In the "About The Leadership Challenge" section of this website you will find a brief description of The Five Practices Model. Here you will find more in-depth discussions of The Five Practices, updated every month with a new, lively point-of-view.

New: June 2008: Curiosity: What's out there? Who's in here? by Peter Alduino

The Five Practices
By Craig Haptonstall, February 2008
By Beth High, November 2007
By Beth High, June 2006
By Barry Posner, March 2008
By Charles St. John, September 2006

Model the Way
By Peter Alduino, January 2006

Inspire a Shared Vision
By Steve Coats, May 2008
By Blair Forlaw, May 2007
By Craig Haptonstall, June 2007
By Michael Neiss, April 2008
By Michael Neiss, February 2006
By Valarie Willis, May 2006

Challenge the Process
By Dan Mulhern, November 2005
By Fine Points Professionals, October 2007
By Renee Harness, January 2007
Part I By Steve Coats, March 2007
Part II By Steve Coats, April 2007

Enable Others to Act
By Charles St. John, March 2006
By Dick Heller, July 2006
By Robert Thompson, April 2006

Encouraging the Heart
by Kim Chesky, July 2007
By Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner, December 2005
By Renee Harness, January 2007

Leadership Reflections
Leadership: An Affair of the Heart by Steve Houchin, September 2007

Other Thoughts on the Model
A Sustainable Leadership Challenge by Daren Blonski, November 2006
Credibility & Leadership: Reflections on the Nigerian Elections by Richard Obire, August 2007
Curiosity: What's out there? Who's in here? by Peter Alduino, June 2008
Loving Critics: The Importance of Feedback, January 2008
Me and My LPI by Sharon Landes, February 2007
Small Wins by Lisa Shannon, October 2006
The Leadership Challenge® launches in China, December 2006

June 2008: Curiosity: What's out there? Who's in here?

If you have seen the reruns for the 1970's television detective series Columbo, or the subsequent made-for-TV movies, you'll remember that oftentimes just as frumpy, disheveled Lt. Columbo was finishing a conversation with a suspect and on his way out the door, he would invariably pause, put his index finger up to his forehead, turn back to the suspect, point his finger, and say, "Oh, by the way," and ask one last question. And it was the answers to those final oh-by-the-way questions that, when woven together, would ultimately help him solve the case.

Curiosity is our determined internal sleuth that regularly seeks out clues, hints and data to satisfy the huge appetite in each one of us that has little taste for stasis or status quo, but prefers instead a plate with generous helpings of answers to our whos, whats, whens, wheres, whys, hows, and I-wonder-ifs!

Even a casual glance around our offices or our homes provides overwhelming evidence of our insatiable curiosity. Substantial sectors of our global economy are designed, dedicated, and depend on creating and supporting technologies that feed our hunger for inquiries and answers, our need-to-know, 24/7/365.

Individually, we spend enormous quantities of time typing queries into search engines, finding out the latest news on our web-enabled PDA, and keeping current by cell phone.

In our various roles as leader-at work, at school, in our communities, even at home-we experiment, take risks, listen to diverse points of view, ask "what can we learn," when things do not go as expected, and search outside the formal boundaries of our organization for innovative ways to improve what we do.

The data suggests that our curiosity is overwhelmingly focused on uncovering the answers to what is "out there."

But what about what is "in here?"

When was the last time you allowed yourself the time and the space to be curious about you? When did you last apply the same energy and determination with which you pursue answers to what is "out there" to the questions about what is "in here": Who am I? What do I stand for? What do I fundamentally believe about the meaning of our work, and the direction in which we are headed?

If your honest answer to the question is something along the lines: "I don't do this, or at least not very much," or "I'm not sure," or "I've got a vague idea," or "I'd like to find out more," you are in good company.

And that is why we devote the entire first day of the two-day The Leadership Challenge® Workshop to an exploration of leader. Leadership is, first and foremost, an internal exploration of who you are. With that foundation, we can then examine and fine-tune what you do.

The first of the three prerequisites for a meaningful exploration of leadership is that you be curious—curious not about what is "out there," but curious about who is "in here."

©Peter Alduino

Peter Alduino is President and Founder of Bridge Group Communications, LLC, a San Francisco Bay-Area based leadership-consulting practice providing comprehensive leadership development seminars. Author of The Citizen Leader™ Seminars, and a Master Facilitator for The Leadership Challenge® Workshop, he can be reached at peter@bridgegroup.com.

May 2008: Inspire a Shared Vision by Steve Coats

How important is Inspiring?

Based on over twenty years of survey research, Kouzes and Posner have shown that there are four characteristics which people most consistently look for in the leaders they admire: honesty, competence, inspiring, and forward-looking.

Over the years I have shared these findings with thousands of aspiring leaders. And there is seldom, if ever, dissenting points of view about this ranking. Many may try to make the case that one of their personal favorites should be high on the list—be it supportive, fair-minded, or whatever. But, in the end, they recognize and concur that these four attributes are the most important characteristics of leadership.

On many occasions, I also have taken these findings a step further. In a completely unscientific fashion, I have asked people to rate themselves on how they believe they are doing in each of these four areas. For example, on a scale of 1 to 10, I ask participants to respond to questions such as, "How honest are you?," How competent?," and so forth.

How do you think people responded? Which do you think they typically rated the highest or lowest? Is there a wide spread between the two? What would your response look like?

The results I've seen form a fairly predictable pattern. The business people I predominately have worked with tend to rate themselves very high in honesty and competence, and much lower in forward-looking and inspiring (generally in that order). When asked directly, very few view themselves as inspiring and, in fact, many readily ante up evidence about how "uninspiring" they are. For some reason, they do not seem to be too concerned. It is as if being considered inspiring would be nice, but it is not anything to lose sleep over. They even argue that not everyone is destined to be a John Kennedy or a Martin Luther King.

I might add that they do not seem so cavalier about honesty and competence. And even though many do not rate themselves very high in forward-looking, they seem to accept that it is, indeed, essential for leaders. For some reason, however, inspiring is usually not viewed in the same light. Could these leaders be attempting to minimize a weakness they don't believe they can strengthen? Or is their perspective actually correct?

Remember that nearly 70% of all respondents to the Characteristics of Admired Leaders survey have indicated that inspiring is an attribute they most admire in a leader. Ironically, most of these self-admitted, non-inspiring businesspeople selected it as well.

So is Inspiring, as a key characteristic of leadership, really important? The answer may come from looking no further than Senator Barack Obama. Here is an individual who in mid-2007 (just 18 months before the Presidential election), was given little to no chance of being elected President of the United States, especially given the prominent position of his opponent, Senator Hillary Clinton. Nine months later, he was the front-runner. And if there has been one word used most frequently to explain his unexpected and perhaps miraculous rise, that word would be inspiring. In many people's eyes Barack Obama is inspiring - and that attribute, above the rest, is differentiating him from the pack and helping him in his run for the White House.

Through March 2008, Senator Clinton's attempts to sway voters in her direction by focusing on the issue of competence have yet to be proven successful. So, is competence important for leaders? You bet. But at least in the 2008 Democratic primary contest, so is inspiring.

No leader of a company or a country can be a one-trick pony. If Senator Obama is perceived to lack honesty, competence, and vision, his inspiring presence will not be nearly enough for him to win. But it will likely be "the difference" if the other attributes are not in question.

As we watch with interest how this all unfolds, there are a few key lessons to be learned. The first is that it is clear that a leader cannot discount the importance of being perceived as inspiring. People want to be inspired and energized about the future, and know that their leaders really care. These are the leaders they will more readily choose to follow. This means that those considered inspiring will have a leg up as leaders over those who are not. So do not overlook or minimize the importance of this attribute, just because it is not one of your strong suits. You will grow in your effectiveness as you work to make it a strength.

The other lesson is also very important and could be the subject of another article. Being inspiring is much more than simply being a gifted speaker. Having a golden tongue certainly is an asset, especially if you are running for public office. But it is not the only criteria for being inspiring. Funny thing, when you ask people to think about great speakers, they are quick to point out some well known names (including Kennedy and King). One name that never makes this list is Mother Theresa yet she is almost always at the top of the list of the most inspiring people. (And I am sure you can cite a number of other examples as well.) Perhaps we should give some thought as to why.

If being genuinely inspiring is not simply great oratory skills, then what else is it?

Examining this leadership characteristic from that perspective will reveal a variety of new options, beyond public speaking, which you can pursue in becoming more inspiring yourself. And that will serve you well on your leadership journey.

One of the leading authorities on The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership®, Steve Coats has been involved with The Leadership Challenge for over 20 years. A managing partner and co-owner of International Leadership Associates, a leadership development education and consulting firm, he can be reached at stevec@i-lead.com

April 2008: Inspire a Shared Vision by Michael Neiss

Crafting an Inspiring Vision to Drive Change

In my sessions with managers and leaders, I often ask attendees how much of their time they set aside during the previous week to think about and plan for their area of responsibility—three years out. After the nervous chuckles subside, it is clear that very few value long-term visioning over the demands for short-term results. Yet, in today's turbulent business world, vision or purpose is critical to driving the change necessary for excellence.

For instance, most of my clients identify innovation as a key strategy necessary for them to excel in their business. At the same time they often admit that they fall short in creating real innovation, citing historic practices and structure as the key barriers. To become innovative, substantial change is required. And that's where Inspiring a Shared Vision-one of the essential Five Practices-applies.

A powerful and compelling vision, delivered in an inspiring manner, is necessary to thaw out an organization's entrenched practices and drive the necessary changes in systems, and even, the culture. A great vision provides the courage necessary to change. It engages the discretionary efforts of the team. And most importantly, once it becomes shared, a great vision provides the determination and discipline to actually implement change.

Facilitators provide a great service to workshop participants and the sponsoring organization by setting aside sufficient time for attendees to complete a written draft of their vision statement. It takes time to help participants move beyond the initial tendency to state their vision as a three-year business plan full of metrics and, instead, actually breathe enough life into their vision to create a compelling picture of the possibilities.

For many workshop attendees, functioning in business environments that place the highest priority on execution and operational excellence, the need for a statement of ennobling possibilities can be seen as a 'nice-to-do,' not a 'must-do.' What is missed here is the simple dynamic that people execute when they are passionate about building something together that makes a difference.

Although time is always at a premium in workshops, the feedback I have received continues to confirm that creating an inspiring vision is the most useful takeaway for participants.

