Leadership Part I A Dialog on Understanding Kelvin

Leadership Part I: A Dialog on Understanding Kelvin K. Droegemeier School of Meteorology University of Oklahoma METR 6902, Professional Perspectives Fall 2009

We’re Bombarded with Material on Leadership but do we Really Understand It?

What Does the Word “Leadership” Mean to You? Do You See Yourself as a Leader? If so, in What Ways? What Individuals Have Been Important Leaders in Your Life? Why?

Leadership: Searching for a Definition

Leadership: Searching for a Definition

Leadership: Searching for a Definition ¨ Powerful/influential ¨ Intelligent ¨ Mobilize people and resources to work toward a common goal ¨ Effectuate positive change ¨ People of high values/standards/ethics – role models ¨ Well known/famous – leave a legacy ¨ Operate with a mixture of formal and informal authority

But What Makes Them Leaders? ¨ Money? ¨ Pedigree/education? ¨ Beliefs? ¨ Actions? ¨ Personalities? ¨ Looks? ¨ Connections? ¨ Work ethic? ¨ Chance?

¨ "Leadership is a combination of strategy and character. If you must be without one, be without the strategy. " - Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf

Leadership: Searching for a Definition

Leadership: Searching for a Definition ¨ Powerful/influential ¨ Intelligent ¨ Mobilize people and resources to work toward a common goal ¨ Effectuate positive change ¨ Role models ¨ People of high values/standards/ethics ¨ Well known/famous ¨ Operate exclusively with formal authority, usually by coercion

What Other Adjectives Work? ¨ Demagogue ¨ Dictator ¨ Madman ¨ Control Freak ¨ Other…. ?

According to Webster… ¨ Leadership is the position, office, or term of a leader ¨ A leader is one who – Directs – Guides – Is in command – Has influence

That’s Sort of a Useless Working Definition! ¨ It ignores values/ethics ¨ It does not describe the work of leadership ¨ It does not distinguish between a shift worker at a restaurant and 4 -star general!

Key Facts About Leadership ¨ Leadership is inexorably tied to values, morality, and ethics

Key Facts About Leadership ¨ We shape our values early in life, and thereafter our values shape us ¨ Respect cannot be demanded, it must be earned – by giving it away.

Do You Buy This? ? ¨ Look at how long these people have been in power or the influence they have! ¨ Do you think they ultimately will succeed?

What Does History Tell Us?

Key Facts About Leadership ¨ Leadership seeks positive outcomes to benefit others – a servant viewpoint

¨ “We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give. " - Winston Churchill

Key Facts About Leadership ¨ Leadership is called forth by crisis and challenge and helps shape it, but is not produced by it

LIFE: Is Difficult!! LEADERSHIP: Is Difficult!! ¨ “This is a great truth, one of the greatest truths. Once we truly know that life is difficult – once we truly understand accept it – then life is no longer difficult. Because once it is accepted, the fact that life is difficult no longer matters. ” - Scott Peck (The Road Less Traveled)

What is our Response? ¨ “…[we] moan…about the enormity of [our] problems…as if life should be easy. [We] voice [our] belief…that [our] difficulties represent a unique kind of affliction. . . visited upon [our] families, tribe, class, nation, race, or species…and not on others. ” - Scott Peck (The Road Less Traveled)

A Dose of Reality ¨ More than 1 billion people live on less than $1 per day ¨ 6 million children under the age of five die each year from malnutrition ¨ More than 800 million people go to bed hungry every day; 300 million are children ¨ More than 40% of the world’s population does not have basic sanitation or access to clean water

The Good News ¨ …It is in this whole process of meeting and solving problems that life has its meaning. Problems call forth our courage and our wisdom; indeed, they create our courage and wisdom. ” - Scott Peck (The Road Less Traveled)

Leadership ¨ In a nutshell, that’s what leaders do – they solve problems ¨ But they do so in a way fundamentally different than what you might imagine

Two Words that Often are Confused: Leadership and Management ¨ Leadership and Management are very different, though some confuse them as being nearly synonymous ¨ Few people are effective leaders and managers

Leadership and Management ¨ Management – is about coping with complexity – brings order and consistency out of potential chaos – applies known solutions and strategies

“Leader” of a Baseball Team? ?

Leadership and Management ¨ Leadership – is about coping with or planning change, especially if it’s sudden

The Generals Managed Our Troops into Battle? ? ?

