Can the entertainment industry
become even more sleazy? For years, movies and television shows have gleefully
created content that pointed out the foibles and hierocracy of others,
especially if it involved leaders in certain faith traditions or political
persuasions. Now, it has finally come out that high roller producers, “A” list
actors, leading politicians, and even presidential candidates have been
accused of coerced sexual contact. Equally distressing is that their allies in
the media and entertainment industry have attempted to spike such stories or
not address them due to some misguided allegiance to the alleged perpetrator’s
because they were industry friends. This got me thinking out loud about what
has we as leaders can learn from such tragic events.
First of all, regardless of
gender or sexual orientation such conduct is unacceptable. Those individuals
accused used their authority or ability to grant access to take advantage of
others. Instead of doing so out of kindness or that it made just good business sense
to advance a talented individual, these individuals threatened, manipulated, or
coerced. It turns out such practices were well known but legal remedy never
pursued out of fear of losing roles, access or favor. If there is any good
thing to come from all of this, it is that such awareness has reached the
national conversation.
Am I a perfect leader? Far
from it. But I would like to think there is a better idea. A better way
to lead others. Whether we want to admit or not, if you are a leader with any
level of responsibility, you can use your position in a coercive manner, even
with the best of intentions. How do we guard against such unhealthy leadership?
Understand
Your “Can vs Shoulds” – I have often told my own team members,
just because you CAN do something, it does not necessarily mean you SHOULD. As
a former Dean of Students, it was quite overwhelming the influence I had on the
daily life of the students who attended the university. I had the authority to
decide where students lived, the activities they could engage in and even
whether or not they could remain a member of the campus community if they
violated the code of conduct. Such authority required me to carefully weigh the
interests of the student as compared to the interests of the institution and it
was important that I shared with my own staff that such considerations applied
to them as much for me.
Be
Very Clear On What is Non-Negotiable – As leaders we have the
responsibility to set the moral and ethical climate of our organizations.
Truly, your team members do as well but if you hold a position of authority,
you have to go first and set the bar and exceed it constantly. This requires
you to be very clear about what your own moral threshold is and what you refuse
to compromise, especially when there is an advantage to do so. The next
critical step is to have a discussion with your team about such expectations.
If you are not sure how to do this, feel free to contact me and I can share a
process I have used. I think you will find that once others understand you are
serious about leading with integrity, then they will understand you do not
write blank checks on your values. You see when everything is negotiable, then
everything is for sale, including your integrity!
Avoid
Compartmentalization – I was having a conversation with a former
supervisor who has become a trusted mentor and friend. We were discussing how
normally bright and intelligent people can make such poor decisions as I have
illustrated above or in past blog posts when it comes certain lapses in ethical
judgement. We assumed the individuals involved came from solid backgrounds and
educations, but when faced with making decisions that gained them or their
organizations unfair advantage, they sold out their integrity. Where we landed
was that these individuals compartmentalized
their values. Whereas they were probably loyal friends, good parents, and
generally nice people, they chose to sequester their poor conduct from the rest
of their lives. I don’t know about you, but when I mess up, nothing in my life is
right until I make it right. Now whether or not such mental
compartmentalization is because of a legitimate psychological condition is
another dissertation or another day but it does provide us with a cautionary
tale.
The bottom line is this. If
you have to coerce others to get the results you want, you are simply not doing
it right and any success you gain from it will be undeserved. It is always
better to accomplish things with people versus to them.
As always if I can help you and
the people you associate with Get Better, Be Ready and LEAD OUT LOUD, I would
invite you to email me or to visit my website below and see if any of the
training or coaching experiences I offer can provide an impact, especially when
it comes to creating organizational values that stick! I am also pleased to
announce the launch of my first book, Leading Out Loud: Strategies for Raising
Your Leadership Voice! available on Amazon.com. Also, as a bonus, if
you go to my Out Loud Strategies website (www.outloudinc.com) and
enter your contact information, I will send you a FREE guide to establishing a
mentoring initiative program in your organization! Such an initiative would be
critical to add value to your organization!
Yours in Leadership,
Bill Faulkner
Principal Consultant – Out
Loud Strategies
Independent Coach, Speaker,
and Trainer with the John Maxwell Team TM
Email
= bill@outloudinc.com
For more information on the
John Maxwell Team, please visit
