Leadership lessons learned through pain...and lived to tell about it!

Even as a Christian, when I hear the word leadership I begin to think of a great man who is strong, wise, moral, and brave. I’ve been conditioned to think this way about leadership from all of the comic books I used to read, the video games I used to play, and the Saturday morning cartoons I grew up watching. I idolized leaders like this. However, growing up, I never considered what it would be like to serve beneath one. It never crossed my mind because I always wanted to be the leader. Of course, I romanticized leadership, and growing up—nobility was the only internal value I perceived a good leader had to have. As I got older and moved from animation to live-action movies, the silver screen also supported the same ideology, whether it was Mel Gibson in Braveheart, or Gerald Butler in 300, the image of a good leader was always a strong, wise, and spiritually balanced individual. It seemed as though culture itself was constantly reinforcing the ideal leader in my mind. Yet, in the real world leadership is not that simple, and I was only being exposed to a small sample of what leadership really entailed. However, if I am honest, I have to acknowledge that I was presented a more realistic depiction of leadership all the while, and it came from the same comics, games, and cartoons I grew up watching; still, it was not from the good guys whom I idolized, but it derived from their enemies. Once again looking at the heroes whom I idolized as a child, I never saw any bickering or struggle for power among those who followed them. Yet, there was always a dichotomy of the leader-follower dynamic portrayed when it came to the “bad guys.” The only time I would notice a struggle for power or internal conflict would be in the enemy’s camp. It appeared that the followers in the bad guys’ camp had aspirations of their own, dreams of their own, and they had to be manipulated to stay in alignment with their leader’s plans. I never saw these kinds of leader-follower dynamics from the good guys. Yet, one thing was certain whether they were good or bad, one objective truth was always prevalent—the leaders I grew up watching were always depicted as charismatic. Outside of cinema, being a charismatic leader comes with many underlying forces, which most pictures did not depict. These forces cannot be underestimated; they determine when this style of leadership can be effective and who would be naturally successful in following a charismatic leader. Throughout history there have been charismatic leaders who have successfully influence many: Winston Churchill, Abraham Lincoln, John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., FDR, Gandhi, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Clark Gable, Humphrey Bogart and Marilyn Monroe are just a few. On the surface, there does not seem to be obvious similarities or characteristics that resonate among all of them. Being a charismatic leader does not make one inherently good or bad, i.e. Adolf Hitler would be considered a charismatic leader. So the question is what makes a charismatic leader charismatic? A charismatic leader has the ability to inspire, a dominating personality, and the ability to communicate effectively. These leaders have unique visions and utilize innovative methods to achieve them. They make self-sacrifices, take personal risks, and sustain high prices to achieve the vision they espouse. These leaders have the ability to see rare opportunities and because of this gift they are often seen as extraordinary. Max Weber coined the term Charisma for this type of leader—Charisma, in its original language of Greek, means ``the gift of grace''. Often times, these leaders take on a mythological sociological persona, which probably influenced my understanding of leadership growing up. As I look back on my life, I ran into several charismatic leaders. Some of them were coaches, others were teachers, and several were even pastors. Even though the majority of these leaders were highly successful, I honestly can say I struggled following every one of them and often times I resembled followers in the “the bad guy camp” I grew up watching on TV. Looking back, I wish someone would have informed me of the proper way to follow a charismatic leader. If I would have had more information, I would have been a more effective follower. And, I might have shared in their success as well. Here is what I have learned over the last twenty years in my attempts to follow a charismatic leader. There can be only one charismatic leader at a time. In order to understand this phenomenon it is essential to recognize that a Charismatic leader elicits from their followers a great sense of reverence. Leadership scholar Gary Yukl believes this reverence for the leader results in a high level of trust and a high level of satisfaction from followers. He thinks the charismatic leader inspires their followers with emotional appeals; however, he interestingly notes that charismatics cannot utilize a consensus in planning or strategy because their followers would not consider them to be charismatic any longer. You have to understand that the charismatic leadership style only allows for one leader to shine at a time. Other leaders may be seen as rivals and be quickly removed from organizational hierarchy. Note the choice to remove a leader to eliminate competition is not immoral. It is simply a consequence of this leadership style. Charismatics are motivators, and scholar Robert J. House believes charismatic leaders use their charisma to inspire people to accomplish things collectively that otherwise seem impossible. House suggests the primary influence process is identification. Psychologists believe followers of charismatic leaders admire the leader’s lifestyle. Additionally, these same followers unconsciously take on the values of the leader as well. Psychologists also argue these followers often naïvely perceive that the leader’s beliefs are correct, and as a result they willingly obey the leader. This dynamic leads to feelings of affection for the leader, which results in emotional attachment in the mission of the group or organization. Interestingly, it is argued that these followers have high performance goals, and followers believe they can contribute to the success of the organization. Yet, followers have to understand that success in the organization will be attributed to the Charismatic leader’s effort and not to the follower’s ability. Yukl believes the motivational effects of the charismatic leader are more likely to occur when the leader’s vision is congruent with existing follower values and identities. He also added theorists think the unusual and seemingly irrational influence of some charismatic leaders who are “idolized as superhuman heroes or worshiped as a spiritual figure” are the result of personal identification with the leader. Yukl added this powerful personal identification of followers with the leader is described in terms of psychodynamic processes such as regression, transference, and projection. These concepts are essential to note. To briefly explain them, in regression the leader influences the follower to return to