Steven Demaio wrote and great post, “Leading When You Don’t Have Formal Authority”, recognising that today, leadership is more about influence, than control. Leaders are finding that influence is required more and more for effective leadership. Leading without authority is the ultimate test of your leadership, ask anyone who has worked in or been involved in, leading a non-profit organisation!
Steven proposes leveraging the following three principles to increase the likelihood of success, when leading without authority.
- Let your enthusiasm for the work be contagious. “Every job, project, and activity has unique fundamentals that, when respected, naturally enhance the endeavor. Engineers who truly revere math and physics, for example, tend not only to build better things but also to motivate other people (whom they often don’t manage) with their love of the discipline… if what really drives you is the core of the challenge itself — and you let other people see that — most of them will be drawn toward your goal organically.”
- Demonstrate excellence without being cocky or solicitous of approval. “Bearing the burden of someone else’s ego is always a turn-off, whether the ego is already big or in need of puffing up. When an ego-driven person is your direct manager, you just hold your nose and do your best to perform in spite of the stench… Needy leaders are rarely inspiring.”
- Don’t be overinvested in outcomes. “Leaders who don’t have formal authority come under suspicion when they act more like a team captain than a curious scientist. Both know that outcomes matter, but the scientist subordinates the importance of outcomes as she leads quietly, whereas the captain — even one who isn’t driven by ego — tends to foreground them…”
Being involved in leading in a non-profit organisation, I have found three principles are really helpful. Passion, humility and adaptability are critical characteristics for influencing and leading in times when you have no formal authority.
Technorati Tags: Passion, Leadership, Authority, Power, Management, Non-Profit, Business, Humility, Adaptability
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If you havent, you should read the influencer – The power to change everything by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, David Maxfield, Ron McMillan and Al Switzler.
It is a great book, that covers this topic. Written by a team that have been researching for years.
I have just read it and I must strongly recommend it if you like the topic of this post. You’ll find it at Amazon.
Wow Frode, you read my mind. I actually just did a book review on Influencer and I’ll be putting it up on my site this coming Wednesday.
Anyways, I think that he makes some great points here. However, even all volunteer organizations sometimes need a “stick” or method of control. Now, don’t get me wrong, I am in no way advocating leading through tyranny. What I am saying though is that sometimes people need to be held accountable for their actions.
So, while he makes some great points I’d have to say that any leader, no matter the organizational setting, needs to have “some” method of control…even if its kept in the back pocket. Yes, it is far better to lead without it, but sometimes it must be used for the good of the organization as a whole. They actually make this point in Influencer.
v/r,
Kyle
This was very good information. thanks i found it very useful and thought provoking.
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