By Ustaz Mark Bang
Each of us has a definition for “good” versus “bad” leadership. Some might argue that circumstances play a role in that definition.
No matter where we set the measurement bar, there will be varying degrees of effectiveness for each leadership style in each different situation with different groups of people interpreting the measure.
I’ve read about leadership since I was a kid. I’ve practised tactical leadership in operational settings, corporate leadership, youth leadership as a coach, family leadership, non-profit leadership as a contributor, a board member, president and board chair. And I own my own businesses. 4+ decades of documented leadership in different settings tells me there is no easy answer.
One thread throughout all of my learning and experiences with leadership is something we don’t talk about enough in my opinion: Calibration of our internal compass. Experienced leaders know, that each rung on a leadership ladder requires a different focus. They understand that different situations call for different leadership styles.
They also understand that anyone in a leadership position is going to be knocked around and beaten up—obviously when they’re first learning the craft—but honestly without end. It’s important to have the ability to calibrate and re-calibrate your internal compass if you step into the world of leadership. The environment changes. The people change. The goals change. The leader changes over time. Expectations, demands, and measurements change.
In such an environment, it is easy for our internal compass to get bumped out of alignment. Reflecting on events at the end of the day, the end of the week, with peers and coaches, and whenever we step into a new situation is important. Being in a leadership position means continual adjustments and growth.
I would say a bad leader, is one who cannot adapt. By adapt, I mean, both externally, to circumstances as they present, and internally. I’m one who believes that leaders serve the people they lead. The definition of leadership has little to do with imposing the will of the “leader.” Imposing the will of the “leader” is better defined as tyranny.
Leadership has more to do with understanding the will and needs of the people being led, the will and needs of the organization, the will and needs of the people they are trying to serve, and finding creative ways to bring everyone’s will and needs into alignment. The process of leading others is one that requires a lot of adjustments and recalibrations.
A “good” leader will embrace the process, expect mistakes, and be true to him/herself and the many people involved. Strong leaders are vital, particularly in an ever-evolving world. From community organizations and volunteer groups to professional associations and corporations, effective leaders ensure that people work together cohesively to accomplish their goals. Bad leaders lack empathy, micromanage, communicate poorly, are egotistical, resist change, lack vision or direction, have a negative mindset, and are inconsistent.
It’s possible to have both good and bad leadership qualities, and there may be certain characteristics in a leader that defines you on either end of the spectrum. In any context, however, it is not an easy thing to be a leader and a good one for that matter.
The best leaders stay humble and remember, that in a shifting business climate, success also often comes thanks to luck. Yes, you must, among other things, be talented to run a business, but that is not a reason to become snooty. Becoming successful is not a show of your remarkable skill, it just means that, now, the bar is set even higher and you must work even harder to prove yourself.
You must also remember, that success is never the work of one single person. Success comes from teamwork, collaboration and the ideas of every engaged person in your team. At first glance, leadership seems like magic. There seem to be so many unknowns. Some say it’s more like art than science. That’s not true.
What many people don’t know is that a lot of magic is based on rules. There are best practices, common procedures to follow, acts that everyone replicates, and processes every magician knows. I guess different people like different leadership styles. For me, it is about adaptability.
If I go to a leader and ask a question about the process, they can give me a rational and valid reason that I am a good leader. If I go to a leader and make a suggestion for change, and they explain to me why or why not my ideas will work, that is a good leader. If I go to a leader in any of these cases and the answer is “Because I said so” or “Because I am the boss,” or something along those lines. That is a bad leader.
It stems from an old hierarchical system of management that is now outdated. It is the thought that not only do people respect other people for being themselves, but people’s positions need to be respected. While this might be true if that person shows they have more experience and knowledge than the others, if someone doesn’t understand that leading is a service to those who they lead, and it becomes an ego trip, then that is a bad leader.
A good leader does not want to lead and does not want to be above others, but others choose him/her due to one’s unique, positive qualities, making one the best candidate. A good leader does not make “great speeches,” does not promise anything, does not scare others, but simply, practically shows a positive example, showing others in practice what and how to do.
In the globally integrated and interdependent world, a good leader does not lead individually, grabbing all the decisions and building one’s own legacy while removing others that might ‘shadow” the leader’s brightness.
Instead, a good leader understands what an integral world needs and creates a positive, purposeful, mutually supportive, and mutually complementing team that can efficiently analyze problems and come to collective, composite decisions and solutions—by also showing an example to others of how only such collective teamwork can be successful in a world where we are all interconnected and depend on each other. “Public Staunchest Ally”
The writer of this article is a Human rights activist, writer and professional teacher.