[October 14, 2017] As leaders, people don’t buy what you do, so much as they buy why you do it. British-American author Simon Sinek said something like this years ago when he was giving a presentation on leadership to an international audience. His observation is spot on because, as he noted later, the most basic human desire to be part of something greater than yourself.
It’s no surprise that the best leaders are those that not only show others the way to achieve good things but they also are able to convince them that it is the right thing to do. This is why, we say to contrast the difference in a boss and a leader, a boss wants people to do their work the right way, while a leader wants them to do what is right.
A few years ago, a U.S. Navy Master Chief Petty Officer (the highest enlisted rank) was seen reading at the bedside of a sailor with burns on his arms. He was reading parts of the current Navy Times newspapers. While that was seen as a nice gesture and perhaps a “photo op,” what the hospital staff learned was that this young sailor had received injuries from helping two women escape a burning vehicle. The Master Chief was showing what respect looks like so that others would know what to do when called upon.
What we do as leaders is often the focus of leadership training and practice. The “why” of leadership therefore should get more attention as we study the outcome of good versus great leaders. I recently finished a bibliographical trilogy on British Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill (a 2,000 page narrative of Churchill’s life). What I most found fascinating was the reasons Churchill gave in his own words for why he did what he did for the British Empire before and during World War II.
Whether it was the Navy Master Chief or Churchill, both were both great leaders of men and women in battle and were able to articulate the actions they took and why. The case for why they do something and its significance must be made in person by the leader to all those concerned with the outcome.
Communication skills are paramount. U.S. President Ronald Reagan was called the “Great Communicator” because he was able to convince the American public that what he did was right for them individually and for them to believe in themselves again. If you are a visionary like any of these three men, then you must also be a gifted speaker and master at self-presentation.
Remember that people buy more into why a leader does something than the act itself. A lesson for junior leaders that they should never forget.
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