Want to be a great leader? Lead from the heart
Tags: Leadership Development, Xcelerator, Leadership, CEO, Purpose

Want to be a great leader? Lead from the heart

Build followers, not subordinates

Amina Islam

“He that thinketh he leadeth, and hath no one following, is only taking a walk,” John Maxwell

There is no doubt that Nelson Mandela was not just taking a walk, but was one of the greatest leaders to have ever lived. Despite being in prison for 27 years, he held a clear vision of ending the apartheid system and achieved it.

But he didn’t do it alone.

He built a follower-driven movement through his charismatic and oratorical skills, inspiring his followers to defy the racist policies of the South African government in a peaceful and dignified manner. Through it all, he was known for his endearing qualities and his ability to engage with others at a deeper emotional level, traits that even the prison guards attested to in interviews following his release.

What can we learn from Nelson Mandela about how great leaders can lead in the business world?

Great leaders have followers, not just subordinates.

Unfortunately, a lot of people mistake holding positions of authority with leadership. Perks of being in a position of authority such as carrying a title that starts with the letter ‘C’, having people follow one’s orders, and parking in a coveted spot at the office do not necessarily make one a great leader.

Leading by authority is not the same as leading by influence. So how can you lead by influence and build followers?

Start with the ‘Why’.

Simon Sinek made popular the concept of ‘Start With Why’ through his Ted Talk, where he repeatedly emphasized that people don’t buy what you do but why you do it. He says, “If you hire people just because they can do a job, they’ll work for your money, but if they believe what you believe, they’ll work for you with blood and sweat and tears.”

People at work yearn to know that what they do contributes to something bigger than themselves. Discussed in the same talk, the limbic part of the brain that controls feelings such as loyalty and trust, which in turn controls behavior and decision-making, is highly attuned to the concept of purpose.

Do your employees know what your organization’s purpose is? Most importantly, do they know why you’re all pursuing it?

One way to test that is by simply handing each one of them a blank three-by-five-inch card, and have them write down their answers to the following two questions; “In your own words, what is our organization’s purpose? How is your role contributing to that purpose?”

Then collect the cards and see whether their answers are aligned or not.

If their answers are not aligned, why is that? Is there no clearly articulated mission statement encapsulating the purpose? Or is the mission just words that are discussed but not lived by?

Diagnose where the disconnect is, and work on fixing that.

2) Lead from the heart.

Unfortunately, there is a common perception among C-suite level executives that managing by fear and intimidation produces results, but as we explored in a previous article, toxic fear-based environments hinder employee engagement, creativity, morale, and productivity.

Great leaders lead from the heart.

This means they genuinely care about their people and aim to serve them. They’re empathetic, listen to their people’s needs — at work and in life — and make sure they feel understood and valued. More importantly, they treat them as people rather than resources and tools that can be exploited, utilized, and replaced.

Richard Branson says it best when he says, “If you take care of your employees, your employees will take care of your customers, and your customers will take care of your shareholders.”

For example, if one of your employees starts showing up late in the office, rather than taking the usual route of giving them a stern lecture on timeliness, try to understand why they’re consistently late, and how you can help them?

3) Create a “Circle of Safety” within the organization and most importantly, protect it.

A Circle of Safety is a firm foundation of trust within teams (a topic we’ve discussed in a previous post about building trust through transparency). As it is, organizations already face many threats from their competition and the market. So your employees don’t need to spend extra energy fending off internal threats from their own colleagues. The ability for the team to pull together well in the face of obstacles is what defines an organization’s endurance, and it’s your job as the leader to create this circle where everyone feels safe.

Reinforcing this idea, Nelson Mandela is quoted to say, “It is better to lead from behind and put others in front, especially when you celebrate victory when nice things occur. You take the front line when there is danger.”

As a leader, one simple tool to test the health of an organization was devised by former U.S. labor secretary Robert Reich. According to Dan Pink’s book Drive which introduced this tool, “When he (Reich) talks to employees, he listens carefully for the pronouns they use. Do they refer to their company as “they” or as “we”?”

When employees refer to the company with “they,” it’s clear they view themselves as being separate, hinting at not feeling a sense of ownership or safety.

To conclude, it is important to understand that what makes great leaders is their ability to lead by influence and build a followership. Cultivate this ability by communicating a clear vision to inspire people. Make them internalize your ‘why’. Also, lead from the heart, and make sure that all your employees feel heard, seen, and valued, as the relationship between leaders and followers is one where influence goes both ways!

About the author: Amina Islam is the Innovative Learning Lead for Xcelerator , where she works with the product team to develop new programs. She received her Ph.D. from Masdar Institute of Science and Technology in 2017. Amina is always excited about new ideas and explores them in writing on her Linkedin profile and ahscribbles.com.