Go to any book store in America and chances are you will find a large business section filled with books on leadership giving advice on how to lead in the business world, achieve objectives, and motivate employees. There seems to be no shortage of ideas and concepts on this subject and by the fact that there are new releases almost every month in this genre, one has to assume that the populace has not found the secret formula for leadership success and continues to yearn for that proverbial “fountain of knowledge” on this subject.
An aspect of my job that I enjoy greatly is reviewing leadership books that are recommended by Orrin Woodward or that are sent to our office by publishing companies as a new release hits the market. One such book I that recently reviewed is You Don’t Need A Title To Be A Leader by Mark Sanborn. I was really amazed at how this book encapsulates many of the leadership principles that have been taught by Orrin Woodard at our events across the nation. At 104 pages it is a quick read but it contains great commentary on every page.
What Mark says resonates with me as I have found that far too often people are preoccupied with title, thinking that this bequeaths some type of magical leadership elixir that allows them to lead people and accomplish tasks. Nothing could be further from the truth. I have known people who had so called “leadership titles” but at the end of the day they could no more lead their people than they could turn water into wine. Titles are meaningless, influence is everything.
For example, in the military a leader may have a title which gives him or her “positional” leadership which is leadership based on rank or title. Their subordinates do not have any choice but to follow and obey orders. Therefore a bad leader can command the actions of their troops but that does not mean they will win their hearts and minds. By controlling someone’s actions you can control the sweat of their brow but not having their heart and mind, you lose the greatest productivity from that person. Given the chance, those under that type of dictatorial leadership style will not follow you, therefore you really are not leading.
In the business world the leadership dynamic becomes more complex as people have choices, they can follow you or they can quit. Rule with “positional” leadership only and a heavy hand and most likely you will find that you are leading yourself on a long walk with no one following. However, if you lead with influence and create an environment of respect and collaboration, you will not only find yourself leading a highly motivated group of people working hard to achieve objectives but they will be following your leadership with their heart and mind. That is true leadership!
Mark Sanborn says it best when he says “Despite popular myth, leaders – whether titled or untitled- aren’t born. They learn how to lead. The real test is: If you had no title or ability to reward or penalize others could you still get them to follow you?” He goes on to state that, “In today’s world, much is made of a person’s title. Yet little actual power exists in a title alone…..The bottom line is influence and inspiration comes from the person, not the position.”
I have always admired how Orrin Woodward leads with integrity and influence and does not rely on positional authority. His mastery of this concept is amazing. It should come as no surprise that he has been teaching these principles and leading by example as he has conducted business around the country. The Team is first and foremost a leadership development company and he continues to set the pace. Everything rises and falls on leadership and the success of any business plan is determined by the leaders leading the charge. Therefore, the meteoric rise of our company is due in large part to Orrin Woodward and the leaders he has helped develop over the years.
Another book that came highly recommended from Orrin is Primal Leadership and I will discuss this in my next post. I highly encourage you to pick up a copy of book by Daniel Goldeman, Richard Boyatzis and Annie McKee. The authors give compelling insight into the emotional aspect of leadership. They state, “At its root, then, the primal job of leadership is emotional….great leadership works through emotions…no matter what leaders set out to do – whether it’s creating strategy or mobilizing teams to action – their success depends on how they do it….driving the collective emotions in a positive direction and clearing the smog created by toxic emotions.” This is an incredible book and one that I believe should be in the library of every leader.
