The Tribe Gathering

“The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson

There are two distinct sides to leadership and how you live it. You are either helping others by progressing them and their ability to lead, or you’re suppressing them, their growth, and their future leadership. This is obvious in theory, but what about practically? What do these actions look like in the workplace?

Suppressing Leadership

It’s simple. The objective of stifling and suppressive leadership is to maintain control by ensuring blanket conformity. Here are the forms it can take:

• Poor communication a.k.a withholding information

• Micromanaging

• Replacing budding leaders with conformity

Withholding Information

Do you work for someone who is a poor communicator? This is a manner in which information is withheld. Are your organization’s expectations and values made known? If not, then what does your leader and your organization stand for? How can you have targets and objectives without a foundation and vision? SPOILER!! You can’t. Is communication, feedback, and questioning allowed to move up the chain? If not, then you don’t have a line of communication. You have unquestionable directives.

Micromanagers

Aren’t they the worst!

Employee: Hey I have a great idea!

Micromanager: no

Employee: But no one is doing it and it has tremendous potential for our organization! Can we analyze it and open a discussion?

Micromanager: NO, but in all caps.

Micromanagers have all the ideas and create all the systems. Free thought is not allowed. Ground-breaking ideas…. not allowed. Just go along to get along and accept the mediocrity.

Replacing Budding Leaders with Conformity

Are you stuck in an organization that replaces great up and coming leaders with outside sources that meet the following criteria

• “Good ol’ boy” hires

• Less experienced hires

• “Yes man” hires and promotions

• Promoting employees with no creativity or vision

• “Silencing” new ideas by diminishing the value of emerging leaders (symptom of micromanaging) ** In the full episode of the same title we dive deeper into this particular symptom

If so, your leader is filling their circle with people that they KNOW will simply conform to what they decide.

PROGRESSING LEADERSHIP

Leaders who support their emerging leaders take the following steps to do so:

• Acknowledge

• Empower

• Guide to realization

• Share ownership

• Hold accountable

• Get out of the way & let them grow

If you’d like a copy of a tool I use to guide my emerging leaders to realization of their abilities you can subscribe to this newsletter and then email me at [email protected]

Catch them being GREAT!

Acknowledgement of an emerging leader’s role and abilities drives confidence and creativity through the roof, as well as building the confidence of others around them that they can be an effective leader.

Level Up

Empower your emerging leaders by raising the stakes in what you ask them to do and who they are for your organization. BUT, make sure the “dose” you give them is something they’re ready for. Failure is opportunity for growth, just don’t set them up for it inadvertently.

Leadership Inventory

Meet with your growing leaders periodically and gauge how they’re managing their role and responsibilities. How is it affecting them in their personal life? Then show them the great things they’ve done and reinforce the impact. Help them realize the path they’ve been on and how they’ve grown.

We / Ours

Share ownership of responsibility with your emerging leaders. They need “skin in the game” if you want to see their full potential. This is also a means to help them hold themselves accountable and for you to walk beside them in that. When they make a mistake. WE will be better. When they knock a project out of park, that’s OUR success.

On Your Left!

Eventually, if you’ve nurtured your growing leaders and helped them see the potential they have and can further develop, you’ll need to get out of their way and let them take the respective reigns. Let them drive the culture of your organization and you’ll see explosive growth from others. Move aside, grab some popcorn, and cheer the loudest!

Catch full episodes of The Tribe Has Spoke at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC44EvGGHCnz6OMAWs92S09w