By Stephen Lundin, PhD
In my travels with FISH!™ I have visited dozens of countries and hundreds of companies as I logged almost three million miles. The travel was exhausting but the visits were exhilarating. At every stop, and there were over a thousand, someone would come up to me after the talk and say, “Let me tell you what we are doing with your ideas.” And they would describe an application that I had not envisioned. Each example provoked my thinking and added to the body of knowledge about great workplaces and how they are created and sustained.
Over time the number of lessons grew and last year I gave my first talk based on these lessons. I have given the talk four times now in Singapore, Mumbai, Sydney and most recently, in Ft. Lauderdale. At the Ft. Lauderdale talk to the local HR Organization I committed to making the ideas available on the web and this is the result. I will regularly be adding lessons and I look forward to having a dialogue with you about some of the simplicity inside the complexity we call organization.
I don’t know how many lessons there will be but the list I have will keep me busy for quite a while. My goal will be to describe one or two lessons every couple of weeks until they are all fully explored. If they interest you check back here every two weeks and see what has transpired. The first two lessons are described below and I have also provided the titles to future lessons. Enjoy and don’t be a stranger.
Lesson One: The Three Faces of Leadership
Each of the faces of leadership described below has a place and a time. Two of the faces are familiar to any student of business or any manager. But only one of the faces maximizes the natural energy needed for innovation and it is not well known. That is, except for CAT Wranglers.
The first face of leadership focuses on directing. It is an efficient form of leadership and is described using words like control, alignment, incentives, overcoming resistance, team play and winning one for the “gipper”. It can be kind, but it is one directional. The leader tells the followers what to do and uses a variety of tools to assure they do what they are told. The result is compliance.
The second face of leadership focuses on participation. It takes more time up front than the first face because it requires interaction with followers. Words like feedback, push back, involvement and buy in are used frequently. The leader lets the followers have a say in a decision and then announces the course of action. The result of this form of leadership is cooperation.
The third face of leadership focuses on invitation. Followers are treated like volunteers and choose their degree of involvement. Words like trust, authenticity, inspiration and vulnerability are common. The leader invites the follower to engage in a conversation about what is being created together with life energy. The leader models that which she is hoping to inspire in the followers. The result of this form of leadership is collaboration and commitment. This is the home of the CAT Wrangler who knows that innovation is voluntary and that natural energy is the fuel.
