The Four Factors of Effective Leadership

Welcome!

If this is your first visit, this post will give you a brief introduction.

In 2006, I wrote my first book, The Four Factors of Effective Leadership. It has sold fairly well and I still make presentations on the topic regularly. Many of the people that read my Freak Factor blog either have the book or seminar DVD.

The book is the result of my search for information on how to become an effective leader. The primary thesis of the book is that there are four common themes (Influence, Integrity, Inspiration, Improvement) that appear in the many books and articles dedicated to leadership development. In other words, you can't read anything on leadership without encountering one of the four factors. When I wrote the book, I included stories and examples that illustrated each factor. However, after finishing the book, I continued to find great supporting information that I wanted to share and I started this blog for that purpose.

If you haven't read the book, this will be a good introduction. If you've already read the book, these new posts will refresh your memory and add to what you've already learned.

Whether you are a parent, teacher, coach, manager or aspire to any of these roles, the four factors will help you to increase your effectiveness. I look forward to interacting with you in the pages below.

Do you deal in ideals?

Here is a quote that I heard during Nelson Mandela's birthday concert.

"I have fought against white domination and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society, in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve but, if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die."

Vision is commonly defined as a picture of an ideal future reality. This seems straightforward, but the ideal is often seen as unreasonable or unrealistic. Leaders who focus on it are called naive and criticized for being unwilling to compromise.

But no one has ever been inspired by compromise. People don't dedicate their lives and their souls to mediocre solutions and bland goals. People don't risk their lives for a vision that is less than ideal. That is one reason why Mandela is so revered, he stayed focused on achieving the ideal, while most others gave up and settled for something less.

What is your ideal?

What would you live and die for?

Have you been settling for less than the ideal?

Is it time to stop compromising?

Planning a big party?

I'm sitting here watching 46664, a concert celebrating Nelson Mandela's 90th birthday. (46664 was his identification number during his 27 years as a prisoner on Robben Island)

The third factor of effective leadership is inspiration, which includes developing a personal mission.  Imagining one's 80th birthday party is a common exercise used to help people discover and clarify their mission. Mandela has certainly set the bar quite high. First, he's made it to 90, not just 80. Second, most of the world was invited to his party (if not in person, then via television). Third, some of the most well-known figures in the world participated in the event. Bono even suggested that there should be an annual holiday to recognize Mandela's contribution to his people and the world.

I doubt that, as a young man, Mandela would have envisioned this celebration. However, it beautifully illustrates that the end of our life gives testament to the way we lived that life.

So, are you planning a big party? Will it be as big as Mandela's?

What do you need to do now to earn that kind of celebration? How do you need to live today, so that your 90th birthday will rival his?

Even if you don't have the answers yet, these are important questions.   

Leadership Checkers

My daughters, ages 6 and 4, decided they'd like to learn how to play checkers tonight. After helping them understand the basics, I tried to help them consider the consequences of each move. I asked them to think about one question before moving a piece. "What will probably happen if I do this?"

It struck me that this is a great question for leaders to ask themselves. Effective leadership is oriented towards the future. Unfortunately, sometimes we just do things without considering the consequences. We do things out of habit. We do things because everyone else is doing them. We do things because of pressure from others. But we forget to ask ourselves, "What will probably happen if I do this?"

As I watched my daughters play, I saw that when they asked the question, they made better decisions and got better results. When they just moved without thinking about the consequences, they made bad decisions and got bad results.

It may seem like a simple lesson and it is. However, it is often overlooked. So, next time you have an important move to make, remember to ask the question. "What will probably happen if I do this?"

How to read a business book

As I've discussed on my Freak Factor blog, I'm a reading freak. I love to read anything, including packages of sugar and Hardee's Thickburger bags. I like to read so much that I once read a book called How to Read a Book by Mortimer Adler and Charles Van Doren.

That is why I was so pleased to discover a recent post by Seth Godin about how to read a business book. One of the best ways to grow, to develop yourself and improve your leadership, is by reading. Godin's suggestions will help you get more out of what you read and will probably change your perspective on reading as well.

