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Self Leadership: The Power Behind Empowerment
Susan Fowler, Ken Blanchard, and Laurence Hawkins
As we discussed in Chapter 3, “Empowerment Is the Key,” the traditional hierarchy of leadership has evolved into a new order: empowerment of individuals. When self leaders take the initiative to get what they need to succeed and leaders respond to those needs, they unleash the power in empowerment. The proverbial pyramid turns upside down, and leaders serve those who are being led.
Managers must learn to let go of command-and-control leadership styles because soon they will have no choice. In the 1980s, a manager typically supervised five people; in other words, the span of control was one manager to five direct reports. Today, companies have more lean-and-mean organizational structures, where spans of control have increased considerably. Now, it is common to find one manager for twenty-five to seventy-five direct reports. Add to that the emergence of virtual organizations—where managers supervise people they seldom, if ever, meet face to face—and an entirely different work landscape emerges. The truth is that most bosses today can no longer play the traditional role of telling their people everything they need to do, and when and how. Managers just don’t have the time, and in many cases, their people know more about the work than they do. More than ever before, the success of organizational initiatives depends on the proactive behavior of empowered individuals.1
Many people are taking to this empowered environment like ducks to water. But some are becoming immobilized, unsure of how to take action without being told directly what to do by their manager. How can you get people to grab hold and run with the ball they’re being handed?
Creating an Empowered Workforce
Just as leaders must move from command and control to a partnering relationship with their people, so too must those who are being led move from “waiting to be told” to taking the initiative to lead themselves. If the key role of SLII® leaders is to become partners with their people, the new role of people is to become partners with their leaders. This is what self leadership is all about.
If empowerment is to be successful, organizations and leaders must develop self leaders in the workforce who have the skills to take initiative.
People need to be trained in self leadership. While many organizations teach managers how to delegate and “let go,” there is less emphasis on developing individuals to solve problems and make decisions. Organizations on the leading edge have learned that developing self leaders is a powerful way to positively impact the quadruple bottom line.
For example, one of our clients, Bandag Manufacturing, experienced the value of self leadership after a major equipment breakdown. Rather than laying off the affected workforce, the company opted to train them in self leadership. A funny thing happened. Direct reports began holding their managers accountable and asking them to demonstrate their leadership capabilities. They were asking managers for direction and support and urging them to clarify goals and expectations. Suddenly, managers were studying up on rusty skills and working harder.
When the plant’s ramp-up time was compared to the company’s other eight plants that had experienced similar breakdowns in the past, the California plant reached pre-breakdown production levels faster than any other in history. The manufacturer studied other measures, too. It concluded that the determining factor in the plant’s successful rebound was the proactive behavior of the workers, who were fully engaged and armed with the skills of self leadership.
An organization filled with self leaders is an organization with an empowered workforce.
Creating Self Leaders Through Individual Learning
Individual learning—one of the key elements of a high performing organization—is essential to self leadership.2 Organizations that do not encourage people to learn are less likely to be high performing because the skills of an organization are no greater than the skills of its people. Unless its individuals learn, the organization cannot.
High performing organizations appreciate that supporting people’s growth, experience, and knowledge is not only the right thing to do, but also a competitive advantage. These organizations use formal training, mentoring, and on-the-job support to develop the skills and competencies of their people.
While self leaders should be responsible for their own learning, they shouldn’t bear the burden alone; management should support the development of knowledge and skills. Fortunately, examples of organizations that support individual learning and the development of self leaders are plentiful. Yum! Brands—the parent company of Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and KFC, among others—supports Yum! University. Here, associates learn the technical, business, and interpersonal skills that are related to creating customer mania.3 Johnsonville Foods promotes continuous learning by encouraging all employees to attend any training class, regardless of its direct applicability to their current jobs.4 GE’s learning initiative broke down barriers to learning through cross-functional work on real applications.5 Other examples abound.
Empowerment is what leaders give to their people. Self leadership is what people do to make empowerment work.
The Three Skills of a Self Leader
You cannot invert the hierarchical pyramid and simply tell self leaders to accept responsibility and take initiative. Self leaders must be actively developed by teaching people skills and mental attitudes that foster empowerment.6 In Self Leadership and The One Minute Manager, Ken Blanchard, Susan Fowler, and Laurence Hawkins teach the three skills of self leadership: challenge assumed constraints, activate points of power, and be proactive.7 These three skills need to be encouraged in individual contributors and role modeled by managers.
The First Skill of a Self Leader: Challenge Assumed Constraints
The first skill of a self leader is to challenge assumed constraints. What, exactly, do we mean by an assumed constraint?
An assumed constraint is a belief, based on past experience, that limits current and future experiences.
The classic example of an assumed constraint is illustrated by the training of elephants. The trainer takes a baby elephant and ties him to a stake with a big, heavy chain. Although the baby elephant pulls and tugs, he can’t break the chain. Eventually he stops trying. He is now a six-ton elephant. He could easily pull the entire stake out of the ground, but he doesn’t even try. His inability to move beyond the length of the chain isn’t real; it’s an assumed constraint.
