Leadership

When it comes to the lessons and values of a good leader, there are some subjects and examples that come along more than others. For example, the type of leadership that works best is the subject of many debates. Also common are the actual people that supposedly serve as the best examples of good leadership. However, there are some lessons and examples that are less obvious or prevalent. However, to say that these less obvious examples are any less profound or effective would be a mistake. One of those examples would be failure. Failure is something that is often described negatively when it comes to leadership lessons. However, the subject of failure has a specific and prominent place in leadership tutelage. While failure is often labeled negatively when speaking of leadership, the subject can be the cornerstone of many teachable moments and good leadership teaching.

Failure was certainly something that came up during the interview that was done for this report. Indeed, the interviewee notes that failure should not be shunned or avoided when it comes to learning how to be a good leader. Indeed, there should be an embracing and heavy usage of failure. The interviewee notes that are two main examples of this. The first is by looking at the failures and mistakes of others. There is always going to be some amount of personal trial and error when it comes to any good leader. The depth and breadth of that personal failure varies from person to person and from leader to leader. However, it generally does and should exist with all good leaders. That subject will be covered with more depth in just a second. In any event, it is very useful and timely for good leaders to take note of the failures of other leaders. Those failures can serve as an example of what to do, what not to do, why one way is better than another and so on. Further, these lessons come at much less expense and pain than if the lesson were personal and acute in nature. For example, the lesson of evolving and changing with the times can be seen with the company that was known as Blockbuster Video. Their business model became more and more obsolete with time. Rather than change and update with the times, they stayed in the same patterns and business methods that they had used for years. Since the economy and society has passed them by, this led to Blockbuster ceasing to be because what worked in the past was no longer viable. Since they didn’t change, this led to Blockbuster failing as a business in different and more modern times (“A Quick Look”, 2018).

The other main reason that failure could and should be a major teaching point for any good leader is that some amount of failure is to be expected if a leader is being aggressive enough. Meaning, a total lack of failure and challenge would be a sign that a leader is being too timid and reserved when it comes to risk and decision-making. The interviewee described this dynamic in an interesting way. First, there is going to be some modicum of risk no matter what. Even the most conservative business person is taking at least some risk. However, this risk exists on a spectrum and being too shy is problematic in its own way. Sure, being too aggressive means that there is more risk of failure. However, being too conservative leads to less profit and reward than is reasonably possible. Put another away, there is a train of thought that suggests that lack of failure is actually emblematic of someone that is not being aggressive enough. The argument is that while risk should be avoided in any reasonable possible, avoiding it entirely is not good in that some rather safe wins can be lost due to being too conservative. In short, the interviewee suggests that taking calculated and precise risks can normally be a great thing. In other words, taking a risk when there is a 75 percent chance of failure is something that should be avoided whenever possible, in most cases. However, taking a chance when there is a 10 or 20 percent chance of failure is a much safer bet. Further, the interviewee states that getting too fixated on what will happen if failure comes along is not the wise course. For example, an email or other marketing campaign is surely going to fail with a majority of the people that see it. Indeed, if there are 100 emails sent out to prospective clients, it is entirely possible that less than 10 even respond at all to the campaign. However, this is perfectly fine given the amount of time and effort that is generally needed to get the emails in the first place. Further, the reward that can be garnered from those 10 “nibbles” can deliver a lot of business. In other words, there is a risk vs. reward spectrum in play. There is a risk involved. However, it is quite small and the time or money spent as part of that risk is minimal. However, the reward is quite high for those situations and prospective clients that work out. The key, per the interviewee, is for that marketing email (or whatever medium it happens to be) needs to be concise, efficient, polished and in line with the business and its strategy. So long as the emails are done properly and accurately, this will lead to an aggregate level of success. This makes the risk worth the cost involved. So long as there are enough “nibbles” from the campaign, this means that the risks absorbed are worth it. On the other hand, if the emails are disjointed, full of misspellings or eventual customers get any sniff of a “bait and switch”, this is an example of how these campaigns can be done wrong. Further, it can lead to an aggregate loss or failure due to loss of reputation, horrible word of mouth and so on. The interviewee stresses that any risks taken need to make sense based on the overall business plan. There needs to be a unified message that is authentic, properly aligned and well-executed (Moorman & Day, 2016).

When it comes to the traits that transformational leaders possess, the interviewee stresses that good leaders know that at least some failure will come. Some is preventable and foreseeable while other exmaples of failure are “part of the job”. Further, if little to no failure happens when a business plan is being executed, this is a telltale sign that the model is not aggressive enough. Again, avoiding failure in any reasonable way is a good thing. However, excess timidity can lead to lost opportunity and a business not growing as fast as it could or should. It has to be understood that failure can happen even if everything happens as it should. Indeed, customers may already have a competent vendor. They customer may not realize the value of the product or service that is being offered. They might not trust the leader to deliver on the promises that are being made. Money or strategy may be a part of the problem for the prospective customer. However, for all of those sorts of customers, there are plenty more that will give the leader or business a chance so long as the message is packaged and delivered in the right way. Reaching a customer in this way means knowing the niche that is being targeted, knowing how precisely the product should be marketed and so forth (Umashankar, Ward & Dahl, 2017).

The hallmark of an effective leader, per the interviewee, is knowing the proper balance between risk and security. Betting the proverbial farm is obviously not wise. However, there is a common saying in Latin that says “fortune favors the bold”. Indeed, a huge amount of success in business and leadership is not being shy and reserved. One needs to know what they stand for, what they can offer their clients and so forth. This confidence can be infectious and can draw people to the leader. This is true of employees that could or will work for the leader. It is also true of the potential clients. There is nothing inherently wrong with being introverted and internalized as a person. However, it is something that can be problematic when it comes to leadership and running an organization or business. Lack of information and feedback leads to people filling in their own blanks. Sometimes, those people will come to the correct conclusions. Other times, they will get things horribly wrong (Farrell, 2017).

The preceding sentences lead to the main linchpin and cornerstone of success for the interviewee that the author of this report spoke with. Indeed, so much of life, society and interactions with people comes down to what is assumed, believed and assessed by all of us. The problem is that so much of those assumptions are somewhat or very wrong. The only tried and true away to avoid this is to be open, honest and forthright in communications. Obviously, the communications of a business and its leaders will focus on the positives much more so than the negatives. Many people know that implicitly. However, being authentic and honest in a way that shows that one is not trying to lie or obfuscate is one of the primary ways to establish dialog and mutual understanding. For example, accounting can be a very difficult and vast landscape due to the compliance and other challenges that exist. A good leader or marketer would not avoid that fact when establishing dialog with customers or coworkers. Instead, they would admit and illuminate the idea that there are challenges involved. However, it would be wise to assert that those challenges will be met in a complete and virtuous way. Suggesting and admitting to clients that the leader or business understands that such subjects can be challenging and daunting is a way to establish a rapport. It is when the message is not packaged in the right way that things begin to falter. If there is not the message of things like competence, trust and mutual benefit, that is when the risk end of the aforementioned spectrum will begin to take hold (Farndale, Pai, Sparrow & Scullion, 2014).