I’ve been writing a lot about leaders in the instance and that as leaders you need to DO, rather than studying, talking and thinking for years, and that you’ll be termed a leader after the fact by whatever public is involved—or not.

Based on these and other comments I’ve gotten I think that I’d better clarify what I’m trying to do here at Leadership Turn.

First, I don’t believe that the goal of people studying and reading about leadership is to become the next King Jr., Ghandi, Jesus, or Hitler.

I do believe that

• the majority of people spending time and spend energy (very valuable commodities and not ones to spend lightly) on learning/improving leadership skills do so for their professional well-being and to improve career opportunities—many either are, or want to become, managers and I want to focus on their needs. Of the thousands of managers I’ve known over the years, only a few really believed they had it down pat, while the vast majority wanted to improve their management/leadership skills as well as add to them.
• there’s an enormous amount of strategic leadership information available online, in books, through academia and corporate training (in-house or outsourced) and I don’t feel the need to compete with that.
• there’s a need for quality information on DOING—what to do, a certain amount of how to do it and a lot of discussion regarding the role MAP (mindset, attitude, philosophy)™ plays.
• the information needs to be presented in a clear, compact form that fits with busy schedules. I prefer to give my readers the benefit of the doubt that they will ask questions, or for additional information if they require it, so I try to keep my posts short, break the material up for easier digestion, and, one would hope, more cogitation.
• it’s up to each individual to find the right information, at the right time and, most importantly, in a format that works for the way they learn.

I don’t say any of this to downplay other blogs, papers, training, etc., but to explain where I’m coming from.

I’d like subject suggestions from readers who are DOING and to hear about your successes, those things that didn’t work (at least not to your satisfaction) and those that you consider failures.

My goal for Leadership Turn is to become highly interactive—more of an active coaching function that you can turn to in real time—while serving up plenty of food for thought and examples of what other people have done.

There is one question I’m constantly asked.

The question, in one form or another, is this: Is there a single devastating thing I may be unconsciously doing that messes my people up the most and, if so, what are the effects?

Yup, there sure is, and if you aren’t doing it unconsciously then you’re one of the really bad guys and I can only hope that your turnover soars and your reputation spreads.

The action is inconsistency and the primary effect is fear. Secondary effects include intimidation and insecurity.

The end results in the business world are distrust, low productivity, less innovation, abysmal retention and, on a more personal level, poor reviews, fewer promotions and less opportunity.

It doesn’t matter that the inconsistency is unintentional, or whether it’s arbitrary or whimsical, the results are the same. It’s not knowing that really gets to people—even more than expected abuse.

Think about it. It’s one thing to have someone who constantly criticizes (unconstructively) or disparages you, because you can learn how to turn a deaf ear if, for some reason, you can’t actually get out of earshot. But when a zinger comes out of nowhere in what’s normally constructive, or at least neutral, feedback you’re caught unaware, thrown off balance and it really gets to you.

Actually, the more infrequent it is the worse it is when it does happen. And after it happens a few times people find themselves waiting for it, wondering when it’ll happen again, almost holding their breath to see if this is the time that the other shoe will drop. That fear grows exponentially once it takes root and distrust typically increases at the same rate.

Can you think of a worse scenario for people to labor under?

When it’s unconscious, how do you know? If you actually focus on the person with whom you’re talking, instead of checking your Blackberry or thinking about something else, you’ll see the zinger hit and you should be able to identify what it was. If you can’t, then ask! Acknowledge the reaction, state that you know it was something you said, but you’re not sure what. Be gentle if you expect the person to open up, but you stand a better chance if you ask immediately, while he’s still in shock.

But if you did it on purpose to enjoy the show and then get them to open up so you can twist the knife, I sincerely hope that all your teeth and hair fall out and Zeus’ thunderbolt strikes you where you stand and chars you into tiny little bits.

Yesterday I said that the thing that truly defines a company’s culture is the MAP (mindset, attitude, philosophy)^™ of the CEO.

