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Leadership in the Workplace: Caring and Staying Grounded
In previous articles I wrote about responsibility and authority; creating an environment where initiative can be nurtured; and other important functions that good leaders do all of the time. In this article, I want to discuss two important characteristics of a good leader, Caring and Staying Grounded.
A guy who has been reading my leadership column called me the other day and told me that he served in Viet-Nam, and each day he wrote his fiancée who later became his wife. He told me that he finally had the courage to re-read the letters that he had sent over 45years ago. (Note: his wife has passed). He asked if I would read some of them and possibly suggest what he could to do to share his stories about his unit and the soldiers he led. He was assigned to the 101st Airborne Division (1966-1967) and served as a platoon leader, company executive officer and later as a company commander. I told him I would be honored to read some of them and provide my thoughts on what he should do. He came by my house and dropped off a shoe box containing the letters. Each letter was date organized which made my reading and following his story much easier. After reading more than 30 letters, I was awed about what he was writing to his lady and the compassion and caring he so eloquently wrote. As one example: “29 December 1966 (Kontom, RVN)...Dear Bonnie, Well, today our company got into a big firefight and right now I feel like shooting myself for being back in the rear. I know that my current job is be responsible for resupply and take care of the company's personal problems but I don't like it at all. I am going back out tomorrow and tell Captain Molleny that I don't want my job (Executive Officer) and that I want to be a platoon leader”. In subsequent letters, he repeatedly wrote about his unit, his soldiers and the strong feelings he had toward them. He also told of his strong commitment to being a good soldier and that to serve was an honor. He understood the risks associated with being a line officer in a very dangerous country, and told his sweet heart of his feelings.
By writing about this officer's letters I, hopefully, have given the reader an example of “caring”. He cared and I am sure that his soldiers appreciated and respected him more for what he was and what he was doing for them. In the hundreds of letters, he told their story!
Staying grounded is the second point I want to make. It is too common for a person who gets appointed, elected or promoted to a position of leadership and they lose track of who they are. They became “what” they believe they are and that often conflicts with the role of leadership. I personally fell into this trap. I had just been promoted to Brigadier General and was visiting Fort Bragg to discuss with senior leaders the changes we should make in soldier equipment (I was responsible for all things relating to the soldier: clothing, food, tents, generators, etc.). While there I was invited to visit a unit commanded by one my previous Lieutenants (now a Lt. Colonel). I accepted and we flew by helicopter to his battalion field location. He was anxious to show me his units and the first happened to be a field bakery. We landed near the bakery and standing near the entrance of the bakery tent was a young female Private. While I was listening to the Colonel tell me about the bakery unit, I noticed that she was watching me intently. Finally, I walked over to where she was standing and asked her if I could help or answer any question. She replied “Why do you wear that belt?” (Note: General Officers are issued a thick black leather belt with an 18-karat gold-plated buckle with an imprint of an eagle)
I told her “I wear it because I am a General”. She asked again “Why?” I thought about it for a few seconds and said “Well, it’s to speed up promotions during wartime. When we wear it and the enemy sees it, they know it is a General and they shoot him. Thus, another officer can be considered and promoted.” She liked that answer and nodded her head. My young Lt. Colonel could not contain his laughter.
My point is that I was wearing the belt not because I was a general but because I was being a “what”. I seldom wore that belt again except for ceremonial events. A good leader must stay grounded and understand what got him/her promoted was the “whys” that separated themselves from others of equal qualifications.
Caring and being true to one's self will also create the type of workplace that ensures success. Take off the belt!
Leadership in the Workplace – The Umbrella Theory
In previous articles, I discussed creating a nurturing environment to promote individual initiative and productivity. I also discussed caring and knowing who you are equally important to being a leader.
How often have you heard your boss say “The big boss wants all of you to stop taking three breaks” or “Hey, it is not my policy but it is what they want” and finally “He created this mess and I am not responsible for the problems I inherited”? I think most of you would nod your head that you have heard similar statements from your boss. This is not leadership but a clear sign that the person needs some leadership training. To correct not accepting responsibility is applying what I call “the umbrella theory”. Under this concept, the leader shields his people/employees from these types of comments. He/She accepts the responsibility for doing what the boss wants or correcting problems without passing blame. Accepting responsibility is in my opinion one of the most important traits that a leader must have to be effective.
The umbrella theory also includes other important “ribs”. Communicating and really listening, compassion and caring, leading by example, praising, mediating and correcting bad performance.
While it is important to communicate at the level of the listener it is equally important to be honest in your approach. Listening, for most of us, is often difficult, Many of us know people who are always in the send mode and rarely listen to what we are saying. A true leader listens intently to what is being said and where to appropriately take action to correct a wrong or implement a recommended action. In Wednesday's (August 24) Savannah Morning Newspaper- Sport Section, there was an interesting column about the Atlanta Falcon’s head coach approach to listing to his players. Coach Mike Smith uses “Over -30 Club” where he meets with his senior players on a regular basis. He has created an open line of communication from head coach to the locker room. Abraham, an All Pro Bowl defense end stated “He listens to everything we're saying”. Abraham further stated “without his coach's management style, he doubts the Falcons have gone 33-15 in Smith's tenure”.
I wrote about caring for your people and the impact of demonstrating that you care for them as individuals and not just as employees. Showing compassion is about taking caring to another level of treating people. I can care about how I treat my people but by showing individual compassion when it is appropriate is another positive leadership technique.
I wrote in my first article about a three-star general who stated “find someone who is doing something right and make a big deal of it”. I firmly believe you cannot tell people often enough how great they are and how much you appreciate their contributions. More and more organizations are finally figuring out that “praising” works and they are showing an increase in productivity and an improvement in their reputation as a good place to work. An additional benefit is that company gets higher marks for its friendly and effective customer service function.
Mediating is a skill that requires training and experience. When dealing with people from different backgrounds, experiences and educational opportunities, it requires you to not make a hasty decision, listen to both sides, do your homework and make the best decision that benefits the organization. The reader might be thinking “wait a minute, aren't you trying to find one person right and other wrong?” My answer? Not necessarily, because as a leader you are responsible to the organization. While you care about each employee's concerns, the bottom line is that organization must win. Often, you can make a minor change to a company policy or procedure that meets the demands of all parties.
Correcting bad behavior is a responsibility of a good leader. Tolerating poor performance or bad conduct cannot be condoned in any organization; however, a leader will again do the “home work” to determine what is causing this type of behavior. If it’s the work environment, make the necessary changes. If it’s procedures, policies or “unwritten” rules, correct these. If it’s clearly the employee, you have options (1) work with the individual to correct his/her behavior or (2) terminate the employee. I have learned in 50 years of leading people that there are those, that no matter what you do, who will not change: accept this and move on.
Leading is fun and even on a rainy day, you still have your umbrella to shield you and your people. Stay dry!
