My concern for the upcoming event increased when I asked the executive how their organization defined leadership. His response was, “Well, you really can’t define leadership because there isn’t just one definition. Everyone has their own definition.” Hmmm…. How do you teach something you can’t explain simply?

It’s the job of senior leadership to remove the complexity so it can be taught to future leaders. This organization couldn’t settle on how to define leadership for their organization and that was going to be a problem.

The Two Ironies I noticed

1. First Irony: They wanted to teach leadership, but had never settled on a definition. When I asked about how they define leadership, the response was, “There’s really not one definition for leadership. Leadership is really just how you define it. So it’s a personal thing. It means something different to everyone.” Now here’s my concern for the leadership training event after hearing his comment.If he can’t define leadership himself, how is he going to teach it? Each participant was going to walk away from this training event with two memorable themes: Leadership is very complex and I just need to figure it out on my own.  How did they expect to teach something they couldn’t even define?
2. Second Irony: The executive leaders didn’t have a destination defined. When I listened to each executive speak, each one had some great comments on leadership! But, it was obvious to me they had never gathered together to distill a singular definition of leadership for their company. They didn’t define the leader destination for their own future leaders! How can these executive leaders take their future leaders to a new place of understanding if they don’t even know where they’re taking them?!?

“ If you can’t explain it simply, then you don’t understand it well enough. —ALBERT EINSTEIN

The Simple Definition of Leadership

I don’t think leadership is hard to define at all. Maybe my brain is just too simple, but here’s my definition of leadership. It’s both literal and simple. Once you hear it, you get to turn your attention to the much tougher part, “How do I get each part done?”

By definition, leaders must have two things:

• Followers, otherwise you’re not really leading. As John C. Maxwell says, if you have no followers you aren’t leading, you’re just going for a walk. Remember followers are committed not just compliant. Managers can make staff get things done through compliance, but leaders are able to get it done through commitment.

“ Anybody who thinks that they are a leader and doesn’t have anyone following them is just out for a walk. —JOHN C. MAXWELL

• Someplace to go. You need a destination. Think about it. If the leader and the followers aren’t going anywhere then no one is really leading because no one is even moving! There’s no need for a leader if no one is moving. Leaders can only lead if there is some kind of journey. There must be movement! This means, the leader must see the destination and paint the future vision.

So, How are we supposed to do it?

Now comes the fun part. We get to consider options for how to get it done. The questions we need to ask ourselves are “How do I get followers and how do I move them to a new destination? This is where most leadership books spend their time… on the how of leadership.

• How do I get committed followers?: How do I get my team committed and not just compliant? How do I influence them to want to be on the team?
• How do I cast a vision (destination)?: How do I set a vision and determine the best strategy to move the entire group to that place? Once the destination is set, how do I inspire them to want to go?

There is a wealth of research and books on these how pieces, most centered on both strategy and influence. A recent book by McChesney, Covey and Huling is focused on how to get your team to a new destination through behavioral change. It’s an outstanding look at 4 disciplines you can use to make that happen.

The Gallup Organization researched over 10,000 followers and found that the foundation all followers want from leaders is trust. As you develop your strategy for implementing leadership within your organization, never overlook the importance of starting with trust at all levels in your organization.

And don’t forget to have fun too!

What are the top 3 characteristics you look for in a leader?

(post your comments below)

Still trying to simplify! See you next week.
Russ

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Books referenced in this post:

Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, by Dr. Carol Dweck

Everyone Communicates Few Connect, by John C. Maxwell

4 Disciplines of Execution: Achieving your Wildly Important Goals, by Chris McChesney, Sean Covey, Jim Huling

I collected over 80 quotes that give me inspiration as a salesperson and leader. I hope they bring you some inspiration as well. Get my FREE eBook on Sales and Leadership Inspiration.

Russ Peterson Jr. is the co-founder and Managing Director of iSpeak, Inc. – An award-winning professional development training company. Russ is a speaker, international trainer, and published author on Professional Sales Communication and Business Communication. He delivers workshops, keynotes, and personal communication coaching services to business professionals in the US and around the world. You can connect with Russ directly through Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.