In her work as a leader and writer, Frances Hesselbein reminds us that leadership is a matter of how to be, not how to do. Leadership is not about title or destination; it is about our character. Good leaders have strong characters. They are mission-focused, values based, and demographics-driven. They manage for the mission, for innovation, and for diversity.
In the first part of our book, our contributors use this definition as a stepping off point to explore leadership through their unique perspectives: what it is, what it isn't, and how to be a great leader in this time of massive change.
Frances Hesselbein leads the section with a recounting of the influence of Peter Drucker on the development of her own brand of leadership. She discusses the importance of mentorship and of clearly defining one's leadership values and principles. Marshall Goldsmith then takes us on a brief walk through the evolution of leadership from the days of cave people to the professional managers of today by revealing common characteristics of leaders of the past and then sharing seven key trends for leaders of the future. Dave Ulrich advocates viewing your organization from the outside observer perspective of an anthropologist studying an unfamiliar culture. He describes the wisdom of shifting how you look and listen at your organization and the value of considering different perspectives, demonstrating how this can lead to far greater insights and effectiveness for human resources professionals and leaders. Whitney Johnson applies the image of waves to S-curve models, extrapolating from their uses in describing disruptions – new product innovations and ideas in markets – to the analysis of human disruptions in the patterns of our careers and lives. She emphasizes the need to “catch a new wave” on a fairly regular basis and offers suggestions for navigating wave cycles. Patrick Lencioni shows how engaging in some serious self-reflection about what leadership truly means to you and your own sense of identity can reveal some often-difficult truths, but ultimately opens a path to greater satisfaction and effectiveness. Taavo Godtfredsen identifies some tangible action steps that leaders can take to better scale their intentions with their actions so as to optimize their impact on members of their teams. And finally, Susan Scott contemplates the role of obsession in entrepreneurship and leadership and identifies the key obsessional ideas that fueled the creation of her company, Fierce, Inc.