That’s true even when cultural change comes from the bottom up as it does at Best Buy where “So secret was the operation that Chief Executive Brad Anderson only learned the details two years after it began transforming his company. Such bottom-up, stealth innovation is exactly the kind of thing Anderson encourages. The Best Buy chief aims to keep innovating even when something is ostensibly working. “ROWE was an idea born and nurtured by a handful of passionate employees,” he says. “It wasn’t created as the result of some edict,” but it’s Anderson’s MAP that enabled that culture to emerge and flourish.

Good CEO MAP isn’t about “me” even in an industry where ego is king. According to Disney CEO Bob Iger, “The story shouldn’t be about me. It’s about the team.” And while Iger isn’t without the vision thing, no one would call him a big strategic thinker. But by surrounding himself with smart people, including Jobs and the Pixar crew, and letting them get on with it, Iger has recreated a can-do culture at Disney…”Bob lets [the person] who can handle the job get it done,” says [Steve] Jobs, who sits on the board and is Disney’s single largest shareholder. “It’s not [about grabbing] headlines. That’s rare in that town.”

CEO MAP that believes in “Sharing the wealth, listening to even the lowest-ranking workers, and rewarding risk…management structure is flat, flexible, entrepreneurial — and fast,” isn’t just a function of startups and it can be found even where it runs counter to the national culture. BMW’s “Norbert Reithofer, who took over in September. (His predecessor, Helmut Panke, stepped down upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 60.) Says Reithofer: “We push change through the organization to ensure its strength. There are always better solutions.”

Much of BMW’s success stems from an entrepreneurial culture that’s rare in corporate Germany, where management is usually top-down and the gulf between workers and managers is vast. BMW’s 106,000 employees have become a nimble network of true believers with few hierarchical barriers to hinder innovation…Individuals from all strata of the corporation work elbow to elbow, creating informal networks where they can hatch even the most unorthodox ideas for making better Bimmers or boosting profits.

Robert L. Nardelli has a very different kind of MAP as displayed during his tumultuous time at Home Depot where he, “alienated customers just as thoroughly as he did employees…replaced many thousands of full-time store workers with legions of part-timers…98% of Home Depot’s top 170 executives are new to their positions; 56% of the changes involved bringing new managers in from outside the company.”

MAP comes in many flavors and with literally millions of variations within each one.

MAP builds layer upon layer throughout life.

MAP is not carved in stone and can be changed—it may not be easy, but it is possible.

Best of all, it’s your choice, in your control.

According to serial entrepreneur and VC Neil Senturia, “Building a team is the key to creating a successful start up—picking the people who will fit into the culture. The CEO’s most important job is hiring well and being the visionary and model for the culture that you want in your company. There are great players but what wins Super Bowls are great teams.’ In the post he tells of turning down a badly needed skill set because the person didn’t fit the culture. And it wasn’t a unilateral decision, he discussed it with his team and they all agreed.

Companies talk constantly about building teams, the importance of teams, blah, blah, blah, while their managers continue to hire skill sets without nearly enough thought as to whether the owners fit the culture or not passing on candidates when they obviously don’t fit.

Managers, especially entrepreneurs, need to understand that although it’s tough to lose a needed skill set, it’s far worse to lose your culture. It takes guts to make the correct decision for the long-term in a world that runs on short-term. It’s never an easy choice, but it is one that pays off for years.

Ten years ago I wrote Don’t Hire Turkeys! Use Your Culture as an Attraction, Screening, and Retention Tool and Turkey-Proof Your Company and it’s just as true today as it was then.

Your culture is the sieve through which all people should pass—without contortions or rationalizations—preferably aligned, but at the least synergistic.

The keynotes of a culture are:

• Consciously developed – Cultures happen with or without thought. Those that just happen are the easiest to twist and manipulate.
• Flexible – Just as trees bend in strong winds and buildings are designed to sway in an earthquake, so you want to build your culture to withstand economic storms and the winds of change.
• Scalable – To grow as the company grows requires a deep understanding of what’s cultural bedrock and what are accessories.
• Sustainable – Although originally stemming from the CEO, at some point the culture must become the property of the employees if they’re going to support it.

