Leadership Is Not What You Think

Leadership is not what you think. The truth of this becomes self-evident when you examine the experience of great leaders (e.g., Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King, Richard Branson, Oprah Winfrey, etc. ). In each case, you will note that leadership has never been born out of the mind; it has always been born out of the heart. Leadership ultimately expresses through a passion for adding some new form of value to the world. Thus, in this post, we are going to examine the truth behind the statement – Leadership is not what you think.

The Fundamental Focus of Leadership and Its Development

First, let’s reiterate – leadership’s primary focus is to create value. Thus, leadership is inherently about creativity. This orientation of being creative in the delivery of value is consistent for any business, movement or public agency. For an executive to create maximum value, their fundamental competency must be generating environments or contexts that bring out the best in others in service to the broader mission. A leader makes the most significant impact in setting context, though:

• Direction setting
• Their ability to build and sustain high-value relationships
• The culture they shape.

However, for an executive to fully engage their creativity in these ways, they must first engage something within themselves. The executive must be willing to turn within and discover the presence that sources all the skills I mention above. There is just no way around this if an executive genuinely desires to grow their leadership.

In support of growing our leadership, it can be useful to attend training, read books, listen to speakers on leadership or even to engage a coach. However, by themselves, these modalities do not awaken leadership. As I note, leadership is not what you think. Being an authentic leader requires one to recognize and wake up the sleeping giant inside their hearts. Once the giant appears, it unleashes one’s creativity, and leadership grows naturally.

Authentic Courageous Leaders Feel Their Way Forward

In my last blog post, I led an inquiry exploring what would happen if love was the real engine of business. I noted that some of the world’s most profitable organizations lead from the heart. When an executive in these organizations makes decisions, they trust something deeper than analysis. They believe in their instincts and trust feelings that align with what they care most about creating.

But following their heart and instincts does not mean they shirk analysis. On the contrary, the process of analysis is a critical tool in their decision making. But in the end, they trust their gut because they have taken the time to develop trust in their intuition. And intuition is a matter of tuning into one’s feeling and then aligning the right thoughts and actions.

A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination.”

Nelson Mandela

A Real World Example of the Heart of Leadership

A great example of this is Southwest Airlines. There is a story about how Southwest’s board was pushing CEO, Gary Kelly to start charging baggage fees. After all, the airline is leaving millions on the table by not doing so. Kelly’s response? He said that the airline would not be doing that. The main reason? “That’s not Southwest.” One could argue this does not make business sense. But Southwest operates from a deeper purpose that drives its business decisions.

Every single seat has a story and no one is second class

Gary Kelly, CEO – Southwest Airlines

But who can argue with success? Southwest Airlines has 45 years of consecutive profitability! This level of consistent success is unheard of in the airline industry. When you consider Southwests logo integrates a heart, you realize this is a company that feels its way forward. Leadership is not what you think.

Your Greatest Resource for a Leader and Human Being is Awareness

Again, I am all for robust analysis. After all, we house the greatest supercomputer ever made between our ears. It would be foolish not learning how to maximize its power. However, we must realize our brains are a tool just like our laptops. One of the most valuable lessons a budding leader learns is that they are not their intellects. When we over-identify with what we think, there can be many adverse side effects. The real questions must become

• Who is the one using the tool of intellect?
• What is the context surrounding the use of my intellect?

What a strange question you may say. Who is the one thinking? You might say ‘Well it is me, who else is the one thinking?’ On one hand that is true, but the deeper question is ‘how do you know you are thinking?’ You know you are because there is an aspect of you that is always observing your thoughts, feelings, and experiences.

We are dying from overthinking. We are slowly killing ourselves by thinking about everything. Think. Think. Think. You can never trust the human mind anyway. It’s a death trap.

Anthony Hopkins

There is a presence within you that perceives your ideas and connects to a greater awareness. This observer is not something that has to be proven to exist. It is self-evident when you explore your moment-to-moment experience. The question then becomes which is greater – the thinker or the one who is aware of the thinking?  Awareness is the top dog.

Leadership Blossoms When an Executive Recognizes the Power of Simple Awareness

In over 20 years working as a business advisor and leadership coach, when my clients get this, it changes everything! When people recognize this background of observing consciousness – they begin to relax more and trust themselves more profoundly. And they realize the power and importance of being present in all their interactions.

