Ever notice that when times are bad there seems to be a universal game plan for fixing things? No! Well let me give you two words: Better Leadership. We hear it all the time. If you don’t believe me, just search for the word leadership on Google news. General Motors just “shook up” its executive leadership, AGAIN! A new candidate for Iowa Governor is claiming there isn’t a financial crisis in that state, but a “leadership vacuum”. A weaker than expected showing by Russian Athletes at the Vancouver Olympics is being blamed on “Russian leaders”. Is a lack of leadership really the cause for such problems? Hard to say, but one thing is for sure. All of these stories essentially scream the same thing; better leadership can fix the problem.
The reality is that individual leaders do not always have control over the variables that lead to success or failure. Often there are internal and external environmental factors that are beyond anyone’s control. The current financial crisis in this country is a good example of the complexity associated with some problems. It also shows us how no single person can truly be responsible for collective failure. Nevertheless, it is our natural instinct to place blame and like it or not, the price of leadership is accountability. It was the great philosopher Hopper who told Princess Atta, “First rule of leadership: everything is your fault.”
That hardly seems fair, but there is certainly an element of truth to the statement. So what can leaders do to better position themselves for success? Hershey and Blanchard’s Situational Leadership model leads us to believe that success may be tied to flexibility. Using the same approach to every situation is like putting a square peg into a round hole; it just doesn’t work. Depending upon the complexity of the tasks and the maturity of the people we are leading, we may need to adjust our leadership style. Sometimes we can simply delegate and move on, but at other times we need to direct people’s actions or coach them. Good leaders seem to intuitively know how to evaluate situations and people to determine the best approach.
It is unlikely that a leadership model could have saved us from a national financial crisis, but flexibility certainly worked for Flick when his ant buddies couldn’t adapt. Remember, as a leader you are ultimately responsible for the success or failure of the group. Heed Hopper’s words and don’t let yourself get squished by inflexibility.
Leadership Advice 