Supervisory Leadership |
|
|
| Home Page | |
| Articles | |
| Book Reviews | |
| Newsletter | |
| Questions | |
| Got a Question or Comment? | |
|
Wally Bock's Supervisory Leadership Tips Leadership Bifocals
Benjamin Franklin invented bifocals in 1784 because he was tired of switching between two pairs of glasses to see things near and far. You may have great eyesight, but if you're a leader, you need special "leadership bifocals."
You need a reality lens for the present. Top performing leaders develop their own way to get a clear view of reality. Some use simple research methods, like a daily scan of several newspapers.
Others use more creative ways. One owner of a $7 million business opened all the mail himself. If he was on the road, the mail waited till he got back.
Why do they do that? Why not depend on reports? There are two reasons.
Reports don't tell you everything. As the head of a major public housing organization told me, "All the reports in the world won't tell you if the stairwell landings are getting swept."
He made it a point to walk through at least one building a day to see and hear what was going on. That leads us to the second reason reports alone are dangerous.
Everyone who writes a report and passes it on uses a filter to decide what parts of reality you should see. That may not be enough.
The housing executive found that when he walked around the projects, people talked to him. And when they talked to him he found out things he never would have learned from reports alone.
You must find a lens to give you a ruthlessly realistic view of the present, no matter how awful. But when you look at the future, you need to have an optimistic lens.
As a leader, part of your job is setting direction. You're urging folks to go with you to a future that you see clearly. If you don't think it's a great place to go, why should they? Keeping a positive vision of the future helps you and your people maintain energy on the journey.
Think of it like bifocals. One pair of leadership glasses with two lenses. There should be a realistic lens for the present. There should be an optimistic lens for the future. And you should be able to switch quickly back and forth between those views.
Here are two books that may help you develop you leadership bifocal lenses.
"Thinking In Time: The Uses of History for Decision Makers" by Richard E. Neustadt and Ernest R. May
"Confronting Reality: Doing What Matters to Get Things Right" by Larry Bossidy, Ram Charan
You may reprint or repost this article providing that the following conditions are met:
Any other reprinting or reposting requires specific permission which is almost always granted. Click here to request permission if necessary.
|