Max DePree, past CEO of my client Herman Miller, Inc. said it well, "Management has a lot to do with answers. Leadership is a function of questions. And the first question for a leader always is: 'Who do we intend to be?' Not 'What are we going to do?' but 'Who do we intend to be?'" The leadership journey often begins with answering that question.

Michael Neiss is a 25-year veteran in corporate management, OD and HR, and leadership consulting. A Master Facilitator of The Leadership Challenge® Workshop, he can be reached at mike@michaelneiss.com.

March 2008: The Five Practices by Barry Z. Posner

Be Leaders: Do Leadership

Learning about leadership is not the same as learning to be a leader. This "blinding flash of the obvious" comes after being a leadership scholar for more than 30 years and serving as a leader for much of that time. Too much of what I see in business education is teaching about leadership: leadership theories and concepts or social psychological concepts applied to leadership. What we should be teaching our students is how to be leaders.

Learning to be a leader doesn't happen enough. Don't get me wrong. Students do learn what is required to be a leader. But students—along with executives, public servants, clergy, physicians, etc.—can't be leaders by restricting their learning of leadership to the classroom. Just as medical students can't become surgeons by only operating on cadavers or elected officials can't make budget decisions without prioritizing among competing 'goods', our students can't learn to be leaders until they experience leading themselves.

Of course, that's the rub, and also the source of the familiar refrain, "I can teach about leadership, but only the student can learn it." Therefore, the reason we need to be doing things differently in our leadership curriculum is that leadership development is fundamentally the development of the inner self. Being a leader requires leading from within more than leading from outside.

Organizations can only pay people to manage; there are no intrinsic reasons for leading. In fact, it's hard to imagine people getting up day-after-day and putting in the countless hours required to get extraordinary things accomplished, unless they have their hearts in it.

Leadership is hard work. It is about going beyond a job description-like caring. From a missed meal or night of sleep, leadership also requires sacrifice if you want to make a difference. Does anyone tell their graduates that they can expect to get ahead in their careers or lives by working regular 9-to-5 hours?

In every leadership seminar I teach—whether undergraduate or graduate students, or practitioners—would-be leaders are required to go out and lead, and then come back and reflect on that experience in order to learn how to be a better leader. Of course, I offer ideas, concepts, techniques, and strategies in an effort to make the seminar assignment successful. But what participants don't always realize at the start is that (a) I really don't have anything to teach them that they don't already know, and (b) that becoming a better leader only happens in the 'doing' of leadership. The 'grade' on such an assignment is not a measure of their work output but comes from their reflections on what they learned from the experience (irrespective of the outcome), and what they would do differently given another opportunity.

My co-author, Jim Kouzes, and I talk about leadership practices because we know that it is only through disciplined practice that one can gain mastery. In this regard, talent is over-rated. Organizations will prosper more by gaining a 1 percent improvement in 100 people than they will by getting the most talented individual to do 100 percent better.

Another outcome of asking students and practitioners to 'do' leadership in order to learn to be better leaders is the value of their remarkable accomplishments-most of which would not have happened if these same individuals were not required to do something different. This leads to still another keen insight into leadership: there is no shortage of opportunities to lead and make a difference. (There's wisdom in the old adage, "Where there is a will, there is a way.")

It never fails to anger and frustrate me when asked, "Are leaders born or made?" Leadership is a skill. And while this set of abilities is normally distributed in a population just as any other talent is, it can be made (learned) in the same fashion as any other ability. But no amount of practicing and coaching can make up for the lack of desire, motivation, drive, or passion on the part of the individual to do better than they are currently doing. Which brings us full circle, where leadership begins inside of us as we try to figure out such questions as who am I, why do I do what I do, what's important to me, and the like.

The same challenge is equally applicable to higher education administration. We don't ask department chairs to be leaders, so the outcome is the same as teaching about leadership without doing it and reflecting on what was done as a leader.

We politely call them department chairs (perish the thought that we would be putting them on some pedestal), but they are more like bureaucrats (from a public administration perspective) or managers (using business jargon) than leaders. Where do we use the term "department leaders?" Isn't it true that few of our faculty want to become department chairs (let alone Deans!) or volunteer to "chair" their departments? Indeed, in a great Catch-22, we're mostly suspicious of anyone that would volunteer to be a department chair, wondering what "power trip" they might be on or what vendetta they want to pursue.

As leaders on our campuses we have often decried the "cosmopolitan" norms of the faculty who have been educated to be more concerned with and attuned to professional standards than to "local" or institutional considerations. Let's appreciate that there doesn't have to be a contest between these two orientations. The good work of the faculty in academic and professional communities serves the needs of our students for current and validated information. And the questions, issues, hypotheses and applications that students raise serves to heighten the richness and depth of faculty understanding and knowledge. After all, as often pointed out, if you really want to know a subject, try teaching it to others.

Figuring out what is important inside applies to the faculty, just as much as it does to our students. The plain truth is that most organizations conspire to make department chairs and others in hierarchical positions into managers. And they do this conspiratorially by keeping everyone so busy-barely managing to complete all the tasks already on their plates-that they don't have any time to lead. Putting out fires and dealing with matters that have happened in the past, managers are confined to responding to whatever is happening right now in front of them.

In this way, they deal more with "what" should I be doing than "why" should I be doing (anything). The future is the time domain of leaders: "What should I be doing today that will get us to where we want to be in the future?" is the leadership question.

Language also influences our thinking and behavior. At Santa Clara, we scrapped our traditional undergraduate and graduate policy committees in favor of leadership teams-as in the "Undergraduate LEADERSHIP Team." The same faculty members are still involved, but are now responsible for setting an annual agenda around what will make our program better, rather than simply making decisions around new courses, reviewing prerequisites, admissions standards, etc. (which, by the way, they still do). Just this shift in language has altered their perspective: from holding onto the status quo (managing) to figuring out what needs to be changed (leading). We're working hard to reduce the administrivia connected with department chairs' responsibilities so that they only have two leadership tasks: curriculum innovation and faculty development.

I'm often pointing out, with all due humility, that it is so much easier to write about leadership than it is to do leadership. But in this doing, in the being of leading, I am confident that I have become a more astute scholar about leadership and more insightful about how to liberate the leader within everyone.

Barry Z. Posner is Dean of the Leavey School of Business and Professor of Leadership at Santa Clara University where he has received numerous teaching and innovation awards. He is co-author of The Leadership Challenge.

The Five Practices by Craig Haptonstall

Choosing to Grow!

Growth is a difficult challenge. It is not easy. And it typically never occurs as a single event. Rather, it is a process that happens over time. Although growth can be fast-and sometimes mandated-it is ultimately rooted in the power of choice. It may be an elective but the alternative is maintaining the status quo, or even shrinking.

So how do we grow—in influence, in effectiveness, in skills? There is a clear and concise growth strategy outlined for us in The Leadership Challenge. Let's step through model to see its application in our everyday lives.

Step One: Establish some prioritized beliefs or values to understand our own commitment to development. The leadership practice of Model the Way provides the guidance we need to establish this list. With a little self-examination, we can pick the values we want to live by, and these values can serve to direct our motivation and define our calls to action.

Step Two: Identify and describe the future state we are trying to create. The leadership practice of Inspire a Shared Vision is designed to create this picture for us and to engage our constituents in the growth process. Any great growth strategy is best accomplished by enlisting some support from those around us, and these people want to know where we are trying to go and why. Supported with tools like metaphors, similes, word pictures, repetition, and intonation, we can create a compelling image in the eyes and minds of our constituents.

Step Three: Make a change of some kind. This leadership practice of Challenge the Process provides us with the ideas and suggestions to try something new. Experiment and learn from the experience. Whether it works or it doesn't, we can apply the learning and improve over time.

Step Four: Implement the leadership practice of Enable Others to Act. Here we are able to develop more cooperative relationships with those around us, building trust and trusting intentions while also creating more effective communications among our constituents. Growth is difficult but the more we engage and enlist those around us-with information and resources-our own actions and theirs will be enhanced.

Step Five: The very important and often overlooked leadership practice of Encourage the Heart. This is both the recognition and celebration of the small and large accomplishments we achieve along the developmental growth path. Increasing our awareness of what warrants recognition, and then making the praise or reward visible to others and to ourselves, bolsters our resilience during the growth process. Encouraging our own hearts for taking the steps needed for growth will foster our ongoing commitment to grow.

In a world that is continually changing and evolving, our best option is to choose to grow-or risk being left behind as the world changes around us. Following the Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership® as outlined in The Leadership Challenge is our practical roadmap to growth.

Are you ready? Are you ready to choose to GROW?

Craig Haptonstall is President and CEO of Leadership Mechanics LLC. With a corporate career that has included Southwest Airlines and The Tom Peters Company, he also is a Master Facilitator of The Leadership Challenge Workshop® and can be reached at craig.haptonstall@leadershipmechanics.com.

January 2008: Loving Critics: The Importance of Feedback by Jim Kouzes

The late John Gardner, leadership scholar and presidential advisor, once remarked, "Pity the leader caught between unloving critics and uncritical lovers." I'm quite taken by this observation. It should be on a poster that hangs over every leader's desk-or a screen saver on their computers-and it should be read and contemplated several times a day.

None of us likes to hear the constant screeching of the harpies who have only foul things to say. At the same time, we never benefit from, nor truly believe, the sycophants whose flattery is so obviously aimed at gaining favor. To stay honest with ourselves, what we really need are "loving critics"-people who care deeply enough to give us honest feedback about how we're doing.

According to research Barry Posner and I have conducted over the years, credibility is at the foundation of leadership. From a behavioral perspective, credibility is about "doing what you say you will do." But how can you do what you say if you don't know how you're doing? If you never ask for feedback on your behavior and on how your behavior affects how others are doing, how can you really expect to align your words and your actions over the long haul?

There's solid evidence that the best leaders are highly attuned to what's going on inside of them as they are leading, as well as what's going on with others. They're very self-aware and they're very socially aware. They can tell in short order whether they've done something that has enabled someone to perform at a higher level or whether they've sent motivation heading south.

Setting up a system for getting regular feedback (the equivalent of the dashboard) and paying attention to that feedback will help a leader more effectively move the organization forward. All leaders want to have a positive impact on performance. It's part of their legacy. The only way they can know if they're having the desired impact is to get regular feedback on how they're doing.