None of this predicts what the culture will actually be, that’s a function of the CEO’s MAP (mindset, attitude, philosophy)™, not of all the articles on what makes a great culture.

More on that tomorrow.

I keep saying that leadership is something one does and is recognized later. I was reading Leadership DNA: Myths, Your Brain, and a Real-Life Leader and loved the comment from the interviewee, “I realized early on that I didn’t learn anything about leading until I tried to lead something. Only after I examined what had just happened and my part in it did I learn anything. Books and workshops gave me a way to frame what I had learned as well as some language to go with it. But none of that had any meaning at all without being tied to an activity.” Definitely a guy after my own heart.

Interviewer Steve Roesler adds, “He was quite adamant about building people through experiences and letting them–and the organization–determine their capabilities as a result.”

Reminds me of the Nike tag line Just do it, that kind of says it all.

That’s what it’s all about, folks, doing it. I’m not belittling what you can learn from books and classes, but it’s still learning, not doing. And everyone who’s ever taken their learning into the field knows that it changes in the doing.

Further, what works for one person won’t work exactly the same for another—as the saying goes, different strokes for different folks.

Doing is a function of your MAP (mindset, attitude, philosophy)™, which doesn’t match anyone else’s, just as no two snowflakes match. So anything you learn needs to be tweaked to fit your MAP and the circumstances even though the language used to describe what you do will be the same as that used by someone totally different in a totally different situation.

So go do, remembering that while it’s you who does, it’s the people/organization involved who deem you a leader, so quit worrying about it—just do your best.

One more note, but be sure to check out the links to Robyn McMaster’s Brain Myths Shape Your Choices. (Thanks, Steve:)

Looking for a few good leaders!

I’d like to invite my readers to suggest leaders in the instance who might be interested in writing a guest post about their experience. Self-nominations are welcome.

Nominees must actually be in the trenches doing it. I’m looking for managers, executives, volunteers, supervisors, parents, team members, etc. who may not even see themselves as leaders, but others do.

The only caveat is that they don’t formally teach, write or give talks about leadership.

You may nominate them publicly using “comments,” send them to me, or call me at 866.265.7267

“When you’re up to your tail in alligators, it’s hard to remember that your purpose is to drain the swamp!”

That’s why a consciously developed, flexible, scalable culture is so important, it helps keep the swamp drained when you’re busy with the alligators.

You’re never going to get rid of the alligators, nor do you want to; alligators are normal swamp dwellers and do lots of good things for the ecosystem.

So swamp = company and alligators = everything touching the company, including employees; vendors; customers; facilities; technology; parking; commuting, staffing; the list is endless.

Beyond being the drain, culture is the ecosystem that binds all the disparate swamp inhabitants together.

That being the case, we need an additional adjective to describe it, sustainable; a consciously developed, flexible, scalable, sustainable culture.

Even if you’re not the one who created the culture, you’re in a position to help sustain it and do the things, whether large or small, necessary to mitigate whatever pollution or damage there is.

Just remember, always start with your own bit before trying to clean up someone else’s.

Ever noticed how some things stay with you? Many years ago, while working as a recruiter, a client VP said, “Great manages make their decisions first for the sake of their company, second for the sake of their group and third for the sake of themselves.”

That comment comes back every time I read about another business leader whose decisions and choices were made in the opposite order, but presented as being for the good of the company. Many of them are in jail, but many more either got off or weren’t caught in the first place; they just moved on to another role and are likely still making their decisions the same way.

Most interesting is that many managers who in reality reversed the decision order (3-2-1) see themselves as making them 1-2-3. This ties back to previously cited research showing that most of us aren’t the best evaluators of our own actions.

Basically, the question is how you evaluate your decisions before you make them. What kind of internal yardstick can you create that will assure the most 1-2-3 decisions?