He makes two crucial points. First, books don't change your life. Applying what you've learned changes your life. Action is what matters. Are you doing anything about what you are reading?

Second, it's not about you. The most important part of learning is sharing what you've discovered with someone else. This is exactly what I suggested in the fourth factor of effective leadership, Improvement. Successful leaders are learners but it doesn't stop there. They learn and then teach others.

As Guy Kawasaki says, you need to "eat like a bird and poop like an elephant." Birds are voracious eaters just as we should be voracious readers. Elephants are unparalleled poopers and also enjoy spreading it around. Similarly, we should take what we have learned and spread it around.  

Who's helping you?

The fourth factor of effective leadership is improvement, which includes personal development. One development strategy that I recommend is to find a mentor. Penelope Trunk, author of Brazen Careerist, has some good suggestions about how to find a good mentor.

I've had two mentors in my life. The first was Elliott Anderson, who gave me the "Freak" nickname and found the strengths hidden inside of my weaknesses. The second is Tom Morris, who very recently volunteered to help me with my speaking and writing career.

It is impossible to quantify the value of a good mentor. I've been incredibly blessed by both of these men and definitely recommend that you let Penelope help you discover this life changing experience for yourself.

You get what you are

Penelope Trunk, author of Brazen Careerist, has a good post today about how what we choose is a reflection of ourselves. In jobs and in marriages, our choice of partners can help us learn a lot about who we are.

One of the key quotes is "a ten does not marry a one." In other words, if you think your spouse is really lame, then you are probably lame as well. If you think your co-workers are all idiots, then you need to ask yourself why you chose to work there. If your company is a poor performer, then what does that say about you?

Trunk argues that "you get what you are." So, if you don't like what you have, then maybe you need to consider who you are. This is difficult, but sound, advice.

It also reinforces the concept of Inside-Out from the 4 Factors book. Too many leaders focus their attention on fixing the inadequacies of others, instead of addressing their own failures. Leadership starts with you. If you are surrounded by losers, you need to stop complaining and take a look in the mirror.

* to read more about Penelope, you can check out Career Freak on my Freak Factor blog.

Circling Back

Stosh has another great post about vision, leadership and communication. I encourage you to check it out. Here is a sample.

"Virtually everyone agrees that vision is an essential component of leadership. Call it forward looking, inspirational or vivid – the message is the same. Leaders must concern themselves with what’s next.

In order to accomplish this, leaders have to scout the territory. When pioneers were exploring this country, they had scouts, parties who would go before the rest of the convoy to determine the best way forward and forecast danger when it lay ahead.

That, however, was not the most essential part. The absolutely indispensible action was circling back to inform and brief the rest of the party before riding on again.

Failing to “circle back” causes many leaders to fail."

Have you circled back lately? Are you sharing what you've seen with your team? It is one thing to have a vision and another to communicate it to your people. Effective leaders do both.

WTF (What the Freak) is Johnny Bunko? Part 3

If you missed the first two installments, here are the links to Part 1 and Part 2.

As a follow-up to Factor 4, Improvement, I did a seminar called GROW! Ten Strategies for Maximizing Your Leadership Potential, which has become one of the bestselling business DVDs on Amazon.com. You can watch a brief video clip here.

One of the ten strategies is "try to fail." I encourage people to take risks, to push the boundaries of their competence, to recognize that growth requires change and the risk of failure. This message is consistent with the fifth lesson from Johnny Bunko.

Lesson #5: Make excellent mistakes.

Diana, Johnny's career advisor, puts it this way. "Too many people spend their time avoiding mistakes. They're so concerned about being wrong, about messing up, that they never try anything -- which means they never do anything. . . The most successful people make spectacular mistakes." (You need to read the book to learn about the difference between stupid mistakes and spectacular ones).

Have you tried to fail lately? Have you purposefully attempted something that had a high potential for failure? As my friend Mike reminds us, great rewards often involve great risks.

I love it when one of my friends, who has listened to GROW! tells me that they are "trying to fail." My friend Stosh does this the most often (trying to fail, not failing). It has become a shorthand way for us to tell the other person that we are trying to grow, trying to succeed, taking a chance, pushing the limits, by trying to fail.