¨ "Management is efficiency in climbing the ladder of success; leadership determines whether the ladder is leaning against the right wall. " - Stephen R. Covey

¨ "Management is doing things right… Leadership is doing the right things. " - Peter Drucker

Leadership and Management: Parallel but Not Equal ¨ Management – Creating a plan – Defining steps – Establishing a structure – Allocating resources – Executing the plan – Controlling situations and solving problems

Leadership and Management: Parallel but Not Equal ¨ Leadership – Developing a vision and setting direction – Defining strategies – Aligning, motivating, and inspiring people – Testing reality – Delegating work

The Reality of Vision ¨ The crucial feature of visions is that they must serve the interests of the constituency

Important Facts ¨ Management controls people by pushing them in the right direction ¨ Leadership motivates people by drawing them in a way that satisfies the basic human needs for – achievement – recognition – self-esteem – a sense of belonging

Are You a Leader? ? ¨ The role of the leader is to take people on journeys where they’ve not been before – By definition, you don’t know how to get there!!! ¨ “Never walk the traveled path because it only leads you where the others have been” (Alexander Graham Bell) ¨ Leaders hate, and instinctively challenge, the status quo!

Are You a Leader? ? ¨ You know you’re a leader if you… – feel you can do things better, and know how to do them better, without offending those in authority – are comfortable being challenged – are comfortable with being under authority – are comfortable with crediting other people for things you helped accomplish ¨ How many of these fit you?

Major Tenants of Leadership ¨ Leadership involves coping with or producing useful change in response to challenges, problems or opportunities ¨ Leadership can be exercised with or without formal authority

Major Tenants of Leadership ¨ Leadership involves coping with or producing useful change in response to challenges, problems or opportunities ¨ Leadership can be exercised with or without formal authority

Producing Useful Change ¨ Problems -- when circumstances do not conform to the way we think things ought to be ¨ Two solutions – Apply a known technical fix (management) – Develop solutions that previously were unknown (leadership) – known as adaptive change – More on this a bit later

Examples ¨ Someone doesn’t show up for work

Examples ¨ Terrorism threat in the United States

Major Tenants of Leadership ¨ Leadership involves coping with or producing useful change in response to challenges, problems or opportunities ¨ Leadership can be exercised with or without formal authority

Leading With Formal Authority ¨ Conferred in exchange for protection, direction, conflict control ¨ Based on a set of expectations or a job description ¨ Essentially a formal contract – it can be revoked or walked away from ¨ Pros and cons – Breadth and completeness of information – Must operate within specific bounds – Must operate at a distance from the front lines

Leading With Formal Authority

Leading With Informal Authority ¨ Based upon trust, reputation, civility, admiration, creativity and availability ¨ It can never be revoked, though the trust relationship can be broken and the reputation damaged ¨ This is the most powerful type of authority – – – Can deviate from norms of decision making Can focus on hard issues Can get closer to the experiences of the stakeholders down in the trenches, where relationships are developed

Leading With Informal Authority

Is Leadership “A Part of Who You Are, ” or Can it be Learned?

The Key is Intelligence! ¨ Part I: Intellect – Intellectual capacity (IQ) – Technical expertise – Knowledge and experience

The Key is Intelligence! ¨ Part I: Intellect – Intellectual capacity (IQ) – Technical expertise – Knowledge and experience ¨ Part II: Emotions – 90% of the difference between outstanding and average leaders is due to emotional intelligence (EI) – It’s twice as important as IQ and technical expertise combined – It is THE differentiating factor in leadership

You’ve Experienced This! ¨ Have you been around people that don’t have a clue when they offend others? ¨ What instructors did you enjoy or value the most? – The really brilliant one who cared nothing about you individually? or … – The one who was really smart (can’t be a professor otherwise) but made an effort to learn about your plans and dreams?

¨ People are persuaded by reason, but moved by emotion; [the leader] must both persuade them and move them. " - Richard M. Nixon

Emotional Intelligence (EI) ¨ The capacity for recognizing our feelings and those of others; for motivating ourselves and others; for managing emotions in ourselves and in our relationships – #1 a: Understanding yourself (self-awareness) – #1 b: Managing yourself (self-regulation) – #2 a: Understanding others (empathy) – #2 b: Managing others (motivation, social skills)

Self-Awareness/Self-Perception ¨ This is a key aspect of being a leader ¨ The ability to recognize and understand your moods, emotions, and drives, as well as their effect on others – Self-confidence (but not arrogance) – Self-assessment – Self-deprecating sense of humor (rolling with the punches) ¨ What are my strengths and weaknesses?