In addition to the annual 360-degree assessment, try this the next time you're in a meeting. Begin by asking, "How am I doing?" More than likely you'll be greeted with stunned silence—a sure sign folks are not used to being asked this question by you (or anyone else) and are uncomfortable in responding. But if you wait long enough some brave soul may venture an honest response. When she or he does, immediately recognize him or her for showing some courage, and tell the rest of the group, "That's what we need more of around here. More loving critics."

Jim Kouzes is a highly regarded leadership scholar, experienced executive, and coauthor (with Barry Posner) of The Leadership Challenge. He also is Dean's Executive Professor of Leadership, Leavey School of Business, Santa Clara University and has been cited by The Wall Street Journal as one of the twelve best executive educators in the U.S.

November 2007: The Five Practices by Beth High

Packing for the Journey: Lessons from The Leadership Challenge Leadercast Series

I have a friend who is a Master Packer. She is able to put all she needs for a week-long trip into a satchel that looks like a lunchbox to me. She knows the essentials to bring that will give her flexibility and the confidence she will need to deal with whatever situation occurs along the way.

As I interviewed various leaders for the first program in The Leadership Challenge Leadercast Series, I discovered that they, too, demonstrated the very same qualities as my Master Packer friend. These exemplary leaders were experienced travelers on their leadership journey, continuing to encounter new challenges and finding new ways to address them. And although each situation was unique, what they shared were the essentials they had with them: The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership®.

During the interviews, each leader described specific actions they were taking to increase the frequency of one of The Five Practices—one that they identified based on their LPI results. What became clear to me as we talked about their experiences was that in the process of putting a specific plan into action to focus on one specific practice, opportunities for the other practices showed up as well. And they were ready to seize the moment. They had the essential Five Practices to draw upon, whatever the occasion.

Sackeena Gordon-Jones was focused on Model the Way. She intended to walk the talk for the executives she coaches as well as her team members who were looking to her for strategic thinking. In the process of helping the team be more strategic, the opportunity to Inspire a Shared Vision landed in her lap and she took it.

Anne McLaughlin was focused on Inspire a Shared Vision with her team, to lay out a plan for where they were headed as a company. In the process of exploring how to best do that, she Challenged the Process by changing the venue to a location that had greater impact and pulled the team closer together.

Dan Schwab needed to Challenge the Process to shift his company's mindset to think long-range. In the process of finding new and effective ways to get vital information to the decentralized offices, he also happened upon an opportunity to Enable Others to Act by sharing best practices.

John Kurzeja focused on Enable Others to Act in his management program for Epicurean Foods. He recognized the opportunity to reduce turnover if management could switch from a command-and-control approach to one where employees felt ownership in the success of the business. In the process of exploring this practice, they all discovered the role that credibility and Model the Way played in implementing the change. Each manager needed to believe enough in this new approach that they would model the behavior of empowering others consistently. They needed to walk the talk.

Hugo Venegas had his mind set on increasing the frequency of Encourage the Heart. He was focused on creating opportunities for his parishioners to feel appreciated by their community. What he found in the process was an opportunity to Enable Others to Act, specifically his staff. By opening the challenge to them, he created a sense of empowerment that led to idea generation and shared ownership of the challenge.

Because these leaders had packed well for their journey, they were able to reach outside their immediate focus and draw on the other practices. The Five Practices model was close at hand and accessible when they needed it.

So here's the lesson I learned from these fine leaders: Keep The Five Practices in your back pocket. What could be more convenient and more useful than that? You'll continue to grow as a leader and you'll be prepared for whatever the journey offers up.

The Leadership Challenge® Leadercast is series of six podcasts that serve to "continue the challenge" for participants and proponents of The Leadership Challenge.

Beth High is a Master Facilitator of The Leadership Challenge® Workshop. Embracing the metaphor that leadership development is a journey, she focuses on helping her clients establish ongoing development practices that will support them on that journey. She can be reached at highhroadconsulting@mac.com.

October 2007: Challenge the Process by Fine Points Professionals

Challenge the Process and Reap the Rewards

Have you ever been in a work environment where you heard someone say, "That's not my job!" Or perhaps, you wanted to say it yourself. Sometimes restrictions are placed on us by employers and sometimes we are content to stay inside a self-imposed "assumed" role and never venture out to see what lies beyond.

As owners of Fine Points Professionals, we have worked with the Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI) since 1997 and in 2004 started our present business, an Authorized Service Center for The Leadership Challenge® Workshop. We have grown passionate about the LPI and The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership®. Now, we specialize in administrating the LPI. Our initial business vision included three goals: 1) to provide stellar service to our clients, 2) for us and our employees to be blessed by the growth of our company, and 3) to look outwardly for sharing those blessings with others.

Which brings us back to "that's not my job"! In the fall of 2006 we brainstormed whether an LPI administration company could actually promote and present—free-of-charge—a public Leadership Challenge® Workshop to non-profit groups and public servants in our community. Could we challenge the process we had established for ourselves and produce the whole pie instead of one piece of it? We were now motivated to find a location, a facilitator (our good friend and Master Facilitator Steve Houchin), and fill the seats with people who really wanted to be there, but couldn't afford to attend under other circumstances.

That's when "not my job" became "let's do it!" and, eventually, the vision became reality. Gathered in a meeting room were fire fighters, police officers, clergy, professors, community center directors, teachers, missionaries, city officials—most of them from jobs where they serve their communities and fellow citizens. At Fine Points, we had attempted to expose these types of leaders to The Five Practices in the past, but felt like money was always the proverbial brick wall for them. To finally see 22 people who give of themselves selflessly on a daily basis learn about leadership was truly a dream come true for us.

A common practice at the workshop is to provide participants a choice of fun toys/rewards to use creatively to acknowledge people for something they've done. The first afternoon a woman presented us with a mini basketball hoop and ball and said "If this afternoon is anything like this morning, you've made a slam dunk." Inside, we breathed a huge sigh of relief—YES! Finally, we had received the sort of response for which we had been hoping. More comments followed after Day 2:

"The LPI was a wonderful way to hear helpful and constructive criticism in a non-threatening and yet honest way."

"To be honest, this was one of the most practical approaches to leadership. It was fantastic and enlightening."

"It's the best leadership seminar I have ever experienced."

The participants engaged in learning and for many it was life changing. Fire fighters went back to work with a renewed sense of team building and appreciation for their counterparts in the police force. Teachers returned to their troubled school districts with new ideas of how to enable parents to be more involved and more positive influences in their childrens' lives. Clergy went back to their places of worship inspired to take further action to encourage their parishioners. Community leaders returned to their organizations with a renewed desire to help their communities engage with each other to solve problems. For all of these people, change had occurred.

Whatever sacrifices we made as a compan—financial resources, time, energy—were immediately worth it. It is interesting to realize that when we push ourselves to do something that is somewhat uncomfortable or unknown, we end up feeling empowered. For Fine Points Professionals, "that's not my job" has changed to "let's do it!" And for all of those who attended the workshop, we strongly hope that they will have the courage to venture out of their self-imposed "assumed" roles as well, and impact those around them in a positive way.

   

   

Amy Savage, Carol Wolper and Cheryl Boys are co-founders and owners of Fine Points Professionals, Ltd. The Leadership Challenge Authorized service provider for administration of The Leadership Challenge® Workshop. For more information, visit www.finepointsprofessionals.com.

September 2007: Leadership: An Affair of the Heart by Steve Houchin

For years we have stated that while management is an affair of the head, leadership is an affair of the heart. Today, neuroscience is proving us right!

When we have a direct experience, nerve impulses travel first to the enteric nervous system—literally a second brain in our intestines—that produces an instant gut reaction (what we might call 'butterflies'). Next stop for the impulses are the baroreceptors in the heart, or the third brain. The brain in the heart communicates to the rest of the body in a number of ways, one of which is a chemical messenger in the hormonal system called atrial peptide, a principle driver of motivated behavior (the goal of every leader!). Neural messages travel to the brain in our heads to be "thought about" after they have been sensed and interpreted by the intestines and the heart.

What does this mean for leaders? First, whenever you confront important issues and before deciding on a course of action, ask yourself what your gut and heart are telling you in addition to what your head might think. Purposeful, committed action requires an alignment between your head and heart.

Second, messages to constituents must be connected to the heart and gut, reflecting your true feelings. Since behavior is so heavily influenced by what we feel, any perceived disconnect between words and real feelings often makes us appear untrustworthy and damages our credibility—the essential foundation of effective leadership. Constituents believe in the authenticity of leadership when true feelings and beliefs, spoken and written communications, and actions are all in sync.

Third, important messages about vision, strategy, or change must first invoke a positive feeling in the guts and hearts of constituents. If not, your words likely will be interpreted negatively by the message centers in their brains, resulting in the all-too-familiar "resistance to change" syndrome.

Finding your unique leadership voice-one that consistently inspires high levels of performance by constituents&151;is a significant "leadership challenge" but one worthy of your best efforts. One way to get started is to reflect on the following thought questions:

• Do you characterize yourself as a rational decision maker or someone who tends to go with your gut feeling? The next time you are making an important decision, listen to what both your gut and brain may be telling you and try to bring them into alignment.
• Am I an authentic leader? Do my constituents really know what I feel and believe what they hear and see? Is there anything about me that I could change to improve my credibility in the eyes of my followers?
• Recall the last important message you received from your leader(s). Did you understand, agree, or even care? Did you enthusiastically take the appropriate action called for? If yes, what about the leader or what did the leader say or do that inspired your positive response? How can you use this experience to improve your own communication? If no, what specifically can you learn from the experience to avoid or change?

Successful leaders have discovered that they must first listen to their own heart, be comfortable with who they are, and ensure that their words and actions are consistent with both what they believe and their authentic selves. Only then can they can win the hearts and minds of their constituents.

Steve Houchin, an 18-year veteran of corporate HR and executive leadership, is an owner and Managing Partner of International Leadership Associates, the leadership development firm that has presented The Leadership Challenge® Workshop to organizations, large and small, for over 15 years. He can be reached at shouchin@i-lead.com.

August 2007: Credibility & Leadership: Reflections on the Nigerian Elections by Richard Obire

As a student of leadership, I am always on the lookout for lessons from everyday events to improve both my understanding and practice of leadership. The recent elections in Nigeria, held April 14 and 21, 2007, have provided me with one such opportunity.

Following the international news reports, you may already be aware that most local and overseas observer groups have suggested that the elections were flawed. Ballot box stuffing, reporting of results where elections were not held, and falsifying voting results-incidences such as these were said to have been widespread.

