White collar worker discuss the details of the project
In my experience working with entrepreneurs and business leaders, I see that recent events and culture changes have changed effective business leadership from the top-down, unilateral, single-focus model to the collaborative servant model. Team members today expect and demand that their leaders be supportive, generous, and show respect for individual needs and values.
If you haven’t already made the transition to today’s leadership model, I offer the following principles from my own insights, and key elements presented in a new book, “The Generous Leader,” by Joe Davis, managing director and senior partner at Boston Consulting Group.
He argues, and I agree, that generosity, inclusion, and authenticity are now the most important traits for current and aspiring leaders to cultivate. Here is my net of seven essential elements that we both describe as requirements for every leader:
1. Connect personally to build deep connections. Connecting personally requires communicating, listening, and striving to understand what really matters to connections. Be willing to share who you are and show your heart to build trust and loyalty. This motivates others to collaborate and reveals the deeper challenges facing your team.
2. Stay sincerely curious about another’s perspective. This requires being open and active, setting aside your own experiences and beliefs, to really hear another way of being and another person’s view of the world. Consider that you don’t know what you don’t know. Combine that insight with your own to choose the best possible path forward.
3. Be inclusive to invite collaboration and show respect. This means including the voices of team members at more junior levels with relevant expertise, those in related organizations, and those from diverse backgrounds and life experiences. Recognize value by giving others the space to run and celebrating publicly their every success.
4. Take chances to make chances for others. Be willing to stretch to make opportunities available to others, rather than retreating or becoming defensive, as the going gets tough. Remember that growth is always uncomfortable, and we often learn more from our mistakes versus successes. In all cases, show your support as an ally rather than a critic.
5. Validate strengths and identify growth feedback. Leveraging team member strengths for professional growth is no different from, and can actually be far more effective than, only focusing on people’s shortcomings. You also need to be clear on where they need to develop. The best feedback is delivered in real time rather than a wait for annual reviews.
6. Make small acts of acknowledgment important moments. Small gestures including greeting people and thanking them, are meaningful as affirmation of a human connection. Recognizing team members can be time consuming, so establishing a clear process is critical. Send thank-you notes often and acknowledge every person in your meetings.
7. Be emotionally accessible with authenticity and vulnerability. The era of command-and-control leaders is gone. Don’t be afraid to share your feelings and emotions, with honesty and transparency, and be humble enough to admit “I do not know.” When you share yourself, it helps to start small and make it safe for others to do the same.
In my experience, the challenge for many leaders is getting started on the new model. Don’t expect it to happen overnight, so take small steps, and look for growth in your own abilities, as well as the growing performance and connection with your team members. It may help to select a new project or work challenge to limit your focus.
As you progress in your leadership connections with your team at work, I’m confident that you will also see the value it brings in relationships with outside volunteer roles, friends, and your family life. We all need more leadership in our lives with generosity, integrity, compassion, and trust to make this world a better place.
