Inner Work for Authentic Leadership

Most places that you go these days, and with most of the people that you talk to, we appear to be suffering from a dearth of leadership.  I frequently hear this lament at work; society at large (fueled by the media) is bemoaning lack of leadership among the leaders of The Congress, President, and other elected or appointed officials. And corporate scandals (e.g., the bank failures and home mortgage crisis of late, as well as the need for government bailout of two of the big three automakers) abound. Instead of leaders with integrity, a moral compass, and a backbone, we instead see corruption, indecisiveness, and otherwise weak-minded “leaders” who are in it for the big money. It is the in-authenticity of many of today’s leaders that seem to plague us in all areas, from corporate, to non-profit, to governmental sectors. In fact, Barbara Kellerman wrote a book back in 2012 entitled “The End of Leadership”, in which she makes the case that we have “lost the recipe” when it comes to leadership; universities and training centers no longer teach good leadership principles and the “leadership industry” (the vast array of seminars, etc. available) largely don’t know what they are doing.  So it should come as no surprise that, collectively, we find ourselves in trouble where leadership is concerned. True, we still have some notable exceptions, but by and large we appear to lack authentic leaders to lead us into this 21^st century.

What is Authentic Leadership? At present, there is not one single, unified definition.  Northouse (2016) cites three points of view on Authentic Leadership.  The first is the “intrapersonal perspective” that focuses mainly on the leader and what goes on inside the leader’s mind.  Self-knowledge, self-regulation, and self-concept are the three main components of the intrapersonal perspective.  Through these well-developed qualities, an authentic leader leads with conviction, not by necessarily emulating someone else. Also, life experiences and their meaning are critical to the development of the authentic leader. The second perspective, as described by Northouse, is interpersonal; in other words, the leader-follower relationship. “Authenticity emerges from the interactions between leaders and followers [ with the emphasis on the reciprocity of the affect each have on the other]” (Northouse, 2016). Third, authentic leadership may be addressed from the developmental perspective wherein authentic leadership develops over time and influenced (or triggered) by major life events (e.g., death of a loved one, loss of a job, etc.).

Bill George, developer of the Authentic Leadership approach, in a short YouTube video, talks about how you become an authentic leader, or a better (more authentic) leader, and touches on three main points: 1) real-world experiences to help you gain self-awareness; 2) the need to process the experience(s) through some type of introspection (e.g., meditation, prayer, or some sort of intimate relationship where you have someone whom you trust to talk to); and 3) receiving honest feedback from a person (or persons) with whom you have a more intimate and trusting relationship, and who will tell you the truth.

As I think on my own leadership experience in the real world of acquisition program management within the Department of Defense, and as a defense support contractor (now on the “other side of the table” in certain situations), I too lament the on-going decline in leadership within DoD and the federal government at large.  Failed programs, huge cost overruns, contractors caught defrauding the government, a crop of leaders who seem to prefer to not “rock the boat” by making any tough decisions (and who operate on political correctness instead of unvarnished truth), a lack of mentoring…the list goes on and on to make the case that we lack authentic leaders; and it would appear that we aren’t going to get well anytime soon.

For me, though, the real-world experiences that have had the most impact have included observing and working with what we would have called authentic leaders some 25-30 years ago. I had the extreme privilege of working with The Lockheed Skunk Works as I was starting out in my career.  In observing the kind of up-front, no-nonsense, completely honest, and attention-to-detail practices of that company, I learned how successful acquisition leadership and leadership practices could work. I learned the value of operating on a person’s word and a handshake. I learned how to cut to the chase on complex acquisition programs and focus on the essentials. And I learned what a leader with integrity, morality, and a solid work ethic looked like, acted like, and performed like.  I learned the essential qualities of forming good, trusting relationships with folks at all levels of the hierarchy, from the production and assembly floor worker, to the Vice President and General Manager for Aerial Reconnaissance Programs.

I also remember one experience that literally made all the difference for me with another contractor with whom I was working and trying to solve some significant production and performance issues.  Along with our contracting officer, I negotiated an “omnibus” contract settlement where the contractor owed the government some things and vice versa.  During that negotiation, I agreed upon a particular contractual arrangement with the contractor for production deliveries.  Two weeks later, a briefing chart on that very issue was presented by the contractor during a program review with my boss and our chief of contracting in attendance.  They both stopped the presentation and questioned the arrangement since they had a different interpretation of how things should read. The contractor person giving the briefing turned to me and asked point blank, “Which is it, Dan? The way I have it written up on the screen, or the way they just said they believed it to be?”  Moment of truth. I took a deep breath and said, “The words up on the screen are what I agreed to in negotiations.” A huge sigh of relief was felt around the room, my boss and our chief of contracts said that was okay too, and we moved on. I could have acquiesced to what I thought were the wishes of my boss and our chief of contracts and said that their interpretation was the one we would go with. I could have gone back on my word at the negotiation table, but I didn’t. The amount of professional respect that I earned that day paid huge dividends with the contractor as we made our way through the problems on the program.

So, real-world experiences (especially real-world tests) I believe are essential to the development of leader authenticity. And leaders need to reflect on these experiences, both before they may occur (if such a thing can be foreseen), and afterwards.  Like the old saying goes, “Always tell the truth and it’s much easier to remember what you said.” My two main forms of reflection are “daydreaming” when I have the chance; to just sit and replay the experience in my mind and relive the emotions and thoughts that were running through me at the time; and prayer, where I also replay critical successes and critical failures in my career and my personal life. Part of reflection is the absolute necessity to learn to forgive yourself for mistakes that you have made; learn from your mistake, then move on.

Many times, it is essential to have a close, trusted friend or two with whom you can share your experiences and receive honest feedback, grace, emotional support, and encouragement for the way ahead. I am lucky enough to have two such friends, to whom I can tell anything and not be judged, but instead be understood, constructively criticized, and supported to move forward with either new ways of looking at a problem or affirmations that I’m on the right track.  These two gentlemen are both older than me, they both understand the DoD, and they are also exceptional mentors to me along the way.  Though they are senior to me, we talk on an equal footing.  We learn from each other; it is not simply a one-way street where I go talk about my problems and they tell me what to do. And we share and analyze successes as well as failures. These two confidantes are my lifelines when I’m stuck and need advice. They are also accountability partners, mostly when I ask them to be and sometimes even when I don’t.  Relationships liked these are difficult to find sometimes, but essential.  I have known and worked with these men for 12 and 24 years, respectively.  We talk regularly, and without their guidance and inputs, I would be left to fend on my own. These relationships make and keep me authentic out there in the world.

The last bit of advice on authentic leadership that I’d like to close with is to find and attend at least one good leadership seminar or summit per year where you can hear directly from proven, great, and authentic leaders. It’s inspiring; it’s insightful; and in my mind it’s essential to “recharge your batteries” when it comes to leadership and leadership in the context of your own life. I’m not trying to “sell” anything here, but if you are unsure of what I mean, look up the Global Leadership Summit online and you’ll see one such example of such a gathering. Day-to-day work inside any organization can take a toll on you, and seeing and hearing great leaders of our time not only reminds you that they still exist and authentic leadership is still possible, but it can prove inspiring to you as you face your own leadership challenges. All leaders should be authentic; I would go so far as to say that if you’re not authentic, then you aren’t really a leader.