Need to lead

My wife Franceska is giving a talk on women in leadership. We were discussing some of the parameters of good leadership, and one of the things she mentioned was a Harvard Business Review article that talked about leadership purpose and the motivation for leadership – why do you lead? 

It sparked an interesting discussion that I’m still reflecting on. I think there is a lot written about leadership purpose, and less about the need to lead. A lot of what is written about leadership purpose relates to making a difference, leaving the world a little bit better, a connection with people and wanting to improve lives etc. But that doesn’t explain why so many successful leaders are, in normal parlance, assholes who are out for themselves. The nature of the purpose doesn’t seem to matter to employees, because people still work for assholes in very large numbers. They don’t leave because the leader wants to be the big dog and is not dedicated to making the world a better place. 

I’m not saying that selfishness is better than selflessness (I personally don’t think it is). I’m simply saying that the nature of your leadership purpose is less important than the strength of your purpose. Aiming to get filthy rich is a leadership purpose as much as making the world a little better. What matters more is the strength of the leader’s commitment to that purpose. 

It also leads me think that the need to lead is able to be separated from the need to be successful in business. I know people who have every intention of being successful in business but who have no need to lead, no desire to engage with and motivate people. 

If in your heart you don’t have a need to lead, do yourself and your organisation a favour: find someone who does. 

Here’s one way you know whether you’ve got the need to lead: is being liked more important to you than achieving your purpose? If it is, the need to lead is secondary, because there are times when the only decision to make is a hard one. 

People on our programmes have heard us talk about crowning the company king, which means putting the company’s interests ahead of the owner’s, the staff’s, the customers – everybody (though of course the company’s interests are best served when these purposes are met, but you get the idea – you’ve got to take care of the company’s well-being first and foremost). When it comes to leadership, the most effective leaders are those who crown their purpose king. It comes ahead of all the expediencies, the shortcuts, the “just this once” excuses. 

The clarity and strength of that purpose is one of the things that motivates people to follow great leaders. The clearer you can be about your purpose, the stronger you can be in your commitment to it.