Effective Leadership over the Long-Term: A Process of Inclusion and Connection
Feb 23, 2016
Effective Leadership over the Long-Term:
A Process of Inclusion and Connection
“Disadvantaged people are a resource to be tapped rather than a problem to be solved.”
Hard Times Cafe
Every participant is responsible for the whole program
Decisions made by consensus of all present Self-managing teams
◦ Office, accounting, businesses, store, children’s program, membership, Elders etc.
Leader = advisor, clarifier, facilitator Patron leaders emerge around specific issues
Leadership without Authority
How well does the traditional approach to leadership fit the needs and opportunities of today’s world?
Politics has become increasingly fragmented and adversarial
There is a lack of critical thinking and honest discussion of major issues.
Focus is on positions not needs, concerns, or solutions (dueling ads/dollars/talking points)
It may be impossible to discover common ground and find compromise under current conditions.
Political Leadership
Gallup Survey 2000 to 2012
Organizational Leadership
“Of the approximately 100 million people in America who hold full-time jobs, 30 million (30%) are engaged and inspired at work .”
“…roughly 20 million (20%) employees … are actively disengaged. These employees roam the halls spreading discontent.”
“…The other 50 million (50%) American workers are not engaged. They’re just kind of present, but not inspired by their work or their managers.”
“…Seven in 10 American workers are “not engaged” or “actively disengaged” in their work, meaning they are emotionally disconnected from their workplaces and less likely to be productive.”
"If you don't like your job, …you just go in there every day and do it really half-assed.
That's the American way.“
-Homer Simpson
“… having too few engaged employees means our workplaces are less safe, employees have more quality defects, and disengagement is driving up the country’s healthcare costs.”
“U.S. Gallup puts the price tag of active disengagement at up to $550 billion in lost economic activity each year.
And even if America's unsatisfied workers have fulfilling home and social lives, boredom at the job means long days for everybody.”
Traditional models of leadership tend to be based on assumptions that humans are naturally competitive and aggressive and only a few gifted people are qualified to lead.
Robert Sapolsky,Baboon researchSteve Taylor – “The Fall“Story of the dogwood tree Adaptive nature and true nature
Emerging leadership @ HTC
There are good reasons to question these assumptions
Chaotic No clear responsibility
Reactive Impulse Driven
Rigid Total control from the top
Unresponsive Data/$ Driven
Extremes of Ineffective Leadership
Chaos--------Inclusion------Rigidity & Connection
Shared responsibility Responsive
People Driven
The Golden Mean of Leadership
Effective leadership over the long term is a process of Inclusion and Connection
Hypothesis #1:
Provides multiple perspectives, See a larger picture more clearly
Facilitates shared vision and values Leads to intrinsic motivation More able to anticipate problems and
recognize opportunities Increases likelihood of finding creative
solutions Develops potential of participants
Inclusion and Connection
The Process of Inclusion and Connection emerges from Balance and Clear Perception
Hypothesis #2
Inclusion and Connection essentially involves seeing clearly with an open heart.
Potential, Possibilities What needs to be
done Who best to do it How it fits together
Likely outcomes Opportunities Obstacles
Connect by caring Trust/confidence based
on understanding People are more than
costs or means of production
Work becomes challenging and satisfying when it connects to worthwhile mission
See Clearly ..……Open Heart
How Do We Do That?
Balance takes us out of crisis mode
Narrowed vision Increased reactivity, decreased receptivity Tend to return to old methods Increased rigidity More errors, less efficiency Short-term focus More self-centered
Effects of Stress and Tension
Stopping the build up of tension Learning to adapt thoughts and perceptions to meet short and long-term needs and opportunities
Understanding the nature of emotion
Physical, Mental and Emotional Balance involve:
Establish autonomic nervous system balance through Natural Rhythmic Breathing
Use Grounding to recognize and stop the build up of tension
Use a Rhythm Phrase to redirect unproductive thinking
Clarify direction and helpfulness of thought Meditation to fine tune awareness and skill of
redirecting thought
How to Restore and Maintain Physical and Mental Balance
The function of emotion is to provide a quick assessment of the current situation, to help us connect with other people, and to get us moving.
All humans (and many animals) share the capacity to experience the same emotions
Understanding Emotion
There are four kinds of emotion◦Natural emotion – response to
perception of the moment◦Conceptual emotion – response to
thought◦Structural emotion – response to
trauma◦Sustained emotion – (attitude,
motivation) response to emotional habits and beliefs
Understanding Emotion (cont.)
Balance allows us to see a larger picture more clearly
Clear Perception is Shared Perception
Frame – Conceptual habits, beliefs
Filter – Emotional state
Focus – What we pay attention to
How We Limit Perception
Defensiveness Blame, resentment, “should” Seeing people as parts or costs Narrow rigid frame Short-term focus Self-promotion, self centeredness (me frame) Conceptual Fear
Obstacles to Clear Perception
CompassionPersonal ResponsibilityHopeHumility
Components of Clear Perception
Defensiveness (blocks compassion) Control (undermines personal responsibility
Fear (turns away from hope) Self-centeredness (distorts reality – “me-frame”)
Opposite of Clear Perception
Choices