Going by those accounts, then, one might say that many of the newly-elected State and Federal Legislators, State Governors-and even the President and Vice-President-have questionable electoral mandates. These elected officials, who have now assumed office since May 29, have done so with a heavy credibility deficit.

As students of The Leadership Challenge and its principles, we know that credibility is a basic requirement of leadership, without which the task of mobilizing people to want to struggle and make the sacrifices required to reach lofty goals can become Herculean, if not altogether impossible. In Nigeria, this task is even more challenging: often the only thing that seems to occasionally unify her 250 or so ethnic groups is a soccer match involving the national team.

So the question is, are there leadership lessons to be learned from these recent events? How can the basic principles of credibility help us gain insight into what the implications might be for the newly elected officials in Nigeria and anywhere around the world where leadership truly matters? To answer these questions, I will use a few examples from the actions of the country's former president, Olusegun Obasanjo:

Midway into his second term, Obasanjo sought to personally benefit from a constitutional review process-which he initiated-that would extend his rule beyond the current limit of eight years (two terms of four years each). It also has been reported that he deployed significant State resources toward ensuring its passage. Described locally as the "third term project," the effort failed in large measure due to strong opposition from a coalition of civil society groups with support from some members of the national legislature. Obasanjo also lost substantial credibility. Going forward, every action he took was viewed with great suspicion by the public and opposition groups: his credibility account with the people was in the red. For example, as a run-up to the election most people did not believe that the electoral commission he formed would deliver a free and fair vote. Apart from repeated assurances, Obasanjo did not take any meaningful steps to address voters' concerns. It also was widely alleged that the Chairman of the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) was a card carrying member of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The result for Obasanjo? His credibility plunged even further. Obasanjo, it was widely believed, had used the anti-corruption agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), to target anyone who might present a credible challenge to his hand-picked successor. Most people did not consider the fact that these EFCC-targets might actually have had corruption cases from which they needed to clear themselves. The guilt or innocence of the targets didn't seem to matter. What mattered to the public was that Obasanjo, having failed to get a constitutional amendment to secure a third term in office for himself, now wanted desperately to have a puppet to succeed him. The opposition parties themselves did not help matters. While they were clamoring for a transparent, free and fair electoral process and demanding that Obasanjo and his ruling PDP show the way, they were themselves guilty of imposing selected candidates in their primaries, disallowing competition, and forcefully shutting out dissenting views.

It is really no surprise that by most accounts the elections turned out to be anything but a democratic process whereby citizens were able to freely express their choice of who should govern them. An important question, however, that has yet to be asked is the role that the perceived lack of credibility played. Were the conclusions reached by the election observers influenced by a perceived lack of credibility vs. substantial irregularities in the actual elections? We may never know for sure. My personal guess would be that the perception factor in the equation could be over 70%.

What this may suggest is that most candidates who should have won were those who actually did win. The current president, Umaru Yaradua, for example, would still have won a freely contested vote. This is not to say, however, that any form of election irregularity should be condoned. The real point is that once credibility is lost even a largely representative outcome gets rubbished.

So what are the take-away leadership lessons to be learned? First, a leader or one who aspires to be one must not only be credible but also must be seen as credible. Second, for leaders to benefit from credibility their actions must be totally credible; credibility does not come in fractional servings. Finally, when leaders lose credibility, they run the risk of losing everything else as well—including favorable credit for contributions and good works that are truly theirs.

Richard Obire is founder and CEO of IRIS Consulting, an African management consulting firm based in Lagos, Nigeria focusing on leadership development, business strategy and organizational learning. A certified facilitator for The Leadership Challenge® Workshop, he is currently vice-president of the Nigeria-Britain Association and a member of the Executive Council of the Lagos Business School Alumni Association. Richard may be contacted at richardobire@irisconsulting.info.

July 2007: Generation Me: Encouraging the Heart by Kim Chesky

Workforce of the Future
Everywhere you turn there is another article written about the looming impact of retiring baby boomers. According to the Conference Board, as many as 64 million skilled workers will be eligible to retire by the year 2010. That is a staggering number, to be sure.

I don't know about you, but this impending labor crunch keeps many of my clients awake at night wondering just who will replace this mass of retiring baby boomers. Their children (or in some cases grandchildren) will, that's who.

Often referred to as Generation Y, the Millennium Generation, or Generation Me, these 18- to-24-year-olds are the newest members of the workforce and represent the future of leadership for our organizations. Bringing to the workplace vastly different expectations about work, life balance, social conscious, and what it means to succeed in a career, these twenty-somethings stand in stark contrast to the boomers they are replacing. Although sometimes maligned for lacking loyalty and the work ethic of their parents, nothing could be farther from the truth. Members of Generation Y are very knowledgeable, have spent their lives surrounded by technology, are well connected to information and a vast social network, and are capable of being highly productive.

So what makes this group different? Like generations before, Generation Me has been shaped by experience. They witnessed 9/11 and the shootings at Columbine which, together, demonstrated how vulnerable life is to unpredictable events and how suddenly tragedy can bring life to an abrupt end. Their views on loyalty have been shaped by the corporate "right-sizings" that victimized their parents, friends and neighbors. Global warming and other environmental and health issues have raised their social conscious. Often raised in dual income households in relative affluence, Gen-Yers were taught to believe that they could do or become anything they wanted. Instead of punishment, boomer parents worked to build self-esteem in their children by showering them with coaching, attention, and praise.

Kim Chesky is the founder and learning partner for Human Performance Solutions, an organization dedicated to helping clients enhance individual, team, and organizational effectiveness. He is also a Master Facilitator of The Leadership Challenge® Workshop. Kim enjoys spending time with his family, cooking, reading, coaching, and refereeing youth athletics and continuing his pursuit of life-long learning. Email him.

The Implication for Leaders
Generation Me can be high maintenance. Their expectations are high. They want interesting, well-paying jobs. They demand life-balance, flexible work arrangements, and want to live life to the fullest. They will leave a job if they feel they have stopped learning and growing. They are very productive, knowledgeable, independent, and technologically savvy. They see work as a job and not a career. And most importantly, they want and expect frequent, positive praise and encouragement for their work.

To win the war for talent, it is critical for leaders and organizations to understand and meet the needs and wants of this Generation Me workforce:

• Build a great place to work where associates are satisfied and engaged
• Deliver challenging and interesting job assignments and create opportunities to learn and grow
• Create and communicate a compelling vision of the future
• Provide regular, effective, frequent recognition, praise and encouragement

Isn't it Amazing?

Encouraging the Heart practices not only meet the needs of members of Generation Me, they address a universal need for recognition. In study after study, employees at all levels and generations indicate that they value, need, and want recognition.

One of the fundamental practices of an outstanding workplace, Encouraging the Heart is essential for retaining quality associates. And yet I am continually amazed by leaders who tell me that they don't believe in encouraging associates. Their list of reasons and excuses are endless . . .

"Why should I do that . . . it's their job, I pay them for it."

"Who has time for that fluffy stuff?"

"I don't see people doing anything all that worthy of encouragement"

or my personal favorite . . .

"If I do it too often it will lose its effectiveness" . . . as if recognition was something to be rationed and horded.

How do the leaders in your organization view encouraging? Do they embrace and model the right behaviors? Or do they think of it as soft fluffy stuff?

Making the Case for Change
What keeps leaders from encouraging the heart? What is the fundamental difference between leaders who encourage and those who don't? The answer lies in the leader's beliefs about recognition.

Changing beliefs changes behaviors. My leadership coaching experience shows that in order to get a leader to become better encouragers I first have to change this leader's beliefs about encouraging. A leader who believes that recognition is unnecessary (i.e., soft fluffy stuff) will have a hard time becoming an effective encourager.

So, how do you change beliefs about encouraging the heart? One way is to appeal to our rational side and paint a straightforward, practical, and compelling business case for Encouraging the Heart. The argument is simple: associates drive customer satisfaction and loyalty in organizations, and the secret to taking great care of customers starts by taking excellent care of associates. Creating a compelling place to work is essential to taking care of customers as well as attracting and retaining talented people. Research by Gallup Inc. and others has shown that encouraging the heart is an essential ingredient for a great workplace.

Another approach is to provide opportunities for leaders to learn from their Encouraging the Heart experiences. If taking care of the customer isn't enough reason to become an expert encourager, think about the impact that encouraging has on reinforcing the behaviors and values you need and expect from associates. How do associates know what is expected of them? How do they know that they are delivering what you want? How do you get more of the behaviors you want and less of the ones you don't? The answer is simple. Get out from behind the desk, catch people doing something right, and tell them about it. It is that straightforward and that effective.

I often give leaders who are struggling with Encouraging the Heart a simple assignment: for two consecutive weeks, their task is to find at least two opportunities each day to encourage others-either in the workplace or in their personal life. Leaders are instructed to practice the seven essentials and then reflect and journal their experiences. It is interesting what leaders discover when we talk about their insights and observations. They find that encouraging doesn't take a lot of time and the impact on others is very positive. They discover that the more they do it the better and more effective they become and that there are benefits to providing ongoing encouragement.

The case for Encouraging the Heart is compelling: greater associate and customer satisfaction combined with the ability to attract and retain the best talent. Whether using these fundamental practices to nurture and support future Gen-Y leaders and innovators or to bring out the creativity of current workforce Baby Boomers, leaders and managers that can demonstrate often a sincere appreciation for individual and team excellence will move their organizations forward in creating an employer-of-choice workplace and win the war for talent.

This article was inspired by an NPR broadcast by Chana Joffe-Walt that aired in late May. Listen now.

JUNE 2007: INSPIRE A SHARED VISION BY CRAIG HAPTONSTALL

To go, to guide, to TRAVEL!

As an advocate of personal growth, traveling is a great passion of mine. Traveling inevitably presents the possibility for opportunities and adventure. There is usually something unexpected, unforeseen, and unplanned that happens along the way, creating the chance to spread one's wings. But it is also possible to experience fears that can inhibit growth during a trip to a foreign, unfamiliar place. Let's face it, the fears of being wrong, losing, rejection, and the unknown often test the limit of personal growth. Being in a strange land, with a different language, culture, and society is scary.

So why is it that we willingly place ourselves in such an uncomfortable situation? I recently went to Egypt because of the magnetic pull of a clear and compelling vision—a vision of riding around the pyramids at Giza on top of a willing camel. My exciting vision was of course created without the knowledge or experience of actual camel-riding. Their long legs create a rocking gate as they walk, and this motion resembles that of a small boat bouncing in choppy water. (I was gently reminded of my 2-hour ride for the next seven days.)