Consider how the elephant’s story relates to your own work experience. Do any of the following statements sound familiar? “Why should I bother? My boss won’t approve anyway. They never listen to anyone’s ideas around here. A woman has never held that position before. I’ve never been any good at that.” These are all examples of assumed constraints that might be true at some level but are not the truth that should define your experience.
Indicators that an assumed constraint may be holding you hostage are negative internal dialogue, excuses, and blaming statements. At one time or another, most of us have assumed that because we did not have direct authority or position power, we could not be leaders or influence outcomes. This is one of the most common assumed constraints in the workplace. People who have become legendary for their effectiveness—from Bill Gates to Mother Teresa—are those who go beyond assumed constraints to reach their goals. For example, Mother Teresa—a minority Albanian who spoke broken English—did not begin her amazing career with a high position and authority. She used her personal power to achieve her goal of bringing dignity to the destitute. Status and recognition came later.
This is not to say that all of us aren’t constrained by outside forces, whether it’s a lack of time, money, or position of authority. Yet self leadership teaches that the constraints are not the problem; the problem is that we think these things are the only sources of power that are available to us. Successful people can almost name the time and date when they decided to let go of an assumed constraint and acknowledge their own power, which leads to the second skill of a self leader.
The Second Skill of a Self Leader: Activate Points of Power
The second skill of a self leader is to activate points of power. Everyone has points of power, although many are unaware of them.
People of all ages struggle with the mere notion of power. The abuse of power, the use of status and position to coerce others, and the egoism associated with people who have social and political power have turned people off to the acceptance of—let alone use of—power. Self leadership teaches people that we all have points of power. In helping people recognize and accept their points of power, we suggest that “the sole advantage of power is the ability to do more good.”8 Self leaders can do more good for themselves, their families, their communities, their organizations, and their coworkers when they accept and tap into their power.
The five sources of power are position power, personal power, task power, relationship power, and knowledge power (see Figure 5.1).
Position power is the most recognized point of power. It is inherent in the authority of one’s position. You have position power when your business card has a title printed on it that indicates you have the power to manage people or command resources.
Personal power comes from personal attributes such as strength of character, passion, persistence, charisma, or wisdom. Personal power is further enhanced by strong interpersonal skills, such as an ability to communicate well and be persuasive. If people like to be around you, you have personal power.
Task power relates to a task or particular job. This is power you have in being able to help others with a process or procedure they need to do or, conversely, to block or delay others from doing a task. For example, an executive assistant for a president or CEO often has the power to influence who gets added to or deleted from the executive’s agenda.
Relationship power comes from the power of association with others—through building a friendship, understanding a colleague, cultivating a relationship, or knowing someone who owes you a favor. Having a mentor or champion can give you power through a relationship, as can being the relative of someone in power.
Knowledge power comes from having special expertise or skills but is also evidenced by having certain degrees or certifications indicating special training. You can often transfer knowledge power from job to job or from company to company. We’re all good at something, so we all have some form of knowledge power.
Everyone has some degree of each of these forms of power, and typically the distribution is uneven. We find that few people ever think about what points of power they have. Fewer still have asked others for their perceptions on this topic. If they did, they might be surprised at how others view them—their job, position, personality, and abilities.
Getting feedback on your points of power can be an enlightening experience. Chances are good that you’ll be surprised and gratified by the responses you get. With raised awareness of and attention to your own power, you come to realize how to use your points of power to better advantage. You will probably also realize that while you have been taking some points of power for granted, you have been oblivious to others. The best way to increase your power base is to gather people around you who have points of power you don’t have.
Don’t buy into the assumed constraint that position power is the only power that works.
Once you learn what your points of power are, you are ready to activate them. If you are strong in some points of power or weak in others, don’t accept the assumed constraint this will be true the rest of your life. For example, if you have high knowledge power due to computer expertise but low personal power due to weak interpersonal skills, consider taking a Dale Carnegie course on “How to Win Friends and Influence People.” Or perhaps you’re a person who has good interpersonal skills but lacks technical skills. Be a self leader and ask someone to help you learn.
Using the Power of “I Need”
You can maximize your points of power when you combine them with two powerful words: “I need.” Instead of directly stating what we need, many of us get trapped in asking dumb questions, like the woman in the subway. Let us explain: A man got on a subway in New York City and discovered there was only one seat left. There was something on the seat he didn’t want on his slacks, so he laid down his newspaper and sat on it. A few minutes later, a woman tapped him on the shoulder and said, “Excuse me, sir. Are you reading your newspaper?” The man thought that was one of the dumbest questions he’d ever heard. He couldn’t help himself. He stood up, turned the page, sat back down on the paper, and replied, “Yes, ma’am, I am.”
While that story is amusing, you might wonder if you ask any dumb questions. We all do. For example, suppose that a coworker is running around like a chicken with her head cut off, but you need some help. So you ask, “Are you busy?” That’s a dumb question. Of course she’s busy! So she says something like, “There just aren’t enough hours in the day.” You feel guilty, so you get flustered and leave her alone, not wanting to add to her burden.
