the art of leading

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Previously I wrote a post called Self Confidence to be a Leader. This article, Leadership by Hypothesis, by Pete Pande of Forbes.com, summarizes that importance of self confidence in a leader. Here is an excerpt:

“Why “leadership by hypothesis?” Two simple answers: 

–Every decision a leader makes–every goal set, target defined, strategy developed–is fundamentally a hypothesis, a more or less educated guess about the future and the correct path to success.

–The more conscious you are of your hypotheses, the better you can manage the inherent uncertainties and risks every leader and organization faces—and in many cases, use those uncertainties to your advantage.

The best leaders are comfortable with hypotheses.”     Keep reading!

Categories : Action, Confidence, Courage, General Leadership // Add Comment »

Entrepreneurs, almost by definition, are adventurous. They strive to make a business thrive in the marketplace. They want their ideas to stand out from all the other ideas that circulate in the marketplace.

But it’s almost a rule that entrepreneurs, as a result of their risk-taking attitudes, “fail” at one time or another. They may learn valuable lessons from those “failures”. Nevertheless they fail in the concrete business sense. Perhaps it just wasn’t the right time for the idea. Or maybe the business lacked long-term vision. There are endless possibilities for the bust.

Most, though, learn at least one important lesson from those failures: the importance of knowing to move on. They know, after several trial-and-error cycles, when they’re just wasting their time on something that simply won’t work.

They learn to trust their instincts, in that sense. And there’s nothing wrong with that.

Haven’t those of you who are avid readers come to predict the quality of the books after reading just a couple of chapters? Surely many of you, after realizing that reading the rest of the book will be an utter waste of time, set it aside and read another book. Perhaps you come to a moment in time that feels more appropriate to read it.

The same happens in entrepreneurship, business, and leadership. Leaders sell ideas. They sell those ideas using different methods. Sometimes those ideas don’t gain ground. Sometimes the methods used to spread those ideas don’t actually spread them.

So what should a leader do when that happens?

Find another idea! Find another method! Recognize the failure in a timely manner, quit your energy-draining efforts, find a new idea or a new method, and try to make it work. Don’t waste your precious time on projects that you realize aren’t worth the time or effort.

Categories : Courage, Failure // Add Comment »

“Whenever men and women straighten their backs up, they are going somewhere, because a man can’t ride your back unless it is bent.”
Martin Luther King, Jr.

Martin Luther King, Jr. was a leader. He was a leader because he had the courage to fight for what he believed in, regardless of the obstacles that he faced. He knew that he would be subject to backlash.

He withstood jail, hate, criticism, threats, and death. He kept his back straight, vigilant of the next rock in his journey, but aware of the ultimate goal: equality. In this context he said what appears at the beginning of this article. He knew that if he bent his back, all the naysayers would pounce and try to go for the kill. They would try to ride his back. But he wasn’t willing to do that, because he knew what he wanted.

This doesn’t mean that he was stubborn. Perhaps he detoured, and certainly he had doubts about his vocation, as every human being does. But he didn’t bend his back.

As a leader, you should be prepared to be countered by many situations. But leaders are leaders because they are convinced of a vision, and are driven almost obsessively by that vision. This obsession is strong enough to ward off these obstacles. It permits you to face these obstacles with a straight back. That’s the only way that you can walk toward your goal.

Now, I’m not condoning “macho-ness”. Sensibility and tact are always valuable tools for the leader. But giving in, bending your back, will never get you to your proposed destination. You’ll be too worn out from all the weight you’ve carried.

Categories : Confidence, Courage, Failure, General Leadership, Goals // 2 Comments »