Fearless Leadership and the successful team.
There is a lot of garbage out there about leadership. Some believe that true leadership only leads you into battle. Some say that it is the act of pushing people, like shit, up a hill.
If you search for books on leadership, you could read until you die (of old age that is, not boredom, maybe)
So what is truly fearless leadership all about? Well, like so many before me, I am going to give you my take.
My leadership experience
I run a small business. We have a team of 12 or so. Some full-time, part-time, casual, onshore, offshore or contracting. All of these people make up our little Smart Happy Money team. The business is our business, my wife Steph and I, but it is also their business. They rely on it to pay their housing costs and put food on the table as much as we do. So, in fairness, before I move into what I think makes up fearless leadership, I need to acknowledge something. I haven't been the best leader this year. I have been distracted, busy, putting out fires that my team didn't light and haven't given the leadership of Smart Happy Money the time it deserves, so as much as I constantly bang on about our statement of inclusion and culture, I didn't do a great job at it myself this year. But, with all times of trouble comes a reckoning or an epiphany or something anyway, and I have had mine. A jolt of realisation so, I'm back and I'm ready to continue my journey into becoming a better leader.
Most business owners are business owners because they are good at what they do.
I am a good financial adviser. You may be a good accountant, carpenter or mortician, but, just because we are good at what we do, does not automatically make us a good leader or a good manager of people. Just like some awesome managers may not be great at starting a business. They are a completely different set of skills as learned by thousands of business owners who have failed at growing a team and thousands of employees who struck out on their own and failed at that. I guess my main point on fearless leadership is that, while a few might find it comes naturally, the vast majority of us need to learn it as a new skill. Because that's what it is, a skill.
What is fearless leadership?
Fearless leadership isn't about being either in front of your team leading them to battle or behind pushing them along. It is about being with them, right at the same level. Outlining your vision of where you think you should all go and being open to the free flow of ideas, even challenging ones. A real leader stands with their team, listens to their team and adjusts accordingly. In no world does one person have a monopoly on good ideas, even if they think they do. Which leads me to my second point.
But, I’m the boss!
Fearless leadership means putting your own ego, and feelings, to one side. It isn't all about you. Leaders, listen, it ISN'T all about you. You cannot hope to successfully lead a team if your ego is always in play. Otherwise, how could you encourage others to grow, and take a risk, if you are worried about how a failure might reflect on you? How can anyone feel psychologically safe around you if your behaviour is dictated by the praise or otherwise of your ego? A fearless leader puts the team before their own feelings. They create a safe space for truth and failure. They must remember that, whatever has happened at home that morning, argument with your partner, bad news about a friend, none of that is the fault of your team and the team should not become the punching bag. Ego and emotions must be set aside so the fearless leader can do their job.
In a team of ten…
There is never ever, ever a time or problem that justifies a leader raising their voice at a team member or the whole team. That is just not ok. These are people.
In a team of ten people, statistically, around two will have experienced family or domestic violence since the age of 15, two will have experienced a mental health disorder in the past year, two may be living with a disability, and one may have caring responsibilities for someone with a disability, illness or age-related needs. Four will have experienced a mental health disorder at some point in their lives*.
Even if their lives outside of work are perfect, no one needs to be yelled at by you. You are an adult, don’t yell at people.
Their success, your failure
When your team fails, it's on you. When they succeed, it's on them. I told you earlier that this isn't about your ego. That you can't stand ahead or behind them, but with them. The fearless leader’s job is to protect where needed and encourage consistently. Lose=you, Win=them. You get to feel good about the fact that your team feels good. Even in failure. If your team has mucked something up, what could you have done that would have avoided that happening? When they succeed, cheer them on.
A little better every day
Fearless leadership doesn't require you to be a drill sergeant; you don't need physical strength. It takes a well-rounded sense of self and high emotional intelligence. While I still find some fear in my leadership, I won't stop trying to improve. 2% better, day by day on my way to becoming a fearless leader. You will know when this has happened. There will be clues. You will see it in my team's behaviour and in their successes.
My name is Ben Graham-Nellor. I run a financial planning firm called Smart Happy Money and a B2B consulting firm called The Uncomfortable Adviser. I teach people to ask better questions, build stronger teams, get better results and use money well.