24-Karat Leaders

24-Karat Leaders

     This week’s Leadership and Emerging Media’s graduate course assignment covered numerous informative readings, some video content review, and self-directed research which all dealt with various aspects of leadership and communication.  The common thread through all of this information was a focus on a few fundamentals of genuine leaders, their vision, the environment they create, and their communication.  It has been said that “all that glitters is not gold,” but when studying leaders – transformational leaders – visionary leaders, these folks are the exception.  Their charisma, passion, and drive toward their vision glitters to the point of blinding brightness and they are indeed 24-karat leaders.  Just like 24-karat gold they are genuine, honest, and pure.  In the article, To Lead, Create a Shared Vision, these individuals are described as “…forward-looking--envisioning exciting possibilities and enlisting others in a shared view of the future…We know this because we asked followers” (2009).  Driven by this forward, innovative sight, 24-karat leaders are practicing Habit #2 that Stephen Covey calls “beginning with the end in mind” in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People (1989).  Covey goes on to describe this habit as being “based on the principle that all things are created twice.”  He states that in order to have a physical creation (2nd time) it has to have been visualized or imagined first (1st time).  Visionary leaders use this power of visualization to tap into their imagination.  They then put those visualizations into vision statements and this becomes the framework for goals and actionable end results.  In researching this topic I have come across some true gems of vision statements.  Take for instance the beautiful clarity and inspirational brevity of these select few:

Feeding America: A hunger-free America.

Make-A-Wish: People everywhere will share the power of a wish.

Oxfam: A just world without poverty.

Habitat for Humanity: A world where everyone has a decent place to live.

     When looking at specific visionary leaders and their forward-thinking perspectives we have the dreams of John F. Kennedy to put a man on the moon, or Eleanor Roosevelt’s visualization of a world where there would be equal opportunity for women and minorities (Ryan, 2009).  Visionary leaders are known too for their inspiring quotes.  Take for example Sir Winston Churchill’s motivational, “The empires of the future are empires of the mind.”  Or there is Michelangelo’s famous line, “The greatest danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it.”  These type of legendary figures bring their visions to life in a way that is bright, inspirational and seemingly larger than life.

      Another reason I’ve given such leaders the 24-karat descriptor hearkens back to the age-old “Golden Rule” with a leadership twist.  So we all know the “Golden Rule” premise of treating others how you want to be treated.  This fundamental principle is also a prime example of the Law of Reciprocity in social psychology.  It is the social rule that states we should repay in kind, what another has provided to us.  We, as humans, are hard-wired in this way.  Here’s the leadership twist, as spoken by Simon Sinek at Global event in March of 2016, “Be the leader you wish you had.”  These seven words when put together in such a way become the “24-Karat Rule” for leaders.   

     As mentioned earlier, the research this week emphasized three elements of leadership: vision, communication, and environment.  Let’s look a bit closer at each of these.  First, the vision which is bigger than just the leader.  In combination the vision through the creativity, focus, and passion of the leader pull people in and inspire them into action.  The followers become passionate about the vision and adopt it as their own.  Humans, inevitably, want to be a part of something that is bigger than the individual concept.  The “manner in which” these 24-karat leaders “demonstrate what is important to them becomes the inherent message they send to those who follow” (Wriggle, 2006).  Second, the environment a leader establishes for his followers is of critical import to the success of the manifestation of the shared vision.  There’s the key, shared vision is what happens when a 24-karat leader connects with followers and their passion for the vision becomes a shared force among those in the group.  This most always happens in an environment where there is trust and safety.  An environment where the leader genuinely understands the people, and the people know they are understood and cared about.  This understanding also allows a true leader to learn what it is that motivates these followers.  A third leadership element that was repeatedly focused on was the leader’s communication style and methods of delivery.  Communication is incredibly important in so many ways and none more so than in being a 24-karat leader.  It goes without saying that leaders have to truly know their followers, but they too, must have earned their trust.  This trust is important within all three of the elements.  Trust means that the followers can believe in the vision, they are safe in their environment, and they are free to communicate with and about the shared vision.  In the words of Gerald Loeb, founding partner of E.F. Hutton, "the desire for gold is the most universal and deeply rooted commercial instinct of the human race."  Though he undoubtedly was referencing financial gain and the monetary value of gold, I think it is fitting here too.  If leaders are 24-karat figures, then surely their vision is the glitter and the pure gold.

     For this week’s wrap up I’d like to tie this all back to the first installment of Strategically Yours and our discussion of Roger’s Diffusion of Innovation Theory (2003).  Applying this theory to leadership one can see how truly visionary leaders are indeed innovators.  Their vision(s) are best shared by and through an accepted understanding of Sinek’s why, why is this vision important.  When opinion leaders (passionate followers) buy in to the vision they then naturally are driven to diffuse the vision throughout groups, organizations, social media, etc. and when enough followers support that innovation a critical mass is reached.  This critical mass then propels the innovation, the leader’s vision, to the tipping point and the sheer momentum of diffusion and growth carry that vision and supported actions on throughout the final stages. 

     This week’s bonus share is from Travis Air Force Base.  I am a member of this base and proud of it.  Last week I shared about a commander’s call and the messages that were shared from base leadership.  This week, that message – our leader’s vision was distributed internally via email and externally to our neighboring community partners.  Communication – check.  Our leader made every effort to meet face-to-face with all base personnel at commander’s calls to ensure his followers shared in his vision and had the passion to carry out the actions to fulfill that vision.  It was a positive, safe environment that fostered the teamwork necessary to carry out actions required to fulfill the vision.  Environment – check.  Vision – check.  For the reader’s consideration I submit the 60^th Air Mobility Wing’s mission, vision, and priorities and the original internal communication of same.

Works Cited:

Covey, S.R. (1989) The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Simon & Schuster. New York, NY.

Kouzes, J. and Posner, B. (2009) “To Lead, Create a Shared Vision.” Retrieved on 14 November 2016 from https://hbr.org/2009/01/to-lead-create-a-shared-vision.

Ryan, J. “Leadership Success Always Starts with Vision.” Retrieved on 14 November 2016 from http://www.forbes.com/2009/07/29/personal-success-vision-leadership-managing-ccl.html.

Wriggle, R. (2006). Strategic Leader as Strategic Communicator. U.S. Army War College. Philadelphia, PA.