How can you master the discipline of leadership?
It’s elementary. Engineers study engineering to become engineers. Historians study history to become historians. Biologists study biology to become biologists. English majors study English to become Englishmen.
[Pause for laughter.]
We call these areas of study “disciplines,” and it is no different with leadership.
Perhaps you have heard it said that leaders are just born or that leaders are forged in moment of crisis. There is a bit of truth in those beliefs but the vast majority of leaders and every single truly great leader became who they are by developing an understanding of leadership. (Note that I am not referring to bosses here.) Therefore leadership is a discipline, and like all disciplines you must study, practice, evaluate, and revise your views of leadership if you are to be great.
For many years I proudly served on the board of a group called ACAD. This fantastic national organization, which is approaching its 80th anniversary, supports university deans and other academic administrators, people who all started as professors and found themselves in management positions. The members of ACAD devote themselves to the principle that, while learned and accomplished in their individual academic fields, academic administrators must master a new discipline: leadership. Sadly, this seems a minority view among deans outside of ACAD.
So, in the spirit of ACAD, let’s consider what goes into mastering the discipline of leadership in any field.
Great Leaders Study
One thing that all great leaders have in common is that they are students of leadership. Someone once said that “leaders are readers,” and that is certainly the case. Study can come in a variety of forms, though. Reading about leadership from a range of perspectives is excellent, but just carefully observing the performance of great leaders and even poor leaders can be illuminating and often revelatory. Attending talks or watching videos or participating in courses by leadership experts can be powerful as well.
But beware. Many so-called experts, including coaches and consultants like me, will present one-size-fits-all models of leadership development. Avoid them. The problem is not that what they offer is necessarily wrong but that it is misleadingly inadequate.
The basics of leadership, though, are always present and serve as a foundation for great leadership.
You must practice human decency, which is a skill to be learned, honed, and used. Practicing human decency means living your values at all times. It is a matter of integrity. If you need a shortcut to decency, here it is: don’t be a jerk.
You must regularly and vigorously stuff your ego in a sack and throw it in the river. I just cannot emphasize this enough. Don’t worry. It won’t drown, but there are few things as humbling as a soggy ego.
You must nurture a spirit of ongoing inquiry, which — conveniently — is precisely what I am describing in this essay.
I am not saying that if you have these three elements you will instantly become a great leader anymore than building a solid foundation means you now have a lovely house. I am saying that you cannot be a great leader without them.
And as with any discipline, the learning is ongoing. There is no rest for the curious leader.
Great Leaders Practice
How do you get to Carnegie Hall?
To practice means to use what you have learned as you continue to learn it. In fact, the practice of leadership is just an extension of learning leadership.
Here is a truth that bears repeating: perfection is a lie. If you want to be perfect, you cannot be a great leader. Leaders seek constant self-improvement but recognize that the pursuit of perfection is an effort in perpetual failure, disappointment, and frustration — three industrial-grade emotional acids that will then eat away at your foundation of decency, egolessness, and inquiry.
Also, because great leaders have integrity, they practice leadership all the time. The values of leadership are not something you apply here and not there. Great leaders are great leaders constantly.
Great Leaders Evaluate
If you have expertise in a field, you know you must continually test and evaluate your skills in order to achieve and retain your mastery. This evaluation must be rigorous and honest. You cannot be content to say, “I have achieved my goal, so now I can rest.”
The same is true of mastering the discipline of leadership. Great leaders revisit their assumptions and assess their actions. They internalize questions such as,
How sound is my understanding of leadership?
Why do I practice leadership as I do?
Is my practice of leadership consistent with my understanding of leadership?
What are the results of my leadership?
What can I do to be a better leader?
And they check with others — their people, peers, and superiors — by asking the same questions.
Identifying and accepting candid answers to these questions can be hard on the ego, but challenging yourself in your discipline is the only way to achieve and retain mastery. Plus, since you already regularly toss your ego in the river, it will be that much easier.
Great Leaders Revise
Once you have reevaluated your expertise in a discipline, you must then apply what you have discovered. Often this will mean revising your understanding and practice of that discipline, which can be both powerful and humbling. Sometimes revision may mean throwing out an old model altogether because is it outdated, circumstances have changed, or you were wrong all along.
Great leaders recognize and own their mistakes, but that is not enough. They also learn from them and act to prevent future error. And whatever you do, don’t be one of those bosses who admits a mistake and then expects others to adjust to their flaws. It’s loathsome.
Great Leaders Close the Loop
Have you noticed that each of these steps is really just a piece of a sound learning process? Any rigorous pursuit of in-depth learning will involve understanding new material, putting it into practice, evaluating the results, and then making revisions to your understanding. These revisions become your new understanding and you start all over again:
Learn. Practice. Evaluate. Revise. Repeat.
You can think of the process as a loop and the final action — starting over — as closing the loop. I doubt I will surprise you here when I say that it is the same with the discipline of leadership:
Learn. Practice. Evaluate. Revise. Close the Loop.
So, if you are a leader of integrity or want to become such a leader, you deserve to be disciplined, to approach leadership as you would any other area of study you want to master. Great leaders master their field by becoming disciplined leaders. Anything less is just flaccid bossing.
How do you develop your leadership potential? How do you close the loop?
You can master the discipline of great leadership, and I can help. Click below for your free consultation and gift.
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You Deserve to Be Disciplined