As I was being led away from the busy streets of Cairo on top of this strange animal, there were many thoughts passing into my mind—What if I was really being led away to be mugged? What if I was to be held as a hostage? What if I would be left at the pyramids, with no way to get back to the hotel? Still, the vision of having this experience pulled me forth, and provided courage to not break and run for help, which is what my panicked inner voice suggested. My heart was pounding as the adrenaline flowed. Then I realized it was not pounding with fear, but with the sheer excitement of fulfilling my vision. The sky was incredibly blue, contrasted by the dull grey of the desert sand and I was riding a camel!

A clear vision is one of the first steps in overcoming our fears when you find yourself in an uncomfortable position. And this position is often where you experience the most growth. Let's go!

Craig Haptonstall is President and CEO of Leadership Mechanics LLC, a Leadership Challenge® affilitate. His travels will next take him to Buenos Aires and Zurich.

May 2007: Inspire a Shared Vision by Blair Forlaw

Harry Houdini and the Art of Breaking Free

Isn't it amazing the way important themes emerge in different places, simultaneously? In late March, twenty of us were sitting at tables in the St. Louis Hyatt Regency talking about how to get out of the box, just about the same time that authorities in New York were deliberating whether to exhume the body of the famous escape artist, Harry Houdini.

Harry Houdini still makes headlines 80 years after his death because he appeared to be able to defy the limits that frustrate ordinary human beings. He did what the rest of us want to do but usually can't figure out how to do—to free ourselves from constraints (the exhumation notwithstanding, of course). Few have come close to matching what Houdini seemed to have been able to accomplish.

Back over at the Hyatt, our discussion followed this same theme, but with a significant departure. We had gathered to talk with Jim Kouzes, an author and lecturer on the topic of leadership development. Leaders are the people who help us get out of the limiting confines of our present situations and move purposefully toward a vision of a brighter future. But the ability to do so is not the private reserve of a select few superhuman men and women, Kouzes said. In fact, leadership requires a set of skills and abilities that can be mastered by almost anyone—given proper training and the opportunity and discipline to practice, practice, practice.

There went one illusion.

Here's another one that Kouzes and his co-author Barry Posner dispel in their 2006 publication A Leader's Legacy. "The future doesn't just belong to the leaders. It's not just the leader's vision that leaders are accountable for enacting. Leadership isn't about selling your vision; it's about articulating the people's vision."

"OK then," said one of the senior HR leaders in attendance. "But what do we do when we invite our people to participate in planning for the future of our organization, but they keep coming up with the same old ideas? It's like they are stuck in the box; how can we help them get out?"

Kouzes' response may be a little surprising-becoming forward-focused doesn't necessarily result from sitting through leadership development courses or visioning sessions, as we traditionally think of them. Our employees need a steady, sustained diet of things to read and opportunities to talk that expose them to different ideas and vantage points that stretch them and gently push them out of their comfort zones. A broadened view of the present leads to an expanded sense of the future.

In A Leader's Legacy, he puts it this way. "As counterintuitive as it might seem, the best place to start creating the future is by being more mindful in the present. Our failure at being forward-looking may result more from our mindlessness in the present than from any other factor. We operate on automatic pilot, not really noticing what's going on around us, believing we know everything we need to know, viewing the world from established categories, and operating from a single point of view."

This last bit about established categories and a single point of view really hit home with me, in part because of an experience I had immediately before the gathering at the Hyatt. Thanks to my uncanny knack for getting lost, I had gone to the wrong end of the hotel when I arrived, and I wandered the whole length of a concourse packed with corporate training sessions before confirming that I was in the wrong place. I'm not one to be deterred by an occasional blind alley, but by the time I made it out, my shoulders were scrunched inward and my gaze was fixed firmly on the floor. It weighs you down to try to decipher row after row of signs written in acronyms of bold capital letters, with hyphens and decimal points in unfamiliar places. Such is the language of people who talk only among themselves, labels on the boxes we put ourselves in. If you've ever been in a situation where everyone around you was speaking jargon that you didn't understand, you can probably relate to my incredible shrinking feeling.

This is one of the things we're working on through WorkforceStLouis2.0. We strive to bring business leaders together to find common language with which to articulate and communicate a shared vision of a bright future for St. Louis - a metro region competing in a global talent marketplace in which agility, flexibility, critical thinking, team-work, and leadership are essential tools for getting ahead. If Jim Kouzes is right, then the key to anticipating this future lies in a closer examination of where we are right now. It would be amazing if, like Houdini, we have everything we need already in our grasp-we just need to look extremely carefully to see it.

Blair Forlaw is the Director of WorkforceStLouis2.0, a program administered by the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL). WorkforceStLouis2.0 supports business leadership to strengthen the regional human capital value chain by encouraging strategic investments in employee learning and development, enhancing the dynamic exchange of information, experience, and best practices, and building skills and competencies at all occupational levels in companies of every size and sector throughout the St. Louis metro economy. For more information, contact Blair at 314-623-6550 or bforlaw@cael.org.

April 2007: Challenge the Process Part II by Steve Coats

Over the years, I have asked hundreds of people to identify role models who have been successful in Challenging the Process within organizations, and then to describe how those people were able to succeed while so many others struggle. From this research, I have created a list of six factors for raising the probability of success in the difficult work of Challenging the Process. I hope you find them useful in your own efforts.

1. Respect the Culture

How would you like it if someone barged into your home and started lecturing you on how to raise your kids better? Most parents would be offended to some degree. In organizations, similar resistance can occur to those who Challenge the Process. You must be careful in how you confront and challenge accepted processes, systems, or behavioral norms.

It is crucial that you understand and appreciate the environment in which you are attempting to challenge the way something is currently done. You just cannot barge in and criticize the other people for their use of a process you believe to be inefficient or archaic, or send the message that you are the savior of the organization. Simply because you believe you have a better way of doing something does not mean that it is better in everyone's eyes.

Respecting the culture does not mean caving in and demonstrating unwillingness to push back with innovative ideas and changes. It does mean recognizing the past accomplishments of the people in the organization and not belittling those efforts because of a system or process that is no longer serving its purpose in the best way today. In order to be most effective, you need to be mindful that there are appropriate ways to have your "Challenging" (vs. "condescending") voice heard.

In spite of how well an organization is performing, there will always be an aspect of immense importance that is not performing well. It might be a compensation system, an internal overhead allocation process, the way new people are on-boarded, the means by which customer information is gathered, or a host of other processes or procedures. Leaders are willing to step up and take responsibility for addressing these opportunity areas. And they realize and communicate that working to improve certain processes which may have flaws, does not imply that the entire organization is broken or poorly managed.

2. Understand the Process You are Challenging.

Resist the urge to Challenge Processes you know nothing about.

This leadership practice requires homework. A process can have many parts that touch many people in many ways. A change to one part of a process can have unknown or unintended consequences in another part. You must understand a process in its current state, so you can determine the impact your changes will have. Remember that a solution to one problem often creates many new problems.

In addition, you must expect that you will likely offend or upset others when you initiate change. The quote "reform is usually not popular with those who are in charge of that which needs reform" is something to think about. Other peoples' reputations may be tied to the original process you are trying to change, or they might be most effective in their work with the way the process functions today. You need to know who may be negatively impacted by your proposed changes in order to figure out how to ultimately earn their support.

3. Build a Compelling Business Case (if you can)

This one is obvious, but not as easy as it appears. In our cost/benefit focused world, you must be able to prove your point. However - and this is crucial - often, you cannot present a rock-solid case for the change you may be proposing. Several years ago, I was working with a scientist from Bell Labs, back when it was a pure research lab. He told me that if a solid business case for development on the transistor would have been required, the research may have been scrapped. At that time, he said, no one could envision the varied uses that led to the transistor's ultimate commercial value, so its development costs would likely have far exceeded the currently identified, expected value.

Whether this was fact or just one scientist's opinion, his point of view provides a lesson we should grasp. Part of your role as a leader, is to help people go to places they have never been before. That means you will be frequently blazing new trails, with great ideas for doing things differently, which have never been fully proven. You still have to find and present evidence to convince people that a new and different approach is worth pursuing. Gut feel or personal opinion is seldom enough.

Finally, be reminded that you may have to rely on evidence other than facts, because sometimes indisputable facts just don't seem to pan out. For instance the cost advantage for a high tech company to outsource its customer service might be relatively easy to prove. But in another example, recall the surprising response when Southwest Airlines announced they were going to trial a dramatic change in their boarding procedures by offering pre-assigned seats. (Given that every other airline does it this way, wouldn't it be fair to say this process has proven to be most desirable?) Who would have thought that SWA customers would raise such an outcry, when their airline wanted to adopt the industry norm?

4. Build Advocates Inside and Beyond Your Current Circle.

Challenging the Process is hard and lonely work because it leads to change that can create discomfort and produce opponents. You need to be able to build a ground swell of support for your process or procedure innovations. Having key people throughout your organization carrying your message forth is a necessity to make progress. If you are unable to get others to join in, you can easily run out of energy and your novel idea will forever remain simply an idea, not an implemented improvement. A critical mass of supporters, from a wide variety of levels and interests, is often all you will need to be successful.

5. Build Credibility Through Small Wins.

In most organizations, being associated with a big idea that is a success is a great lift for your reputation and your career. But you have to earn the right to be heard on the big, important items. The second commitment in the definition of Challenge the Process refers to "generating small wins." Small wins allow you to build a track record with people, and to show that you can be counted on to deliver what you promise. Following through on promises and commitments is at the core of credibility. When you are viewed as credible, others will have more confidence when you propose a new way of doing something that is currently unproven. Do what you say you will do everyday, deliver consistently on the small things, and very soon you will be involved with - and trusted with - some very large opportunities about which you are passionate.

6. Choose Your Battles Thoughtfully.

It can be easy to become seduced by the dark side, where you become a constant critic of everything in hopes of demonstrating how smart or valuable you are. Don't become known as a whiner or complainer. Accept the fact that you cannot Challenge every Process. You must be selective and apply your time, talent, and energy toward improvements or breakthroughs that are an investment for you.

Like all aspects of leadership, Challenge the Process is about results. It is easy to Monday-morning quarterback and call out problems or inefficiencies that need attention. It is much harder to inspire and mobilize people to figure out and implement better ways of doing things. Focus on a few opportunities where you can take some real and measurable action.

