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Chapter 3: Concepts of Leadership: Difference between revisions
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→Leadership Concept #2: What Do Followers Need?
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According to leadership scholars Tom Rath and Barry Conchie, followers need four basic things from leaders: '''trust, stability, hope,''' and '''compassion.''' We will explore them in the context of NET leadership. | According to leadership scholars Tom Rath and Barry Conchie, followers need four basic things from leaders: '''trust, stability, hope,''' and '''compassion.''' We will explore them in the context of NET leadership. | ||
==== Trust ==== | |||
Trust represents the basic currency between a leader and followers. Leaders build trust with followers through relationships, and trusted leaders follow through and do the things they say they will do (i.e. aligning actions with words). Leaders also build trust by facilitating cooperation between members of their team, impartially resolving conflict between others, giving honest feedback, being authentic, and checking in about concerns voiced by team members. | Trust represents the basic currency between a leader and followers. Leaders build trust with followers through relationships, and trusted leaders follow through and do the things they say they will do (i.e. aligning actions with words). Leaders also build trust by facilitating cooperation between members of their team, impartially resolving conflict between others, giving honest feedback, being authentic, and checking in about concerns voiced by team members. | ||
Accountability factors into trust. A leader should justify their actions and decisions. Most important of all, a leader should take responsibility for their mistakes | Accountability factors into trust. A leader should justify their actions and decisions. Most important of all, a leader should take responsibility for their mistakes: own it, convey remorse, point up the learning opportunity the mistake presents, and follow through by taking action. | ||
Leaders also build trust by demonstrating expertise and know-how. For a NET Team Leader, this does not mean knowing how all components of disaster response work (after all, that's a whole career's worth of knowledge!) A NET Team Leader does not need to claim expert proficiency in first aid, search and rescue, radio communications, and on and on. An expert NET Team Leader sees the big picture and understands how all those other parts fit together into community resilience and response readiness. | |||
==== Stability ==== | |||
Trust bears on a leader's predictability, bringing us to stability. Trusted leaders avoid behaving wildly inconsistently. Stability also applies to managing team goals. Volunteers want to know where the team is headed and that the team will get stronger as time and work moves forward. | |||
In his book ''Leaders Eat Last'', Simon Sinek describes a team like a family and the importance of building a "circle of safety" and cultivate an atmosphere of belonging. A lack of feelings of belonging and safety can create an atmosphere of insecurity, indifference, or chaos. This drives team members into managing their ''emotions'' instead of working on the tasks at hand. | |||