Chapter 2 - Leadership Principles 1-16

Chapter 2
Leadership Principles 1 - 15

P - 1.
Leadership is the actions by one or more persons that influence (guides) the behavior of one or more persons in a group setting. These actions by the leader and/or the group are often purposive (intentional). The actions are meant to influence, or to change the behavior of other people most often of the group. And the actions must be successful, at least in part. Attempts to change behavior that do not result in any changes are just those -- unsuccessful attempts at leadership.

Social change occurs as the result of leadership. The change(s) may be in any direction. The changes may be:

short or long term duration,
positive or negative,
mental (changes in attitudes) or behavioral,
temporary or permanent.

These changes range in size from the very simple daily acts of all of us to the policies of nations and international corporations.

P - 2.
Sometimes, leadership may be accidental and unintentional. The line defining when a person is a leader from when he/she is not a leader is arbitrary. Some people lead by example, by being a role model. They may not do this by their own choice. They may not take part in organizational or group activities, as do most leaders. Is a sports super star or a rock star that serves as a role model for thousands or millions of youth a leader? Certainly, they influence the behavior of people. They cause change, but often it is not purposive. For example, they often set clothing styles or behavior styles for certain groups. The public visibility and popularity of sport and entertainment figures make it relatively easy for them to move from sports or screen heroes to becoming purposive leaders. Tiger Woods is an example of a highly visible professional athlete who is moving into a leadership role, perhaps not deliberately, but nevertheless very influential.

For the most part, the following set of principles is for intentional leadership. Many of these would not apply to people who are unintentional leaders.

P - 3.
Leadership always occurs in-groups. Without a group, you can't have followers; without followers, leadership cannot occur. The groups range from small, temporary and informal clusters of individuals such as friends going to a movie together, to large formal organizations such as business corporations or governments. Most commonly, people think of leaders as people who occupy formal positions such as presidents of organizations, etc. These may or may not be real leaders. True leadership in many groups and organizations may be both fluid and difficult to identify.

It is important to remember that most leadership, which effects our daily lives, occurs outside formal organizations or positions. Your friends or parents who persuade you either directly or indirectly to behave differently are, indeed, providing leadership for you.

The line between what is influence and what is leadership is very fuzzy and arbitrary. I have chosen a broad definition of leadership.

P - 4
Leadership ranges from the smallest decisions such as where to eat lunch to the decisions that effect the directions of nations. Most commonly when people are asked what leadership is, they think about the actions of people in political or formal organizations. If we limit ourselves to these, we will miss much of leadership. Leadership also occurs continuously in informal groups, communities and other unorganized settings.

A large amount, perhaps as much as 90 percent, of the total leadership in society today is in informal and voluntary settings, and less than 10 percent is in organized groups and institutions. We need to be sensitive to the leadership that surrounds us and in which we are involved every moment of every day.

Leadership is much more than a good knowledge of Robert's Rules of Order. It is knowing what and how to do the best thing at the best time - and doing it! All of the best knowledge and the best skills in the world will not make you a leader unless you use those skills and knowledge. I cannot over emphasize that leadership is taking that step, that action and doing it! The only things that distinguish every leader from non-leaders are motivation and action!

P - 5.
Leadership, influence and power are closely related ideas. We Americans give leadership (especially voluntary leadership) a positive meaning (warm and fuzzy) and persons who are called leaders are given prestige. To describe a person as a leader is to give them honor. But we are reluctant to give the same positive recognition to influence and power, even though leadership cannot occur without these. Indeed, the ideas of influence and power scare some people. Leadership cannot occur without influencing somebody's behavior. Power is the description of potential or actual influence. The best use of power does not abuse people. It helps people achieve their goals.

"Influence" has gotten a bad name because it has been used to describe undesirable political activities. A person uses "influence" to get a large contract or law for his/her own benefit. In "reality," each of us uses our influence every day - many times each day. Even in the smallest decisions such as where to eat lunch or what movie to go to, we often attempt to "influence" others by stating "I hear that movie stinks." This is an attempt to influence by the use of our personal knowledge. Often we don't even recognize that we are using that influence. And we often do not recognize that we are being influenced.

Interpersonal communications usually involves influence because ideas are often certain suggestions for behavior. The phrase "McDonald's would be a good place for us to have lunch" is an attempt to suggest, or to influence, behavior. On a more abstract level, we import meaning to even a simple smile. It can be said that a smile has influence. Certainly, it usually influences our reactions to that individual.

P - 6.
The amount of influence and power a leader has varies widely from time to time, issue to issue, and person to person. The word of some leaders is law to some individuals while others may ignore it within the same group. Influence is situational. If I am hungry, the suggestion for lunch has a very different impact than if I just ate. The group or organization may rally around a leader and give him/her considerable power if they think the issue is important and/or the group is threatened. They may ignore the leader if they think the issue has little immediate importance or if it does not conform to the group's goals.

The amount of influence that an individual has can change rapidly. Every year, we watch the rise and fall of the influence of public and political leaders based upon their public popularity. The changes in just a few weeks or months can be very dramatic. President Bush's approval ratings rose many points in a very brief time during the war with Iraq. President Clinton's ratings fell quickly after some of his decisions and rose after others. Most opinions concerning national leaders are not deeply held and can change quickly as a result of mass media stories.

