"The commander in the field is always right and rear echelon is wrong, unless proved otherwise." - Colin Powell
Shift the power and financial accountability to the folks who are bringing in the beans, not the ones who are counting or analyzing them.
Showing posts with label Colin Powell. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Colin Powell. Show all posts
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Ask Not
"You don't know what you can get away with until you try." - Colin Powell
You know the expression "it's easier to get forgiveness than premission"? Well, it's true. Good leaders don't wait for official blessing to try things out. They're prudent, not reckless. Less effective middle managers endorsed the esentiment, "If I haven't explicitly been told 'yes,' I can't do it," where as the good ones believed, If I haven't explicitly been told 'no,' I can." There's a world of diferences between the two points of view.
You know the expression "it's easier to get forgiveness than premission"? Well, it's true. Good leaders don't wait for official blessing to try things out. They're prudent, not reckless. Less effective middle managers endorsed the esentiment, "If I haven't explicitly been told 'yes,' I can't do it," where as the good ones believed, If I haven't explicitly been told 'no,' I can." There's a world of diferences between the two points of view.
Heads Of Details
"Never neglect details. When everyone's mind is dulled or distracted the leader must be doubly vigilant." - Colin Powell
Good leaders delegate and empower others liberally, but they pay attention to details, every day.
Good leaders delegate and empower others liberally, but they pay attention to details, every day.
The Pros Or The Minors?
"Don't be afraid to challenge the pros, even in their own backyard." - Colin Powell
Learn from the pros, observe them, seeks them out as mentors and partners. but remember that even the pros may have leveled out in terms of their learning and skills. Sometimes even the pros can become complacent and lazy.
Learn from the pros, observe them, seeks them out as mentors and partners. but remember that even the pros may have leveled out in terms of their learning and skills. Sometimes even the pros can become complacent and lazy.
Being A Leader, Not Eliter
"Don't be buffaloed by experts and elites. Experts often possess more data than judgment." - Colin Powell
Policies that emanate from ivory towers often have an adverse impact on the people out in the field who are fighting the wars of bringing in the revenues. Real leaders are vigilant - and combative - in the face of these trends.
Policies that emanate from ivory towers often have an adverse impact on the people out in the field who are fighting the wars of bringing in the revenues. Real leaders are vigilant - and combative - in the face of these trends.
Loving Problems
"The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you have stopped leading them. They have either lost confidence that you can help them or concluded that you don't care. Either case is a failure of leadership." - Colin Powell
If this were a litmus test, the majority of CEOs would fail. One, they build so many barriers to upward communication that the very idea of someone in the hierarchy looking up to the leader for help is ludicrous. Two, the corporate culture they foster often defines asking for help as weakness of failure, so people cover up their gaps, and the organization suffers accordingly. Real leaders make themselves accessible and available. They show concern for the efforts and challenge faced by underlings - even as they demand high standards. Accordingly, they are more likely to create an environment where problem analysis replaces blame.
If this were a litmus test, the majority of CEOs would fail. One, they build so many barriers to upward communication that the very idea of someone in the hierarchy looking up to the leader for help is ludicrous. Two, the corporate culture they foster often defines asking for help as weakness of failure, so people cover up their gaps, and the organization suffers accordingly. Real leaders make themselves accessible and available. They show concern for the efforts and challenge faced by underlings - even as they demand high standards. Accordingly, they are more likely to create an environment where problem analysis replaces blame.
Powell: Maker of Scowls
"Being responsible sometimes means pissing people off." - Colin Powell
Good leadership involves responsibility to the welfare of the group, which means that some people will get angry at your actions and decisions. It's inevitable - if you're honorable. Trying to get everyone to like you is a sign of mediocrity: You'll avoid the tough decisions, you'll avoid confronting the people who need to be confronted, and you'll avoid offering differential rewards based on differential performance because some people might get upset. Ironically, by procrastinating on the difficuult choices, by trying not to get anyone mad, and by treating everyone equally "nicely" regardless of their contributions, you'll simply ensure that the only people you'll wind up angering are the most creative and productive people in the organization.
Good leadership involves responsibility to the welfare of the group, which means that some people will get angry at your actions and decisions. It's inevitable - if you're honorable. Trying to get everyone to like you is a sign of mediocrity: You'll avoid the tough decisions, you'll avoid confronting the people who need to be confronted, and you'll avoid offering differential rewards based on differential performance because some people might get upset. Ironically, by procrastinating on the difficuult choices, by trying not to get anyone mad, and by treating everyone equally "nicely" regardless of their contributions, you'll simply ensure that the only people you'll wind up angering are the most creative and productive people in the organization.
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