 

Steve Coats is a managing partner and co-owner of International Leadership Associates, a leadership development education and consulting firm. He is also a Leadership Challenge® Workshop Master Facilitator. For nearly twenty years, Steve has taught, coached, and consulted with executives and all levels of managers in several countries around the world. His expertise is in the related areas of leadership development, team development, personal growth, change, and business strategy. Steve can be contacted via e-mail.

March 2007: Challenge the Process Part I by Steve Coats

Challenge the Process is one of my favorite practices for a couple of reasons. First, it is just great fun to see or read about some of the remarkable improvements and breakthroughs that people have made. I love the imagination of selling pre-cut lettuce in a bag or $300 iPods® in a vending machine. Some ideas work and some don't, but innovations like these sure keep the world interesting.

It is also a favorite because of its relevance. Challenge the Process is the practice of business growth, and growth is one of the most perplexing dilemmas facing organizations today. If they are unable to adapt, change and grow, it is impossible for organizations of any kind to produce solid results over time and literally survive. Yet, as crucial as this practice is, it may also be the most misunderstood of all. I continue to find people misinterpreting the meaning of Challenge the Process in a variety of ways. In fact, in some circumstances, the practice is misapplied as a defense for almost any kind of disagreement ("You're an idiot, but don't be personally offended since I am merely Challenging the Process!") One way to better understand what it is, is to ensure we know what it is not.

Challenge the Process does not mean challenge the values or standards, just because uncompromising integrity or flawless quality are too hard to live by. It does not mean attacking other people when we don't agree with their ideas or points of view. Nor does it mean seeking to dismantle what is working well, or attempting to eliminate something that is simply a personal inconvenience for you. Challenge the Process is about finding and implementing new and better ways of doing things in order to constantly improve to grow.

People in most organizations today have some pretty ambitious objectives to meet each year. The waters are choppy and the wind in their faces is strong, which means that hitting the numbers takes a lot of hard work. But hard work by itself is seldom the answer. It also takes a lot of different work. I frequently ask people if they think they can meet their goals for the coming years by continuing to do their work the way they are currently doing it. Without exception, the answer is no. This is one reason why organizations need more leaders. They need people who will cease the ongoing complaining about how outrageous goals might be (and some indeed are beyond reason), and start rallying people to figure out what can be done to accomplish them. Isn't it ironic that so-called unachievable or impossible goals are accomplished all the time? Somehow, people do figure out an answer.

In another article in this occasional series, we will share with you some of the proven to-do items that enable people in organizations to be more effective in Challenging the Process and implementing innovative ideas and methods. Be mindful how demanding this work can be, because it is seldom easy to convince others to let go of that with which they are comfortable and accept something different.

In the meantime, there are a couple of things you can immediately start practicing as a leader, in order to lay the groundwork for helping others embrace the need to challenge the way things are done. First, do not allow new ideas to be immediately discounted with little or no consideration. Intervene by prompting rich and open dialogue to ensure that ideas get a fair hearing. Second, never allow invalid assumptions to rule the day over proven facts. Ask people to justify their beliefs about whether something new will work or why it won't. Innovation and growth require discipline and thoughtfulness. Finally, spend less time reviewing and reporting on results already in the bank and more time on pursuing new possibilities. And remember the practice is Challenge the Process, not "Talk about Challenge the Process," so this pursuit requires more than simply surfacing and discussing new possibilities. You must allow people the opportunity to do some experimenting, tinkering, creating of prototypes, and so forth, before you can hope to achieve the results you are seeking.

 

Steve Coats is a managing partner and co-owner of International Leadership Associates, a leadership development education and consulting firm. He is also a Leadership Challenge® Workshop Master Facilitator. For nearly twenty years, Steve has taught, coached, and consulted with executives and all levels of managers in several countries around the world. His expertise is in the related areas of leadership development, team development, personal growth, change, and business strategy. Steve can be contacted via e-mail.

February 2007: Me and My LPI by Sharon Landes

I recently participated in a Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI) Clinic offered by The Leadership Challenge® Workshop Master Facilitator Peter Alduino. I hadn't taken an LPI in more years than I can remember, so figured it was time to reassess. As a result, I'm feeling a great deal more empathy and kinship with workshop participants these days. And my personal LPI analysis led me to some key points that have influenced how I present and coach the LPI.

• I often use a version of the SARAH model (Shock, Anger, Resistance, Acceptance, Help/Hope) when I introduce the LPI and lately I've been emphasizing the point that Acceptance does not necessarily mean Agreement. That is, that although a respondent, or even several respondents, may see you in particular way, you don't have to agree that it's the "God's honest truth" about you. You can even disagree . . . strongly. All you have to do is accept that's the way they see it, and then make your own decisions about what you want to do differently.

• The choice is yours! What you do in response to your LPI is "between you and you." You get to decide what to work on, what to leave alone for a while, how to proceed. And although we, as facilitators, can offer up lots of 'best practices' suggestions about how to choose and how to proceed to follow up, ultimately, what makes the most sense to the individual, for his or her own reasons, will engender the greatest commitment and motivation for behavior change.

• I've also started asking folks to consider the question, "Where does the responsibility for behavior change lie?" It's easy and natural to assume that when a respondent reports low frequency in a given behavior, it's up to the leader to find ways to engage in that behavior more often, notwithstanding the other side of the relationship. That will likely raise the score, but it may not be the best thing to do. Here's an example that comes up a lot. Let's say someone gets a low score on the Encouraging the Heart behaviors from one or two respondents, and in discussion, they complain that, in truth, they have a couple of Direct Reports whose performance is lacking and, "they'll be !**#!'ed if they pat someone on the head for just showing up!" Perhaps, in that situation, the responsibility for change lies with the Direct Reports; and that rather than focusing primarily on finding ways to give more praise, the leader needs to look at Enabling Others to Act behaviors; and on setting clear performance standards and opening dialogue to insure that expectations are clear and staff are accountable and take ownership for results. Just be sure to caution folks to be honest with themselves, rather than using the 'convenient excuse' that it's always the respondents who have to change!

• Another way I've started to think about the key point above is this: the 'right' question is not necessarily the most obvious one. So when I coach and consult with folks on their LPI's I try to remember not to start with a conversation about how to raise behavior scores or how they interact in relation to individual behaviors, but with a more general inquiry into what's going on in their area and in their work relationships. With that insight, we can interpret the LPI data in context together, understand the unique situation more fully, and more successfully zero in on the critical issues and the behaviors that will offer the most leverage for improved relationships and results.

The Leadership Challenge® Workshop Master Facilitator Sharon Landes' expertise includes leadership, ethics and diversity. She has collaborated with recognized thought leaders in these areas and has led and designed programs based on Terry Pearce's Leading Out Loud and Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner's The Leadership Challenge and Credibility. She can be reached at shlandes@comcast.net.

January 2007: HopeLab Encouraged the Heart to Challenge the Process by Renee Harness

The following is a sneak peek at a case study from the upcoming fourth edition of The Leadership Challenge. Look for it in stores August 2007!

It has long been my belief and experience that when individuals' personal values are aligned with organizational values, great things can be achieved. HopeLab, a non-profit organization that helps young patients with chronic illnesses, demonstrates the power of both personal and organizational values in delivering breakthrough results for their organization, employees, and most importantly, for their clients.

While studying immunology at Tufts University, Pam Omidyar began to think about how to help young cancer patients "fight back" against their cancer with video games. In 2001, she founded HopeLab, where she now serves as board chair. In creating the game Re-Mission^TM, HopeLab has achieved cutting-edge results by balancing the rigor of scientific research and the technological creativity of video gaming to manage health-related outcomes for children. The game challenges the player on a journey through the bodies of young patients with different kinds of cancer. Players control a nanobot named Roxxi who destroys cancer cells, battles bacterial infections, and manages realistic, life-threatening side effects associated with cancer.

Using values as their guideposts, HopeLab has achieved a delicate balance between science and creativity, which has led to great success with Re-Mission^TM. In scientific trials completed in 2006, the game had a positive impact on adherence to treatment that resulted in significant increases in the quality of life for young cancer patients.

Along with Pat Christen, the President of HopeLab, Pam has created an environment where Encouraging the Heart and celebrating values, is a part of the fabric of the organization. Their values are at the center of what they do and how they do it, and you'll often find them asking "is this in line with our values?" in order to make decisions. The organization has even gone as far as getting staff input on whether the compensation programs are aligned with their values.

While organizational values are very important in setting the tone and providing a guide for what is important in an organization, research cited by Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner shows that commitment to an organization is even more dependent on individuals' values. Pat and Pam recognize that personal values drive not only commitment, but passion. Their goal is to help the staff feel comfortable in expressing those passions while ensuring that it is done with respect to differing opinions. In developing Re-Mission^TM, HopeLab staff often had differing opinions, among themselves and with the scientists, game developers and other collaborators supporting the project—but balancing these differing opinions to achieve shared goals have made Re-Mission^TM and HopeLab successful. According to Pat Christen:

"You have to have difficult conversations. The place to go is the place of heat. Where the heat is most intense, is where the creativity is. My job is to put the systems in place to allow people to walk right into the fire and come out on the other side." Valuing "compassionate efforts based on scientific evidence" is critical in helping ground the conversations between the staff members as they "walk through the fire."

The uncommon mix of staff competencies and expertise, which includes research, psychology, game development, nutrition, communications, health law and policy, and organizational development, has undoubtedly led to HopeLab's ability to Challenge the Process. The organization believes in "continually challenging the highest standards," as well as "creative experimentation." But they challenge not only their own standards, but also commonly held beliefs outside of the organization—beliefs that video games have only a negative impact on young people, and that scientific rigor cannot go hand in hand with creativity.

HopeLab has challenged these beliefs, and more, in the development of Re-Mission^TM. Now they Challenge the Process as they work to identify other innovative solutions that will address childhood obesity, sickle cell disease, autism, and major depressive disorder, in addition to their ongoing work in cancer. Go Roxxi!

 

Renee Harness is the co-founder of the Meridian Leadership Center and has led organizational development, leadership and effectiveness initiatives in corporations and academia for nearly 15 years. She is a part of The Leadership Challenge® Master Facilitator Network.