feelings they had in the past, within projection the leader projects an attribute i.e. faith to those that follow them, and finally with transference the leader’s confidence, for example, will be transferred to the follower. Therefore, the follower of a charismatic leader will often take on the emotional psyche of the leader whom they follow. Choose wisely whom you follow. The next concept I wish I would have understood was that in following a charismatic you have to put your own vision aside in order to relate to them successfully. A charismatic leader has a vision, and it is essential that leaders like this communicate their vision and convince people they have a role in bringing it to pass. You must know that everyone who follows this type of leader will be critiqued based upon their efforts to efficiently fulfill their role in supporting the leader’s vision. Yet, often various factors can hinder a follower from doing just that. For instance, it is natural to have aspirations, dreams, and the desire to be great. Yet, these longings can cause conflict if they are not mitigated when following a charismatic leader. For instance, conflict arises whenever a follower introduces an independent vision from the leader’s vision and as a result this “alternative vision” can be seen as an infection that undermines the vision, mission, and values the charismatic leader is espousing. Please don’t think that you are not allowed to dream as you follow a charismatic leader—no one should stop dreaming; however, you have to understand that some of those leadership dreams and ideas you may have are for another time. So keep your dreams to yourself. Scholars suggest that successful followers of a charismatic leader have a heightened sense of collective identity and thrive off of perceived group-task performance—this collective identity is developed by a sense of collective worth, which is termed collective efficacy. Yukl suggests collective efficacy is developed from a perception that is established as result of following a charismatic leader. This idea gives followers worth. The collective idea that gives followers of a charismatic leader worth is the opinion that they can accomplish exceptional feats by working together. Yukl goes on to add, when collective efficacy is high, people are more willing to cooperate with members of their group in a joint effort to carry out their mission. Thus, in order to follow a charismatic leader successfully you have to be willing to be a team player who is in harmony with the other followers—don’t try and stand out. Homogeneity, which means to be the same, is a goal among the followers of this type of leader. Here is a simile that illustrates this dynamic of charismatic leadership. Charismatic leadership resembles a conductor at a symphony orchestra: the conductor, who has the most important job at the symphony, does not even play an instrument but guides the beat of the music for the entire orchestra. Of course, there is only one conductor in an orchestra and likewise within this style of leadership, there is only one charismatic leader to every organization. You can be a leader in a charismatic organization, but you have to understand more than likely you will feel micromanaged. The last lesson I wish I would have understood in following a charismatic leader was that follower empowerment is understood as the result of the leaders charisma not the followers own individual ability. Scholar Warner Burke proposed that charismatic leaders empower by providing clarity of direction, but not just any direction but direction that embraces a higher purpose. Whether you are a great basketball player, spiritually mature, or an intellectual, while you are being led by a charismatic leader, the fruit of your labor will be credited to the leader and his or her charisma not your aptitude. This phenomenon is objective. For instance, it was not until Doris Kearns Goodwin’s book Team of Rivals that most Americans understood how competent Abraham Lincoln’s leadership cabinet was: William Henry Seward, Salmon Chase, and Edward Bates were some of the most competent men in the country at that time of his presidency. However, history does not credit them with the tacit and wisdom to simultaneously have helped Lincoln win the civil war and to end slavery. Lincoln alone gets the credit for that. You can study every charismatic leader that has lived and one thing will be certain—they were successful because of the competency of those who followed them, but none of their followers received any much credit for their success. However the truth is, their charisma may have drawn competent leadership, but it was their followers who allowed them to accomplish their goals. Charismatic leaders are influencers. And, these leaders have ability to make their followers feel like making a difference for the organization is empowering in itself. The charismatic leader has the gift of making their follower feel like their service to the vision of the organization gives meaning to their lives. What is interesting is that the gifts and skills you develop under a charismatic leader will be attributed to the leader giving you the motivation to rise up and to develop yourself for the purpose of fulfilling their vision and not necessarily for your own. This may be why many charismatics only utilize in-house talent to accomplish their goals. Outside talent don’t give the charismatic leader the perception that they inspired them to develop themselves. Nevertheless, empowerment research recognizes a sense of competence as being essential to feelings of empowerment. The more competent the followers of a charismatic leader the more competent the charismatic leader will be in the eyes of their followers. These leaders use a host of methods to empower people. Besides articulating, championing, and energizing a cause, charismatic leaders also empower by providing followers with information about their personal worth. To follow a charismatic leader means to commit your entire identity to the cause of the leader anything less than that will result in stress between the leader and the follower. You have to count the cost if you are going to follow a leader with this style of leadership. As a final point, charismatic leadership is neither good nor bad. It is simply one style of leadership that exists in the vast scope of leadership itself. Yet, one thing is certain, usually when we think of a great leader they are charismatic. For centuries, whether it is China, Africa, Asia or America, all cultures have exalted this style of leadership to almost mythological proportions. Moreover, there are some cultures who claim this style of leadership is the only form of leadership that is considered genuine. However, one must understand whether they are following a charismatic leader or they are a charismatic leader themselves, this type of leadership comes with many causative influences, which must be accounted for. These forces cannot be underestimated; they determine when this style of leadership can be helpful and when it can be dangerous. If I would have had this understanding twenty years ago, I would have had a much easier time understanding what real leadership entailed.