The January/February 2024 issue of the Harvard Business Review’s main thrust is about the leadership mindset. The table of contents runs the gamut from Leading in the Flow of Work, Leaders Must React, Why Real-Time Leadership is so Hard, How to Sustain Your Empathy in Difficult Times to Lesson About Choosing a CEO. A lot of content with a focus on leadership is written by bright people.
The article that I found very relevant was Why Real-Time Leadership Is So Hard by Ryann Quinn, Bret Crane, Travis Thompson, and Robert E. Quinn. The article offers a handful of practices. The article skillfully points one in the right direction on how to avoid feeling stuck, when nothing seems to resonate.
I’ll be upfront the points made here are about our psychological state. “When we’re in the high-performance mode, we transcend our normal frame of mind and enter what he called the fundamental state of leadership.” This thinking is not new and has been taught or communicated for decades. This article addresses the self-imposed obstacles that block us from achieving the fundamental state of leadership.
The authors have identified the four obstacles that prevent us from achieving the fundamental state of leadership. These obstacles can be overcome, and the article explains how.
The first obstacle is No Alternatives. This obstacle is often the result of process biases, habits, legal regulations, and maybe a lack of experience. It is often referred to as a mental trap. The article suggests probing questions to get one out of the mental trap like – “How might this situation be like another, unrelated situation?”
The second is No Hope or defeatism. A deer in the headlights – individuals feel they are facing inevitable defeat, and leading with vision and courage becomes hard. The authors share four suggestions to lead one out of that feeling of hopelessness.
The third is NO Time – I feel this is especially prevalent in the ski area industry. The response to no time is reactive rather than thought out and planned, not good for a leader. Again, the authors suggest three questions when asked and pondered can address the No Time obstacle.
The fourth one is one I never would have thought about, but it makes sense. It is the No Need obstacle. “Sometimes people don’t see any need for leadership because they’re doing a task that doesn’t involve social interaction. But it’s possible to lead people even when they are not present.” Two questions to ask yourself when confronted by this obstacle are presented by the authors.
As the article states leadership is fundamentally about leashing potential, your and that of the people who follow you. No Alternatives, No Hope, No Time, and No Need come from misguided beliefs, fear, and a focus on what people lack. Challenging fear and misguided beliefs can reestablish the fundamental state of leadership and be a motivation for positive change.
I have paraphrased this article. As with all HBR articles sharing is not permitted; however, on the Harvard Business Review website, hbr.org, non-registered users can read 5 articles per month. After a free sign-up, registered users can read 15 articles per month. Subscribers pay $10-18/month and have unlimited access to all HBR articles on the website. Some content is heavy but often there are very relevant articles to help you do your job better and easier.