December 2006: The Leadership Challenge® launches in China

View the Slideshow

Recently, the principles of The Leadership Challenge® were put to into action by….The Leadership Challenge®. The workshop and assessment tool based on Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner's landmark book, were translated into simplified Chinese and published in a new corner of the world, The People's Republic of China. Wiley Asia, our Chinese publishing partner, Century Wave, (an imprint of PHEI, Publishing House Electronic Industry), and Master Facilitators Lily and Peter Cheng Modeled the Way for a group of 90 trainers, consultants, HR professionals, and media at the October 23rd launch in Beijing. The launch included a speech via video from Jim Kouzes, background on The Leadership Challenge®, The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership®, the LPI, and the workshop, and the success stories of clients. The hosts felt they were successful in Inspiring a Shared Vision. According to Adeline Lim, Senior Manager of Channel Development for Wiley Asia, "The success of this launch expedited our plan to expand the workshops and products with strategic marketing of the brand and products into the various industries in China, driving a series of Leadership Fairs, building strategic training partners, and local Master Facilitators as well as establishing local editorial research team to look into various aspects of leadership development that may subsequently lead into the publishing of local supplements or books to compliment and enhance The Leadership Challenge® brand."

The launch was followed by the country's first Leadership Challenge® Public Workshop, conducted over two days by Master Facilitator Craig Haptonstall. The participants included executives and consultants from such corporations as Nokia, HP, and Motorola. Students were very enthusiastic and eager to participate at the workshop, but Challenged the Process as they raised important questions regarding cultural differences in the assignments and case studies. Ultimately though, their feedback was encouraging thus abating previous worries that Chinese culture would not be receptive to interactive learning. As Haptonstall said, "This represents a huge amount of change that is taking place in the country, especially over the past five years. The people who are taking on the challenge of bringing leadership development to the country are true pioneers, and being a pioneer is no easy challenge…it's not for the weak of heart. It takes great courage to forge a new direction, to take steps not in the shadow of another." By the end of the workshop, the attendees were already discussing the possible ways of Enabling Others to Act through the implementation of The Leadership Challenge® Workshop and LPI in their organizations or with their clients.

Next in China, we will be publishing the Student LPI and holding Leadership Fairs in various cities, as well as the education and certification of local trainers and Master Facilitators. Haptonstall Encourages the Heart by saying, "The Leadership Challenge® is a catalyst for future growth and development of leadership in China."

November 2006: A Sustainable Leadership Challenge by Daren Blonski

For those of you who haven't seen the documentary, An Inconvenient Truth featuring Al Gore, it highlights the Earth's immediate climate crisis. With all due respect, the film is moving, but it should not take a dramatized documentary for us to realize the crisis we face. Clearly, we have an effect on our environment-scientific data leaves no other conclusion. Part of the problem is that we utilize our environment with no regard for it. In addition to the consequences of global warming, environmental resources will become scarce as the world's population increases. Census data tells us that the world's population is currently six and a half billion and is expected to reach nine billion by 2050. At what point will the earth no longer be able to support its population? No one really knows.

For Generation X, there are many impending catastrophic issues. Unless we change "business as usual" and take a collective global stand against the degradation of the environment, our doom is sealed. Although I believe greatly in the resilience of the human spirit and our ability to intervene, one cannot help but wonder if we will reach a point where there are no more opportunities for intervention.

The only solution to the environment/population collision starts with you and me. Whether a CEO of a Fortune 100 Company or a member of the local community action group, you should have a vested interest in finding ways to shift our current path. The solution is complex, and each of us needs to be a leader in the process. As The Leadership Challenge states "Leadership is Everyone's Business." Leadership is the ticket to a sustainable future.

The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership®, provide us with an ideal framework to enlist others to want this sustainable future:

• Model the Way - Learning to Model the Way is essential to any leader's success. To be an effective leader you must be a shining example of the message you intend to deliver. Leadership is inherently about relationships and is experienced through various forms of communication. Modeling the Way is about communicating your message from a place of integrity. Leading others to a sustainable future means that first we must live in a sustainable way.
• Inspire a Shared Vision - Changing our attitude toward the environment is going to take an incredible adjustment in the way we currently think. No longer will we be able to wash pollutants downstream and think that they will never show up in drinking water. Nor will we be able to continue to cut down our trees and think that it does not have an effect on the ozone layer and eventually temperatures around the world. We need to understand that we live in an interconnected world. The leaders of today and tomorrow must Inspire a Shared Vision of interconnectedness. A simple solution that would provide some relief would be to buy the things we need, and not the things we want. Ninety percent of what we think we need is more realistically only what we want. I envision a world where we all lust after a little less, knowing that we will, in the end, all get a little more.
• Challenge the Process - Each of us has the power to adjust how we live. In The Five Practices® this is called Challenge the Process. Creating a sustainable future is all about challenging our current patterns of behavior. We can all make a little difference in our day-to-day lives. It is no secret that many companies create products that they know will be obsolete in a short amount of time. It is time to start creating socially responsible products that will not intentionally end up in land fills. Perhaps you are the head of a large company, faced with making a tough decision that would decrease your profits slightly, but would greatly benefit the climate. Will we step up to the challenge, or will we wait until the world is no longer inhabitable?
• Enable Others to Act - When I speak of sustainability, I am not talking about left or right political agendas. In order for an effective sustainable movement to take place, all parties need to embrace the values of sustainability. Consuming less simply needs to become the "cool" thing to do. All who depend on air and water to live have a vested interest in embracing principles of collaboration and "green-ness." We need to empower each other to act responsibly, helping others to understand and to behave in ways that give thought for the future.
• Encourage the Heart - The first unit of change is the heart! In The Leadership Challenge this practice is called Encourage the Heart. Effective leaders must recognize, appreciate, and celebrate the success of those whose efforts have made a difference. Doing so will build the desire to continue along a path that re-creates a world that will sustain us for generations to come.

One of the Master Facilitators for the Leadership Challenge® Workshop, Sharon Landes, concludes her two day sessions by reciting a piece from the Hopi Elders. This powerful statement provides a few moments of self-reflection and consideration of personal responsibility.

You have been telling the people that this is the Eleventh Hour.
Now you must go back and tell the people that this is The Hour.

Here are the things that must be considered:
    Where are you living?
    What are you doing?
    What are your relationships?
    Are you in right relation?
    Where is your water?
    Know our garden.
    It is time to speak your Truth.
    Create your community.
    Be good to each other.
    And do not look outside yourself for the leader.

This could be a good time!

There is a river flowing now very fast.
It is so great and swift that there are those who will be afraid.
They will try to hold on to the shore.
They will feel like they are being torn apart, and they will suffer greatly.

Know the river has its destination.

The elders say we must let go of the shore, push off toward the middle of
the river, keep our eyes open, and our heads above the water.

See who is there with you and celebrate.

At this time in history, we are to take nothing personally, least of all
ourselves! For the moment we do, our spiritual growth and journey comes to a halt.

The time of the lonely wolf is over.
Gather yourselves!

Banish the word struggle from your attitude and vocabulary.

All that we do now must be done in a sacred manner and in celebration.

We are the ones we have been waiting for.

The Elders,
Oraibi, Arizona
Hopi Nation

We have a pending crisis on our hands. Waiting for others to solve it will not work. What legacy will you leave? Will you step up to make a sustainable difference in your community?

Daren Blonski is a consultant working for Sonoma Learning Systems, an authorized affiliate of the Leadership Challenge. Daren studied at UC Davis where he received his bachelors in Organizational Studies. His passions are leadership philosophy and entrepreneurship. He enjoys spending time with his wife Shae and finding adventures outdoors. He can be e-mailed at daren@sonomalearning.com.

October 2006: Small Wins by Lisa Shannon

Small Wins and One Red Paperclip

I'm the kind of leader that struggles with small wins. Generally obsessed with the big picture and often impatient with what I feel like are the tedious steps necessary to reach the end state, Small Wins just seem like hurdles, when I'd rather be pole vaulting. Still, I understand the concept (as well as being acutely aware of my shortcomings as a leader), and it certainly makes sense to me. In fact, when I think about Small Wins a smile appears on my face as I hear Mickey Rooney singing, "Put one step in front of the other" from the childhood holiday classic Santa Clause is Comin' to Town. Of course, I say to myself, one step in front of the other.

I recently gained a whole new appreciation for small wins after a hearing a report by Adam Davidson on NPR. The story begins just over a year ago with 27-year-old Kyle McDonald who wanted to revive a childhood trading game. In the ultimate internet barter, Kyle started with one red paperclip and in just fourteen trades, ended up with a 3-bedroom house in the Town of Kipling, Saskatchewan. The story goes onto say how he has become a "media sensation," flying around the world for media interviews and appearing on Good Morning America, CNN, and 20/20 here in the United States. In his report, Davidson goes onto say that "inspiring" is the word most often used to describe Kyle McDonald's quest. His story is causing people to wonder about their own red paperclip in the context of the first step toward a goal or dream.

Kyle's story is a bit too gimmicky to inspire me, but it has become a powerful testament to the power of Small Wins. He not only got the house, but he got the world rooting for him to get the house. Total strangers from around the globe began to share his vision as one trade led to another, led to another, led to another. In The Leadership Challenge Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner put it this way, "Successful leaders help other to see how progress can be made by breaking the journey down into measurable goals and milestones…. Leaders keep the dream in mind; then they act and adapt on the move."

September 2006: The Five Practices by Charles St. John

It's About Life

Bill Daniels, the billionaire "father of the cable TV industry" once said, "Leadership isn't something you leave on your desk at night - it's something you do in all aspects of your life."

Janice, an international bank vice-president and a coaching client of mine, truly exemplified Bill Daniels' thought. Our coaching work initially centered on her role as a leader in her organization and specifically on her LPI feedback. But it became clear rather quickly that the most important, immediate application of our exploration of The Five Practices® was in her personal life with her husband and two young children.

In seeking a better work/life balance, Janice could see that there were problems brewing in her family that, if left unattended, could lead to serious negative consequences for her and her loved ones. She also realized that if these family matters weren't handled they would end up weighing her down and reducing her effectiveness as a leader on the job. She suddenly made the connection that the leadership practices which before she had only thought applied to her work life, in fact applied directly to her family situation.

As she reflected on her family she became aware that they never talked about their values and what was important in how they treated each other (Model the Way). Similarly, they had no vision as a family - no common aspirations to look forward to (Inspire a Shared Vision). Janice knew that if her family was to make needed changes they would have to take a hard look at some long-standing behavior patterns (Challenge the Process). She also observed that she was part of the problem. She mistakenly tried to "do it all" and thus was holding her children back from assuming more responsibility as they grew up (Enable Others to Act). And, while feeling very loving and caring toward her family, she realized that her "busyness" had caused her to begin to take for granted the things that her husband and kids did well. She was forgetting to give the small "thank you's" and hugs that are vital in loving relationships (Encourage the Heart).