Knowing Yourself ¨ Taking criticism – tough medicine to swallow, but usually always valuable

Knowing Yourself ¨ Giving criticism -- kindly? ¨ Leaders have to bring correction, but HOW it’s brought can make or literally break someone

Knowing Yourself ¨ Being aware of how people respond to you

Self-Regulation ¨ This is another key aspect of being a leader ¨ Self-regulation is the ability to manage your emotions and reactions – Creates an environment of trust, safety, and fairness – Discourages those around you from losing control or reacting impulsively ¨ Bad scenes stick in people’s minds ¨ Others can and should be understanding, but SELF-regulation -- is up to YOU!

Social Awareness/Skills ¨ Empathy – do you understand others and take an interest in their concerns? ¨ Are you concerned with serving the needs of others – do you put others ahead of yourself? ¨ Do you encourage others, inspire, and communicate well? ¨ Do you foster relationships?

Beware of Power! ¨ Power abusers over-value themselves and under-value or de-value others – The “I owe this to myself” syndrome ¨ Power abusers use people, often without realizing it ¨ Power abusers often don’t take the time to deal with the root cause of problems ¨ Power abusers often are blind to counsel because of their “positional ego”

Key Characteristics of Leaders ¨ A true leader is likely to be one who has no desire to lead, but is forced into a position of leadership by the press of the external situation. ¨ I believe it might be accepted as a fairly reliable rule of thumb that the man who is ambitious to lead is disqualified as a leader. (A. W. Tozer) ¨ The true leader will be as ready to follow as to lead, and when a wiser and more gifted man than himself appears, he will step aside.

As a Leader, You’re Going to Make Mistakes!! How to Deal With Them?

It’s a Fact of Life ¨ "I've missed over 9, 000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times I've been trusted to take the game-winning shot. . . and missed. I've failed over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed. " - Michael Jordan

What is Our Usual Response to Having Made a Mistake? ¨ Cover it up, quickly! – Totally a protection of our ego – We put the focus on ourselves rather than others

Being Human ¨ “Never let them see you sweat” ¨ This is the worst advice in the world ¨ Remember about acknowledging our strengths and weaknesses? ¨ Think how others will respond to your mistakes if you come across as perfect and full of infinite wisdom!

Being Human ¨ "It is necessary for us to learn from others' mistakes. You will not live long enough to make them all yourself. " -- Adm. Hyman G. Rickover

As a True Leader ¨ You WILL… – Disappoint – Receive unjust criticism – Be misunderstood, misquoted, mistreated – Be viewed as other than you really are – Be unappreciated

As a True Leader ¨ You WILL… – Receive incredible satisfaction – Make an impact on people – Not be forgotten

But You Have to PERSEVERE ¨ Life is difficult, leadership is difficult, and nothing will change that fact! ¨ One of the most important factors that define great leaders is perseverance

A Man I Personally Admire ¨ His brother died when he was 7 ¨ His mother died when he was 9 ¨ His fiancée died ¨ His eventual wife had 4 sons, only 1 of whom made it to adulthood ¨ He suffered deep depression and was hospitalized for a nervous breakdown ¨ He started two businesses and both failed ¨ He was defeated multiple times in runs for the state legislature, US Congress, and US Senate

But He Persevered….

The Takeaway Message? ¨ Had Lincoln lived an easier life, would he have become a great man? ¨ He accepted the difficulty of life and refused to let obstacles dissuade him ¨ He used them to build his character and impacted the world in profound ways ¨ That’s a hope for all of us as leaders

The Payoff of Leadership ¨ This is not about getting people to buy into your own ideas! ¨ It’s about teaching people to – Recognize and embrace their unique abilities and limitations – Relate effectively to people having different views – Deal with situations they’ve never faced and that have no known solutions – Work for a broader purpose while fulfilling their own specific goals and needs – Draw the best out of others by motivating and inspiring

Summary ¨ There are NO UNIMPORTANT people or positions ¨ Everyone is a leader to some extent because everyone has a set of followers ¨ Leadership isn’t a task but rather a way of life! ¨ Find out what you’re good at both technically and emotionally ¨ Walk in those things and try to shore up other weaknesses ¨ History may not recognize you as a “leader, ” but you’ll be a history-maker if you mobilize people to do something that’s socially useful

One Piece of Advice… ¨ Don’t waste your time looking around to see what the world needs. Rather, look inside to see what makes you come alive, and do those things…for the world needs people who are alive, walking in their passions.