Based on feedback from dozens of 1-2-3 decision-makers the common thread seems to be a high degree of objectivity and self-awareness. So how do you become self-aware and objective?

Let’s start by defining awareness. The modern definition of awareness is “having knowledge,” but the archaic definition of “vigilant” and “watchful” is more applicable. Raising your awareness is probably most difficult because it requires you to become more objective about yourself and your actions, i.e., learning to see yourself in the third person instead of the first (seeing yourself as others see you).

Most people have some objectivity, e.g., they are able to look at a thing—clothes, jewelry, painting, furniture, house, etc.—and appreciate its beauty without wanting to own it or even actually like it. Self-awareness is the result of cultivating that kind of third person objectivity and then focusing it on your thoughts, feelings and decisions.

A good way to build your awareness is to start with things. The next time someone asks you if you like their new whatever, stop and think about what you’re really thinking. Most people subconsciously think about whether they like, are ambivalent or hate it. But the person asking doesn’t want to know if you want to own/wear it, she’s asking about it in terms of herself, so think about it in terms of that person instead of in terms of yourself—in other words, think about it objectively.

Consciously listen to yourself, hear what you say from the outside, instead absorbing the content from your thoughts. Hear what others say in the context of themselves, rather than your own context. Be sure to develop your objective side without losing the subjective one and, most importantly, be aware of which is which.

The ability to listen objectively to your own thinking is awareness and it acts as an unconscious warning system, only kicking into action when needed, not editing every comment, every move, all the time.

How do you lead/influence/motivate/get/force others to move in the direction you choose or achieve a goal, large or small, that you set? That question is the basis for yards of books and megabytes of content, but in spite of all that’s already been written I thought I’d add my bit to the total. After all, responding to this question is almost a right of passage in the land of leadership and motivation.

So here’s my two-word answer: vested self-interest (VSI).

Over the years, I’ve found vested self-interest to be not only the most powerful people motivator around, but also one of the least expensive, since the cost is mainly from the effort to learn what it is for each person.

And the idea must have merit when you consider that a Sudanese cell phone billionaire is using it to incentivize African heads of state to act responsibly.

In that case, the incentive was money, but that’s not always the case. If it were, then companies wouldn’t lose talent to other companies offering the same or even lower pay. It’s an error to always assume that dollars will do it, or that what turns on one, turns on all. Hot buttons are as individual as your people are and don’t always involve tangibles.

As a manager, it’s up to you to discover each of your people’s hot buttons, i.e., what really turns them on, and then find a way to satisfy it in return for what you want in performance, innovation, etc. Taking the time to learn what the buttons are allows you to power your team as never before, which, in turn, should give you the ability to satisfy your own.

Remembering that generalities are always dangerous, here are some of the most common hot buttons

• public recognition – not just for big things, but for the small, everyday wins that most people’s working lives;
• strokes – a few words here, a compliment there, doesn’t take much time, but be warned, people aren’t stupid, if your comments are lip-service only they will know and respond accordingly;
• giving back – supported or encouraged volunteer programs, leave day banks, etc.;
• making a difference – internally and/or externally; and
• growing/stretching – the opportunity to do something new, learn new skills, etc.

Obviously, money is still a motivator, but it’s not always big bucks, it’s more that the amount is relevant to the accomplishment and logical relative to the company’s circumstances.

And it doesn’t need to be “new” money, it can be a different way to cut a current pie. For example, I get many queries from senior execs asking for exotic approaches and detailed how-to’s for implementing cultural and other intangible changes that often require encouraging (and at times, coercing) their managerial staff into actually doing them.

The most successful method I’ve found is as simple as one, two, three.

1. Carefully define, in a quantifiable manner, what you want done (not “increase retention,” but “reduce turnover by X%”).
2. Include these well-quantified goals in the managers’ annual objectives. (This is not a variation of MBO.)
3. Make it clear to your managers that they will be evaluated on these goals and that the evaluation will impact their annual reviews and compensation.

Vested self-interest will do the rest

And as any parent can tell you, VSI works great on kids, too.