders must shine light on their weaknesses to understand themselves better. President John. F Kennedy was well known to take the responsibility for the mistakes committed by the officers in his administration. Humour can be used as an effective tool to communicate those weaknesses because it suggests vulnerability while displaying self-control.
Principle 3: Reality testing: Leaders who have thrived on power engage in reality testing. They check the information they receive and review their assumptions frequently. Reality testing helps leaders to prepare for the unexpected.
Principle 4: Anticipating: Leaders need to anticipate and foresee what might go wrong. Leaders especially stumble upon small steps and one small misstep can lead to a total derailment of goals.
Principle 5: Reflections: Today's business culture emphasises action over hesitancy. Yet, leaders striving to remain efficient at the top must be more reflective.
Leaders might differ in their management styles and personalities but all efficient leaders display a combination of the above behavioural characteristics. These help them climb the leadership ladder.
BINDU MADHAVI
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