P - 7.
Voluntary leadership roles are usually fluid. The role of the leader with the most influence may pass rapidly from person to person in informal groups or organizations. Leadership is of varying duration for any individual or position holder. Some leadership activity is very brief, other leadership may be long term; but seldom or almost never are leadership activities permanent.

Even in more formal organization and positions, the leadership is of limited duration. Is former President Bush a functioning leader today? Probably not. What about former President Carter, is he still a leader? Perhaps, or are the titles of "leader" that they are sometimes given of an honorific type?

P - 8.
Voluntary leadership is, by definition, non-coercive. The leader and supporters make changes on a voluntary basis. Leadership cannot occur without the consent of the people (the "followers or supporters"). Physical or economic force may be used to gain power or to make changes, but this does not fall within the definition of voluntary leadership. Often power is given by default, that is, people "let" other people influence their behavior. However, a very limited amount of positive change is likely to occur when the people are passive.

P - 9.
Non-coercive leadership by persuasion of personality is usually more effective than leadership by position or by force. Leadership by force may produce a quicker response, but it is not as likely to be long lasting. Once the force or threat of force is removed, behavior is likely to return to the earlier pattern. For most Americans, position or authority alone is not enough to command respect and leadership.

P - 10.
The boundary between voluntary and involuntary leadership and change is arbitrary and difficult to define. For example, is leadership in police and military organizations voluntary or involuntary? The reflexive reaction is to say that such leadership is involuntary because there is a strict line of command. Often however, such leadership has characteristics of both. People in the military will follow a commander whom they respect and whom they believe is representing their interests.

Indeed, much leadership simultaneously has elements of both voluntary and involuntary change. An action often includes subtle and not-so-subtle threats as well as pleas for voluntary change. Efforts to reduce and eliminate racial/sexual harassment are examples of action that often involves both voluntary and involuntary actions. Most people now recognize that racial/sexual harassment actions are inappropriate, but for some the threat of being fired may result in changes which otherwise would not have occurred. And for some, even threats or actions are not sufficient to bring about behavioral change.

P - 11.
The types of changes wanted by leaders and their supporters may range from the maintenance of the status quo to social or economic revolutions. Some leaders may seek to convince people that change is not necessary. People labeled as "conservatives" often are in this category and often are not described by the media as leaders. Are these people leaders? Certainly, they are attempting to influence (or are influencing) behavior. Other would-be leaders may seek to convince people that the whole system must be thrown out and a radically different one installed.

To repeat, if a person influences others not to change, this too, is leadership.

P - 12.
Some "leaders" act more as catalysts or as facilitators of change than by expressly showing the direction and type of specific change needed. They do not create the vision of what the future should be. They provide the process by which change can occur. There is a community development process that is a "bottoms-up" or "grass roots" approach to community change. In this process, the people in the community are encouraged to take the active role in defining future activities; to become the leaders directly. Consensus building is a very effective way of bringing about community or group changes.

The important role that facilitating leaders play in the change process may not be recognized as leadership. Indeed, such leaders will often try to avoid the label of "leader". It is their intent to provide the opportunity for change, but the type and amount are left to the group to decide. Some leader-catalysts seek to step out of the leadership role when the process of change becomes more active. This grass roots process requires different roles, perhaps filled by different people, throughout the process of change.

One of the dangers in the use of this process is the unwillingness of anyone to take an active, continuing leadership role. Often people may not know whom to turn to for leadership. The change agents such as university extension agents who are trained to use the community development process often attempt to avoid a continuing public leadership role. Regardless of the type of change leadership almost always requires considerable skills and stamina. These may or may not be available in small groups or communities. The most common reason cited in the literature on lack of community change is "lack of leadership."

P - 13.
The attaining of agreement upon goals or purposes by the group or organization is an important part of the leadership process. In small to medium-sized voluntary organizations or groups, a group decision-making process may be using a means to achieve such agreement. In small groups, consensus can be often reached through informal discussion. Often, the concept of creating a "vision" is an important part of consensus building. A leader or one of the followers may advance a relatively concrete description of the goals to be reached. This verbal picture becomes the vision in the leadership process. Perhaps it is to build a new school or to stop sex education in public schools. The "visions" for leadership may be as varied as the culture.

P - 14.
One of the most effective methods of leadership is "empowering" people to accomplish a desired goal. Empowering people means giving people the beliefs and skills to take action themselves. At the small group or local level, empowering individuals can be accomplished through education, motivation, etc. This class, "Leadership in Today's World" includes as one goal the empowerment of the class members. This is done by providing you with knowledge of how the leadership process works and by helping you to gain more communications skills.

Empowering the general public with influence at the state or national level is much more difficult and long term. The national organization, Common Cause, has attempted to get the public more involved and more power in political concerns for several decades with limited success.

P - 15.
The voluntary leader and his/her supporters are partners who are attempting to achieve agreed upon goals. Either the leader or the supporters may initiate the process. The group has to agree upon a goal. For example, it may be a new school, a new church, and a change in the teaching program or something as simple as where to go to eat. At a minimum, some of the group, usually a minority, may not agree with the goal, but do agree not to oppose. "Yes, I will go to McDonalds for lunch with all of you. It is not my preferred choice, but if the rest of you want to go there…." (This may be spoken aloud or thought.)

The initial idea for change may come from almost any source. It does not necessarily, and often does not, come from the person who is or becomes the leader. The goals are often broad and not well defined. One of the most important traits of a leader is the ability to create (or take) a vision and to "sell" the idea to the group.

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