I recently worked with a Chief Legal Officer in a Fortune 500 company. When he woke up to the power of awareness, he made a massive leap into a higher order of leadership. It is amazing how something so simple can have such an impact. At the end of our work, he tr the power of this understanding.

He said “David, the biggest thing I got from working with you is the introduction to the observer in me. Before when my directs would visit with me we’d talk about what they are doing to become a better lawyer. Now my conversations center on how they can become a better leader because I see if they tap into their observer self and lead, they will become a far better lawyer.”

If Leadership is Inherently Creative, What is the Source of Creativity?

Again, the first orientation of a leader is to be creative. Now the question then comes, what is the source of our creativity? We could say ‘well it comes from our past education and experience.’ Thus as we learn and experience more, we will create more. But the definition of innovation is about creating something new. So, if our thinking comes from experience and knowledge, the question becomes how our legacy programming can support us in creating something new?

It seems the neurosciences are indicating there is a way to strengthen our creative thinking. But I would claim that creativity is not a function of thought, it is a function of tapping into higher awareness. This higher consciousness is the zone that great artists draw upon to create their masterpieces. But if leadership is inherently creative, then it is no different for a leader who aims to forward their vision.

“Disneyland is a work of love. We didn’t go into Disneyland just with the idea of making money.”

Walt Disney

Overuse of The Neurosciences May Be Leading Us Astray

I am the first to admit; I appreciate the discoveries coming from the neurosciences. The findings from this scientific field have revealed many important distinctions that support bringing out our best. That said, we have begun to overuse it to explain many mysteries that are beyond the mind and thinking. While it has had its benefits, the neurosciences also run the risk of reinforcing our over-identification with thinking.

After all, no study I am aware of has proven that consciousness resides in the brain. My view is that the mind is a vehicle for awareness – not its creator. There is just no evidence that awareness itself lives in the brain or that the brain is the source of consciousness. In short, the cause of our thinking arises from something more significant in us.

And this realization takes me back to the question – which is superior – awareness or thinking? In my view awareness is because, without it, we would not be able to view our thoughts. I would also refute neurosciences’ attempts to define creativity as a ‘thinking process.’ For example, the source of creativity is far more vast than our ability to learn how to synchronize the left and right hemispheres. Again, such information seems to point to the idea that somehow we can ‘learn to be more creative.’

Creativity and Leadership Requires Us to Take Breaks from Thinking

But this interpretation actually can take us further from the creative process. It leaves us wanting because it then creates a complicated path of learning to be more creative. In my humble view, human beings are inherently creative. And to tap into this inherent power, we must build a relationship with our consciousness.

When we do this, we are more present moment-to-moment. When we are more present, we:

• Can tap into our natural creative impulses.
• Become more tuned into what we genuinely care about most
• Become more astute to nuances around us
• Have the ability to direct our thinking to support the creative impulses that arise

True Creatives Show The Way

If you examine the lives of creative individuals, you will recognize they have stunning intellects. Great examples include – Albert Einstein, Nicolas Tesla, Leonardo Divinci, Steve Jobs, Madam Currie, Walt Disney.

While the interpretations that come from the study neurosciences may provide some insight into how they thought, it can over-complicate learning a straightforward process they all followed to succeed.

In short, these individuals:

• Fell in love with a sincere desire to create something new
• Dedicated significant attention to this desire
• Believed in their aspiration and trusted in something greater within themselves to lead them forward
• Learned through trial and error by taking action, not engaging in an in-depth analysis
• During their creative process, they experienced times of totally letting go of thinking, spending time in reflection, meditation or rest.

Again, an analysis was part of the process. However, what was most important was a more profound shift in inner awareness that attracted the solution. Still, the mind was a powerful tool that these creators used to sort experiences and information. That said, all of it came together in great moments of insight that are not explainable by science. These creators also incorporated practices that in a sense had them take time off from the thinking process.

