Leadership is a people business, meaning understanding personalities and relationships is essential. I have seen successful leaders of many different personalities in various roles. I have seen leaders who are successful in one position fail in another. We see this in businesses where a highly successful CEO in one company fails in another. Many books are written on the forensics of these cases, and a few are on military situations. The forensics will always identify a witch’s brew of internal factors of personalities, relationships, organizational culture, and strategy and external factors of terrain (market), the enemy (competition), allies (partners), and the universal elements of time and space. Only with experience do leaders learn to deal with all of these factors, and the best leaders learn from different people’s experiences.
I concluded as a lieutenant that there are four kinds of leaders, the competent good guy, the competent asshole, the incompetent good guy, and the incompetent asshole. While these are gross generalizations, they are instructive and born out over time.
The competent good guy; knows his job and the occupational field, cares about his people and their development, and leads by example. This leader is easy to work for because you are always learning and know his intent. Every action is about the mission and the people.
The competent asshole; knows his job and the occupational field, cares about his people if it affects the mission and him, and leads for effect. You can work for this guy because most of the time, he will do what is right or not-prevent you from doing what is right. However, you always have to look over your shoulder because he doesn’t have your back. You will experience rough seas periodically for mistakes made for lack of experience.
The incompetent good guy; isn’t an expert at his job, but he cares about his people. You can work for this guy, but you will have to find others to teach you about your job and occupation. However, he won’t get in your way because he knows you are good and getting better. He will only concern himself with areas in which he feels competent.
Now, there are leaders at every point along this spectrum, and sometimes you develop an opinion of a leader incompletely. Observe every leader, the decisions they make, the policies they set, and their relationships with their staff and subordinates. Make notes in your journal about decisions and policies, what you think will result, and the actual results thereof. A good boss will address your role with you and how he sees you fitting in the organizational dynamic. I learned this as a lieutenant working with my first platoon sergeant and made it a habit to discuss and even include in an appointment letter for critical subordinates.
So, this week make some notes about your leaders and then consider your subordinates. Have you given them the guidance they need? Get on it!
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Remember, “all things are possible through prayer and heavy deadlifts.”™