Janice understood that The Five Practices couldn't be applied at home the exact way she could apply them at work. She effectively translated them into her personal life and, over a six-month period, was able to make dramatic changes that brought her family together in new ways. She also gained insights and energy that made her a more effective leader on the job. She commented, "I used to think of leadership as something I did at work. Now I realize that it's about life. I'm a leader in all of my life."

JULY 2006: ENABLE OTHERS TO ACT BY DICK HELLER

Leadership Maturity

I recently came across a fascinating story on leadership and maturity in The New York Times (April 2, 2006). The article recounted the tale of Erika Sunnegardh, a 40-year-old soprano who was about to make her debut at the Metropolitan Opera. It was, in fact, one of those dramatic moments in the arts. As the understudy, Ms. Sunnegardh, had received the call to step in as Leonore, the lead role of Beethoven's "Fidelio," and replace the ailing star, Karita Mattila. On top of the challenge of debuting at the Met as a leading player, Ms. Sunnegardh's performance was scheduled for Saturday, the day of the Met's radio broadcast. An audience of about 10 million people from around the world would be listening.

Erika Sunnegardh's story was an interesting one. Raised by musical parents in Sweden, she had studied singing and modern dance. She had come to New York City to seek her fortune at the age of 19. Lacking success she began, like so many other would-be performers, to wait tables. This work in restaurants and for catering groups continued for twenty years. But she also continued to sing, primarily performing in church choirs.

Frustrated by her stagnation Ms. Sunnegardh eventually resumed her training, this time returning to study with her mother. Her earlier training in New York had left her without the assurance, the confidence necessary for success. ''Vocal technique is like money or sex,'' she explained in the article, ''If you don't have it, it's all you think about.'' Her focus as well as her abilities improved and after an audition with Music Director James Levine, she was offered the opportunity to understudy and eventually play roles on the Metropolitan Opera stage.

Jonathan Friend, the artistic administrator of the Met, commented, "We were amazed at how big the voice was, especially at the top.'' He added that she had both beauty and maturity. ''She was, as a human being, grown up,'' he said. ''She had had another life, and knew what she didn't know.'' On her website Ms. Sunnegardh puts it this way, "Clearly, we re-visit old territory to learn more deeply, or to refresh our humility, and maybe most of all, gain clear insight into our magical, mystical and blessed stat of 'non-knowing.' It is after all then, and only then, that we can learn and grow at all!"

Daniel J. Wakin interviewed the singer only a few days before she learned that she was to star in "Fidelio." He wrote, "The humbleness of waiting on tables, she said, prepared her to deal with the pressure of a big career. Singing at funerals taught her that musical performance was not a celebration of the ego but something to be transmitted to other individuals. Years of struggle freed her from the debilitating fear of failure."

The New York Times review of the performance was less than glowing, but it pointed out "after intermission, in Act II, she seemed more relaxed and took greater chances, especially in the climatic scene when she defies the tyrannical governor of the prison and saves the day. She grew stronger as the opera swept forward to its joyous conclusion… she has talent, grit and determination."

By now you may wondering how this story relates to leadership. But let me assure you that Ms. Sunnegardh's story carries some very solid leadership lessons. The first, of course, is persistence. Eventually, the strength of her vision caused Ms. Sunnegardh to return to her love of music and seek out the opportunity that would give her true career a rebirth. It was her life experience, however, that really made her a better singer. She came to realize, through her singing at the church and at funerals, that "it wasn't just about her."

Ms. Sunnegardh had developed "artistic maturity." I believe that true leaders have to develop "leadership maturity." Great leaders realize that their role is not about themselves, but "something to be transmitted to other individuals."

As leaders, we must always Enable Others to Act. The key to success is not found in celebrating our own ego and individual accomplishments. It is, however, in creating confidence within the people we are counting on for great performance.

June 2006: The Five Practices by Beth High

The Five Practices—Latin Style

I recently had the privilege of conducting The Leadership Challenge® Workshop for SAS Mexico. SAS Mexico is a subsidiary of the parent company based in the United States and, as such, is a fully independent group. The president of the group, Jose Luis Sanchez, is a past client and had requested the Workshop for his management staff as well as other key positions. Most of the participants hold customer-facing positions within the company and some work on cross-functional teams focused on selling software solutions.

Sanchez had chosen leadership development to serve as a foundational piece of their business plan. He strongly believed that each and every member of his team had something valuable to contribute to the success of the company, and he wanted that "something special" surfaced and put to work. Using The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership®, we anticipated that each member of the class would be able to explore and then articulate the things they could do to lead from their position. Neither of us anticipated that the Workshop would cause a big shift in their thinking. We were wrong. The Five Practices model enabled learning at a much broader and deeper level than was expected by all parties connected with the class: the participants, the president, and me.

I arrived a day early to set up class and prepare. Mr. Sanchez and I met so we could go over his opening remarks as well as his thoughts about the dynamics of the group-who would sit with who, who would talk the most, who I might need to draw out, etc. At the end of the first day of the Workshop he told me that he was hearing lots of feedback...and all of it was enthusiastic. He had anticipated that there would be push back from several in the group; this was the first assumption that didn't hold true. Assumption number two was that the ones he anticipated would be withdrawn were not. Assumption number three was that they would be prone to working in specific groups. As is often the case, when we mixed them up, they continued to be equally engaged.

During the debrief at the end of the class, I mentioned these assumptions to the group and asked for their thoughts. They told me that the class had allowed them hear the original thoughts and ideas of people whom with they normally only experienced one type of role-centered conversation. During the class they gained the insight that each member of this team had unique values, a vision for how things could be, and ideas about the challenges they might face. They said that sharing these things enabled them to see each other in a new light which was sparking lots of ideas and making them feel more like a team. I asked, "Have you not felt like a team before?" There was a pause then one woman raised her hand. "You need to understand that in our culture we have been raised to defer to leaders and authority. Since we were children we have been told to hold our tongues when a leader speaks, to be good followers. The Five Practices model has shown us that we can be good followers and good leaders at the same time, and that it is our responsibility to do so." This shift enabled them to commit to President Sanchez's request to "develop yourselves as leaders to help us continue to develop as a company."

Sharing The Five Practices model in that Mexico City class provided a rich learning experience for all of us. The participants gained a fundamental understanding of the expectations and confidence their leader had for them. They felt enabled by that and by the discovery of new dimensions of their co-workers, representing additional resources available to them. The president learned that his vision of having his team be a strong group of leaders was sound. The Five Practices model aligned well with his favorite sports metaphor: "When you are on a team, you need to be ready to step up when someone passes you the ball." I discovered that the true power of The Five Practices model is in helping individuals and teams, in any culture, reveal the capacity they have as leaders. How it happens may differ from culture to culture, but the possibilities are there to be discovered.

MAY 2006: INSPIRE A SHARED VISION BY VALARIE WILLIS

All Aboard!

Getting a team to change their old habits and begin moving in the same direction is a huge Leadership Challenge. The degree of difficulty became very clear to me after listening to a managing director of a software company. Responsible for international sales and marketing, she faced a big challenge: how to create the same success internationally that had been achieved in the domestic marketplace.

The secret to their domestic success had been the organization's unwavering stance for "Customer-Driven Innovation." And they didn't just give this lip service to this slogan; they lived it out daily. They followed their customers around, watched how they used their product, and from this they learned what worked and what didn't work. Experimentation and risk taking was always encouraged and more importantly everyone was asked to get on board with customer-driven innovation. " It was so deeply ingrained in our operations that it became a part of our very fabric," she explained. This innovation state of mind made this software company quite successful, even though they were small.

One key ingredient to embedding this level of service and attention was to require every person, regardless of their position to spend time on "customer contact activities." This meant helping employees to understand the customer's needs by involving them in listening to customer feedback after a product launch. In this organization, everyone felt connected to the product and to the organization. Everyone was on board!

Replicating this kind of magic globally was not going to be an easy task. Arriving at one of the international locations, the managing director didn't want to waste any time. She went to the office immediately after getting off the red eye flight, driven to make a difference. The local office faced crushing deadlines and long work hours, but the managing director was anxious to set aside business as usual so that she could meet everyone and begin addressing the challenge they all faced. She did the unthinkable. In the midst of this great challenge, she shut the company down for a day.

She spent that day doing two things: building relationships so that she could gain their trust and asking employees to start partnering with their customers. This approach was unheard of at that location. However, she knew that everyone from the engineers to the janitors had to get on board. As she put it, "so the engineers got out of their pajamas (they worked from home), the janitors hung up their mops, and the managers stopped managing for the day."

She asked her team to suspend judgment for one day and invited them to be open to the possibility that they could turn the company around and become profitable. She believed in their ability to make this happen, although it had not occurred as of yet. She explained that the only ingredient missing was the customer. People who were designing the product had never spoken with the customer. This team could use a little 'outsight' to move the project along.

She shared a compelling vision with the team and then she spent time teaching them customer-contact techniques. After training, she handed everyone a phone list with their designated assignments. She challenged the team to make calls and find out how they could make a difference in the customer's lives. She modeled the way for them and then she encouraged them along the way. As she put it, "by the end of the day, the place was on FIRE!." They re-grouped, shared their stories and what they had learned, generated ideas for immediate improvement, and most importantly, they came to realize how much people cared about what they were doing. This gave the team the fuel to burn through the project. Within seven months the division became profitable for the first time in their history. Results can happen when everyone is invited to come aboard and make a difference!

April 2006: Enable Others to Act by Robert Thompson

What Does Your LPI Say About You?

Most people would agree that The Five Practices model and the Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI) are widely accepted as tremendous business tools. While he book has sold over a million copies from the "Business" bookshelf, I often think that it would fit just as well in the "Self Help" section of a bookstore. Moreover, after years of delivering The Leadership Challenge Workshop and coaching individuals using The Five Practices model (rarely held in anything other than a business setting), I can assure you that the biggest gain from the work for most everyone is personal. Of course, this personal growth tends to leak and often pours into their professional life. Here is a quick real life story that illustrates the point.

At a senior level TLC workshop some time ago, a Vice President came up to me rather forcefully at a break and complai