Obama Leadership Lessons

How’s Obama doing?

Regardless of your politics, I think most of us would agree something has slipped. He can still make an inspiring speech, look great in a suit, charm with a warm smile and dazzle some crowds, but something’s gone missing this first year.

Now if you’d love to see him fail, you are excited by the prospect that his leadership may prove less than stellar; and if you eagerly voted for him you might be anxiously rooting from the sidelines. But whatever your personal political stance, there are some lessons we can all consider from this first year that may apply to our own leadership challenges.

Be careful of the pedestal
Certainly he sought out the spotlight, even the pedestal, as he ran for the big prize. This is required of politicians. But after the increasingly short Washington honeymoon, opponents can’t wait to uncover the clay feet of even the biggest winners and supporters are waiting for the promises to be fulfilled. Pedestals must be replaced with boots on the ground, respect-winning results.

You may have earned a spot on the pedestal and may have even been thrust up there by your last big achievement or promotion. Don’t linger! Climb on down. Get back in touch with the people who helped you get up there is in the first place. Reconnect. Re-engage.

Take Charge
Leaders need to be seen leading! Certainly there will be many behind closed door strategy sessions and maneuverings not for public consumption, but aloof, and remote and seemingly distanced from the game does not inspire confidence in supporters.
It might have made sense on some levels to have Congress duke out the health care battles so then Obama could declare he had the support of legislators. But it backfired. He made the big announcement and then seemed to retire from the field. This was going to be his big achievement, something 9 other Presidents couldn’t do; and he wasn’t seen leading the charge.
If you declare that you will get something done publically, be seen out front as the crusader. Stand up. Fight. Make deals behind closed doors, but don’t stay there. Big initiatives need very visible leaders.

Connect
Pundits applauded the Obama campaign’s brilliant connection to the youth vote and the innovative use of social media. I was impressed to see how timely those electronic hugs were. Right after any major event, supporters heard from the campaign. It made many of them feel involved, important and necessary. A few weeks after the inaugurations, the electronic hugs and rallying cries turned into basic fund raising messages. Hard to feel emotionally connected to that! Why isn’t his administration using electronic communication brilliantly now? Has he forgotten who brought him to the dance?

Just last night I watched a new reality show called “Undercover Boss,” where the President of a major organization goes undercover and performs entry level jobs in various parts of his empire. Of course he discovered how removed he was from the reality his people face in the trenches and came to understand how many of his executive decisions that made so much sense in his ivory tower proved to be a disaster on the ground. After he was revealed, many people in his company just couldn’t believe that he would come down “so low” to actually do their jobs. He earned tremendous respect and loyalty along with valuable leadership lessons. A wonderful show. I hope you will watch it.
To lead effectively you need to know your supporters. They want to be led, but also they want to be heard, seen and valued. Connect, connect, connect!

It is so easy to critic someone else’s leadership abilities, isn’t it?
The important part for us is to critic and then analyze; digest and then
adopt; recognize and the toss out.

Obama has at least a few years to perfect his game. How wonderful we get to watch him and so many other public figures get it right and get it wrong. Leadership lessons for us on a daily basis, if we just take the time to pay attention.

Sarah Palin – Rogue as Role Model?

It depends.

Feisty, independent, shooting from the hip are attributes many find very attractive in self proclaimed rogue, Sarah Palin.  I confess that so many Americans are ready to put her in the highest office in the land, baffles me.

Yes, she is fresh, attractive and breaking the mold intriguing with a quirky of-the-people touch; so I get her appeal on a celebrity level.  She and her meteoric rise are nothing other than fascinating.  I applaud her gutsy, why not me, look out world attitude.  She is a role model for anyone wanting to rise above traditional limitations of lack of money, no inherited power and out of the ordinary place.  Her awesome self confidence and go-for-the-glory gusto are inspirational.  All of us working in the corporate world could emulate her…but just a tiny bit.  All her shocking unpredictability plays well in the tabloids, but not at the table.

Use your imagination and place her in your organization for a few minutes.  How would she do?  Who would her allies be?  Where would her loyalties lay?  Would her flashy attention grabbing garner her admiration, loyalty and support or suspicion, jealousy, and “just enough rope?”  Would she be seen as determined or erratic; a trusted team player or a self-serving opportunist? Would her creative syntax, winking and down home lingo endear her or limit her? 

As I always say: your goal will determine your savvy strategy.  It’s hard to tell from the current sidelines what Sarah Palin’s goal is and therefore hard to analyze her behaviors.  If her goal is to make money – she’s right on; to land a talking-head pundit job – looks like it might work; to become the President – not a chance.

Any time you set out to achieve a goal requiring the cooperation of other people you have to first determine who you need and then how to get their support.  Sarah Palin is appealing only to a small group of fans: people who will buy her books, come to her rallies, read her posting and even vote for her.  But they are not the people she needs to achieve any credible position in the future.  The celebrity “star” behaviors that appeal to fans are an anathema to serious potential allies.  She personifies “team of one.”

The lesson for the corporate world?  What works to call attention to us on a performing stage may be the death of our professional credibility.  Making a name for yourself must be balanced by a reputation for helping others succeed.  Stepping into the spotlight must be done with credit given to others. Reaching your own goals must be done in concert with the team’s. 

Many feisty, tell it like it is, I’ve-got-to-be-me! (and yet talented) people have been sent to my political savvy courses for just those reasons.  Someone is hoping that the talent can be harnessed, the personality groomed, and the individual turned into a valued and trusted team player.  So unless you are setting out to star on a stage, or any kind of notorious figure, rogue is not the best role model.

Hello world!

Hello World! 

This is my very first blog after deciding to finally get social-media savvy and connect to the world in an updated fresh way.  I’ve got as lot to learn about this medium but I’m thrilled you will join me on this journey.

Getting and being savvy about the workplace is the main theme of this blog, but once you do get more savvy – it spills over into the rest of your life, too.  Results: more awareness of the choices you can make and the corresponding consequences;  less naive and less likely to be negatively surprised an impacted.    

Sound good, doesn’t it?  And yet lots of folks resist this topic.  Over the years, as the founder of the Savvy Institute, speaking and writing  on the subject around the world, I have found that many people in dire need of some savvy solutions, worry that getting more savvy will radically change them;  making them sleazy, manipulating, and political.  

I agree – getting more savvy about the world  around you will radically change you!  You will learn to read people and situations better,  possess a range of effective strategies to get what you want, become more politically astute, and be more equipped to play the game of work successfully.  Whether you become sleazy or manipulative is entirely up to you. Getting educated always leads to more choices.  Your character will determine what you do with the knowledge you gain.

So stay tuned for current event commentaries highlighting savvy and unsavvy choices people in the news are making and how you can apply the lessons in your own situations.

 I welcome your contributions!