The alternative to dumb questions is to simply state your needs to your coworker truthfully: “I need 15 minutes to discuss this project. If this isn’t a good time, I could come back at 3 o’clock.”
What makes the “I need” phrase so powerful? When you tell somebody you want something, that person’s first thought is usually, “We all want things we can’t have.” However, when you use the “I need” phrase, you’re coming from a position of strength. You’ve thought about what it will take to succeed, and you are requesting someone’s help. Human beings love to feel needed. They love to think they can help you.
Don’t be afraid to ask for what you need from people who have points of power you don’t have. By being proactive in this way, you will eliminate “being a victim” from your vocabulary. Remember, if you ask for what you need, you will either win or break even. How excited would you be about going to Las Vegas if the worst you could do was win or break even? You would catch the next plane. If you ask for what you need and you get it, you win. If you ask and don’t get it, you break even because you didn’t have it in the first place. Most people are afraid to ask for what they need for fear of rejection. Remember, when people say no to you, they are only turning down your idea. The only person who can turn you down is you.
“I need” is compelling. This is a key phrase for being proactive.
The Third Skill of a Self Leader: Be Proactive
The third skill of a self leader is to be proactive. This is where self leaders take the initiative to get the direction and support they need to achieve their goals.
In Chapter 4, “SLII®: The Integrating Concept,” we introduced the four development levels and the appropriate leadership styles for each.
With self leadership, direct reports can diagnose their own development levels on a particular goal or task and take the initiative to get from their managers the leadership style they need to succeed (see Figure 5.2).
To illustrate how this works, let’s return to our example in Chapter 4 of the recently hired 22-year-old salesperson. Suppose that the first thing his manager did with him was train him in self leadership. Now when he and his manager set goals around his four key areas of responsibility—sales, service, administration, and team contribution—the young salesperson can be proactive by playing an active role in diagnosing his own development level. He can determine the leadership style he needs for each rather than relying on his manager to do all the work. Not only will this increase his self-esteem and speed his journey to empowerment, but by being a good partner, he also will alleviate some of the management load for his boss. In the process, his manager can more easily invert the hierarchal pyramid and become more of a cheerleader and supporter than a director and controller.
Because the salesperson knows self leadership, he can diagnose himself as an Enthusiastic Beginner (D1) in the area of selling to existing clients. He knows that he has not yet demonstrated competence in this area and that he hasn’t gained the knowledge and skills he needs to achieve his sales goals. Yet the thought of providing superior service to existing clients excites him, and his commitment is high. The salesperson should recognize that he needs a directing (S1) style, with high direction and low support. He should be proactive by asking his manager to teach him all about this part of the sales process, from making the first contact to completing the job.
In the area of administration—specifically, filing electronic reports—the salesperson realizes that he is a Disillusioned Learner (D2) in need of coaching (S2). After taking some classes on how to use his company’s sales software, he thought he was on his way. Yet using the software without the instructor at his side, his confidence is waning. The salesperson should admit to his manager that while he’s comfortable with some functions, he’s baffled by others. Recognizing that he needs a lot of direction and support in this area, the salesperson should be proactive by asking his manager for someone to answer questions that arise as he applies what he’s learning in real time. He also should ask his manager for support to build his confidence and encourage him to keep learning.
The salesperson is having some trouble with cold calling. He has been well trained in this area and knows the step-by-step process for cold calling. During his training and for the first few weeks afterward, he had several successes. During the past couple of weeks, however, he’s made hardly any sales through cold calls. His self-doubt has come roaring back, and he’s beginning to wonder if he has what it takes to succeed in cold calling on his own. Remembering how excited and competent he felt about cold calling just a few weeks ago, he realizes that he is a Capable But Cautious Performer (D3) who needs a supporting (S3) leadership style. He should be proactive by asking his manager to listen to his concerns and questions and encourage his flagging confidence.
In the area of customer service, the salesperson knows full well he’s a Self-Reliant Achiever (D4). Having worked in the hospitality industry, he brings all kinds of customer-pleasing skills to his new position, and delighting customers comes as naturally to him as breathing. He has already won the hearts of some of the company’s biggest clients by anticipating their needs and delivering more than they ever dreamed of receiving. In this area, the salesperson should be proactive by letting his manager know that what would work best for him would be a delegating (S4) leadership style. He should ask his manager to let him do the day-to-day decision making in this area. He also should let his manager know that the best way to support him is to trust him to do his job well, provide him with the resources he needs, and challenge him to deliver even higher levels of raving fan service.
Being proactive doesn’t have to be restricted to your manager. You can diagnose your development level and ask for the appropriate leadership style from any number of leaders. A leader is anyone who can give you the direction and support you need to achieve your goal.
Are you assuming that people won’t have the time or inclination to help you achieve your goals? By moving beyond that constraint and asking for help anyway, you can unleash the power of self leadership.
Now that you know about self leadership, the next chapter introduces one-on-one leadership, which will help you on your journey to becoming an effective SLII® leader.