I used to measure my life by my successes. Now I look at how many times I've tried to do something big, even when I couldn't guarantee success. That list is getting pretty long, but I'm not ashamed. I'm proud that I am testing the limits of my abilities. Here is a short list of my recent failures.

• Failing to get an agent for my Freak Factor book (20 rejections and counting)
• Not getting hired to do a large conference presentation for Johnson & Johnson
• Missing my time goal for a 50 kilometer run
• Having my proposal rejected for another major conference

Do you have a list? Are you trying to fail? I'd encourage you to take Dan's advice and "make excellent mistakes."

WTF (What the Freak) is Johnny Bunko? Part 2

I just finished reading Johnny Bunko, the latest book by Dan Pink. If you want a great (and funny) overview of the book, you can watch this video trailer or check out 23 sample pages.

The book is the story of Johnny Bunko, a struggling cubicle dweller, written in manga, a type of Japanese comic book, and offers six lessons for career success. Below is a review of two lessons that fit with the Four Factors. I review two other lessons in Part 1 on The Freak Factor blog.

Lesson #3: It's not about you.

This lesson seemed to contradict the previous lesson, "think strengths not weaknesses." However, Pink was talking about the purpose for which you use your strengths. Johnny's career advisor, Diana, explains that "the most successful people improve their own lives by improving others' lives . . . The most valuable people in any job bring out the best in others."

This is consistent with Factor 4, Improvement, which focuses on developing others.

Lesson #6: Leave an imprint.

In this final lesson, Diana encourages Johnny to consider these questions. "Did I make a difference? Did I contribute somthing? Did my being here matter?" She reminds him that "life isn't infinite . . . you should use your limited time here to do something that matters." Amen.

I conclude the Four Factors with a chapter called Impact. It includes the following definition, "Leadership is a relationship that produces positive change in yourself, in the lives of others and in the world." Dan said it in less words. Leave an imprint.

A Taste of Tom - Part 1

Tom Peters is one of my favorite authors. He has a unique perspective and he is passionate, even a little crazy, about effective leadership. I recommend that you read anything that he has written. You can't go wrong. However, if you're hesitant to spend your own money, you can get a taste of Tom for free. He has written a great two-part manifesto called 100 Ways to Help you Succeed/Make Money.

While reading his suggestions, I noticed that many of them supported the Four Factors (4F). So, over the next few weeks, I'll be doing a series that focuses on his ideas and their relationship to those in my book.

One major theme in 4F is Me-First leadership. This is the belief that leadership is inside-out. Leadership starts with you.

Tom addresses this issue in #5.

TARGET #1: ME!

Stand in front of the mirror . . . Smiling. Saying . . . "Thank you." Doing . . . Jumping Jacks.

Whatever. (See below.)

Fact: "It" begets "it."  Fact: "Not it" begets "It-less-ness."

Smiling begets a warmer (work, home) environment.

Thanking begets an environment of mutual appreciation.

Enthusiasm (those Jumping Jacks) begets enthusiasm.

Love begets love. Energy begets energy.

Wow begets Wow. Optimism begets Optimism. (I've been devouring Martin Seligman lately.)

Honesty begets honesty. Caring begets caring. Listening  begets engagement. Etc. Etc.

How do you motivate others? Take a B-school course on Leadership? No! (You were joking, right?)

Answer: Motivate yourself first.  By hook or by crook.

Call it: Leadership by Unilateral Attitude Adjustment

Are there things that can be labeled "circumstances"? Of course.

Do bad things happen to good people? Doubtless.

Is there such a thing as "powerlessness"?  No! No! No! Take charge now!

Task one: Work on ourselves.  Relentlessly!

If you can figure out how to go to work with a smile today, I (trained as an engineer, and indeed carrying the baggage or an MBA from a "quant school") will guarantee you that you will not only "have a better day," but will (eventually) infect others! (And, uh, "productivity" will soar . . . once "they" - your boss, your peers, your subordinates - get over the shock.)

Smile! Enthuse! Thank! Wow! Win! Now!