15 meetings. 2 Days. 2 Leaders Stand-Out. Why?

“…Trust the power of allowing others to know you.  Even though it can seem scary, and it requires the willingness to be vulnerable, it is the key to influence.  The real you – no imitations and role playing – is what people want to know, and the real you is the person to whom they will commit…”

I had a series of separate meetings with professionals over a period of two days. (Including representation from our firm and two third-party firms.)  All individuals conducted themselves professionally and exuded competence in their respective subject matter areas.  Yet, after having some time to reflect on these meetings, two Leaders stood out.  Two Leaders seemed to make the meeting come alive.  They had executive presence.  They had energy.  They are fair but tough and resolute.  They have fervent employee followership.  (One not having a single regrettable employee resignation on the team in memory.)

However, that wasn’t the secret sauce.

THEY WERE AUTHENTIC…and AUTHENTIC LEADERS WIN.  They were passionate about their vision.  They have developed a reputation for execution and being in the trenches with their teams.  They conduct themselves with humility.  They share their anxieties and missteps.  They have developed strong relationships with their teams at all levels.  They don’t shade, color or hide from the truth.

So, when I finished the chapter on Authenticity in the new book I’m reading, I wasn’t surprised to find these two Leaders possessing the profile of “Unusually Excellent” Leaders.   The book is authored by  John Hamm and titled: Unusually Excellent: The Necessary Nine Skills Required For the Practice of Great Leadership).  Here’s a few excerpts from the chapter:

Authentic Leaders Win

• …As a leader, if you do not make peace with your history (mistakes, disappointments, failures), you will forever be reliving them, and you will unconsciously infect your future with the unfinished business of the past.
• …When you appreciate the value of your failures and shortcomings as simply the lessons of life, no matter how painful they were at the time, another opportunity opens up.  You now have a chance to pick the perfect moment and share with your team a story or two of your past disappointments, as a powerful way for you to connect with your followers on a personal level – with humility, which is a cornerstone of being authentic.
• …The best leaders always try to make that kind of personal connection with their followers.  They make it a top priority, whereas less capable leaders do not – often because they just do not have that much interest in their subordinates as individuals…Stand on personal courage to create relationships.  You will be rewarded with loyalty.  (Author shares a powerful story of a new CEO meeting every single one of his employees in his first 90 days on the job.)
• …Trust the power of allowing others to know you.  Even though it can seem scary, and it requires the willingness to be vulnerable, it is the key to influence.  The real you – no imitations and role playing – is what people want to know, and the real you is the person to whom they will commit.
• …Seek feedback from a wide group of your followers.  Try to use it diagnostically, to improve, not as a threat to your self image, self-esteem, or self-worth.
• …The best leaders remember that although no one at the top can completely escape being seen by others as the “boss,” they can find ways to relate at a human level with their followers, from informal gatherings to spontaneous visits.  They seek out and cultivate employees at all levels who will speak to them with real candor.  And they consciously present themselves as accessible and open and vulnerable – that is they talk about their fears, challenges, and failures with humility, candor, and at times even some humor – so as to break down the barriers with those whom they wish to know.  It is the mark of great leaders to know how to communicate with extraordinary authenticity and still be completely professional and appropriate given the specific circumstances, context, and appreciation of the authority they hold within the organization.
• …Authenticity is one of the most difficult aspects of leadership for even the most secure, experienced, successful leaders to fully grasp and own.  Digging into this paradox yields fascinating insights for leaders to master something that ostensibly should be easy, but isn’t: being themselves – always – and owning and embracing their own personalities, flaws, fears, passions and values while still providing the role model behavior that is expected of them in a position of leadership accountability.
• …Perhaps the greatest contribution that communication makes to authenticity is not that it warns us when we are fooling others, but it reminds us when we are fooling ourselves.