Resting in Awareness is Essential to the Creative Process

Einstein reported that he would take naps and that during these naps he indicated he would receive great downloads of information that formed the basis of his theories. After years of attempting to ‘figure out’ the nuances of AC, Tesla was walking down the street and saw the solution in a flash. Few know that Steve Jobs was a very spiritual person and was on an inner quest to realize his full potential as a human being through yoga and Buddhism. Oprah Winfrey’s entire company, Harpo, makes it a practice to meditate twice a day. Tom Gardner, the beloved CEO of Motley Fool, says before any major decision he stops to meditate before moving forward.

The older one gets, the more one feels that the present moment must be enjoyed, comparable to a state of grace.

Madam Currie

These are but a few examples of how these leaders put the intellect in its proper place. There is no doubt our mind is a powerful tool when it follows the heart. But when we cut the mind off from our heart and give full power to the intellect – we get lost inside ourselves and our thinking. And when we engage in thinking solely for the purpose to increase profitability, growth, and performance – we increase the chances we will miss the mark. Leadership is not what you think.

Business is Not Greedy, But Those Ensnared By Their Intellects Can Be

The most egregious ways the intellect runs rough shot shows up when greed and the desire for more power take over. There are many examples of how intellectual giants can lead themselves and others astray. Examples include:

• The 2009 mortgage crisis
• Volkswagen cheating on emissions tests
• Nestle’s campaign that pushed its baby formula, making the case it is healthier for baby’s than breast milk.
• Orbitz was engaging an algorithm that detected apple users and charged them higher fees for travel deals because they believe Apple users are more willing to pay more.

I could name many other examples. Again, the point here is not to smear business as some bastion for greed. There is far more evidence of business doing good than being greedy. The vast majority of companies are run by individuals who do care about doing the right thing.

My point is that greed is not inherent in a business approach. I firmly believe, a business can be a great force for good when we consciously practice it. Instead, greed is the function of business executives who over-focus on the wrong things. Such misappropriation of the intellect happens because we lose touch with our more significant connection to life and others. That is a matter of the heart. Leadership is not what you think!

To be truly successful, companies need to have a corporate mission that is bigger than making a profit.

Marc Benioff, Salesforce

When the Intellect Rules, Things Can Get Nasty

Business malpractices occur when we focus solely on driving profit, growth and performance. In most cases, when executives fall for greed, they also feel external pressure to do so. When we become hyper-focused in this way, the mind tends to cut itself off from the heart. When this happens, inherently good people can become callous and uncaring.

A narrowly focusing mind cut off from the heart tends to emphasize its goals over all other things, including ethics and what we genuinely care about. When we live in our heads, our actions can become addictive. The drug of choice here tends to start off with a strong desire to achieve specific outcomes. With success, we become addicted to achievement. As we keep focusing our intellects on achieving these goals, we begin to do whatever we must to keep the party going. It does not have to be this way. Leadership is not what we think.

A Clear and More Effective Alternative

In actuality, such measures are outcomes of something bigger than strategy. These outcomes come when we do the right thing and generate genuine value. One of our greatest powers as a human being is our attention. Whatever we focus our attention on, grows. When we engage a strong desire to make something happen, our actions follow suit.

If we focus primarily on improving profitability and performance – the intellect goes to work. As we get stroked for the achievements, we get better at it. This overemphasis on profit and efficiency is a dangerous course! On the other hand, when we focus on a deeper purpose, a vision to create value and the desire to create a culture where all can thrive – we develop something unique and high-value.

Of course, increasing profitability and high performance are a part of this creative endeavor. But these come as an outcome of doing the right thing. This result is proven by ‘Firms of Endearment’ that have been shown to outperform the S&P in cumulative returns 14 to 1 over a fifteen year period. The reason why many executives shun the idea of heart and awareness driving the bus is that they are unwilling to let go of their sense of personal gain. But servant leaders realize when they serve beyond this, something more enriching happens. And in the end, they do well financially.

Conclusion

This blog post points to the truth that leadership is not what we think. Yes, our intellects are central to leading an organization forward. But leadership is inherently creative. Creativity is a function of higher awareness.  Certainly when we do tap into this higher awareness, we gain access to a more creative set of thoughts.  Thus, when our consciousness expands, we can use our intellects in a far more innovative way. Also, leadership is about building contexts that bring out the best in others. And building such contexts also requires a higher degree of self-awareness.  Such expanding self-awareness is the primary means of awakening greater leadership in a human being.