Do You Have A Leadership Philosophy?

I came across The Leader’s Compass by Ed Ruggero in 2005. As a consummate student of leadership, this book was a call to action! I spent time thinking and exploring what I believed was important in leading myself as well as others. As a facilitator of Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner’s The Leadership Challenge, my leadership philosophy is based upon the five practices of exemplary leadership. It is a dynamic document that continues to be updated as I grow in my leadership. I’ve shared my leadership philosophy with those I lead, my cohorts, and coaching clients. I keep a copy of my leadership philosophy with me at all times in my journal. I refer to it regularly. I ask those with whom I’ve shared my leadership philosophy, “How am I doing?” I listen for feedback. I adjust and continue to work on my leadership. 

Do you have a leadership philosophy? Is it written down? Have you shared it with your followers and cohorts? Have you asked for feedback? 

David Carr’s Leadership Philosophy Based Upon the Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership from The Leadership Challenge by Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner.

David Carr’s Leadership Philosophy

I Model the Way
I lead in the ways I would like to be led. I do my best to Be the Golden Rule. My core values and beliefs are linked to Micah 6:8 and bound in three words:
– Compassion – compassion means continuously seeking to understand before being understood. It’s being aware of my self-deception.
– Just – to be honest, to be fair, to seek equity over equality, to use my privilege to help those with less privilege. Admit when I make a mistake or do harm, and apologize to repair and heal a wound.
– Humility – not thinking of myself much differently from how I’d be apt to think of anybody else.

I work at being patient. I know there are two sides to every coin. I push back and seek information. I work at not assuming and not nurturing phantom rules. I work at avoiding creating ugly stories. I am curious and continuously ask questions. I make time for sharpening my saw, including the physical, the mental, the emotional, and the spiritual.

I Challenge the Process
The number one challenge for me is to find and maintain balance. I find balance by continuously examining my life. I know I can only be suitable for those I lead if I am good for myself. Socrates wrote the truth, “The unexamined life is not worth living.”

Stress is a major illness. I prevent stress by learning to simplify all areas of my life. I came into this world with hands and a mind free of stuff. I will leave this life taking nothing with me. In between, it’s “stuff” that burdens the journey. There is so much I want, yet so little I need. People remember Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream,” and The Golden Rule. Core messages help me to avoid bad choices by reminding me of what is important. I find ways to eliminate complexity and circumlocution throughout my life. I have learned to leverage. I know my strengths and focus on developing these. I find followers whose strengths are my weaknesses and leverage.

I Enable Others to Act
I understand the difference between management and leadership. Leadership is about effectiveness and doing the right things. Management is about efficiency and doing things right. I manage time, processes, and things. I lead people. The only time micromanagement works is during a crisis, when people are emotional or fearful, resulting in unclear thinking. There is no “micro leadership.” I leave people and places in better condition than when I found them!

I delegate. I give away the power. I give people the big picture and expectations. I let them use their strengths, gifts, talents, and passion for the best process. I hold people accountable but give up control. I understand how much communication is needed to create a shared mental model for the expectations. I work to understand how people learn and communicate best. Some people are visual learners, some are verbal learners, and some are experience-based learners.

I Inspire a Shared Vision
I know what life is calling me to do: Help individuals, groups, and organizations learn, live, and promote “seize the day,” leading to reduced ignorance, suffering, and enhanced living.

I am the author of my mission, the mountain I wish to climb for the next several years. I have designed key initiatives to help me focus on my mission, and I have set metrics and a timeline to measure my progress.

I Encourage the Heart
I can only control the ABCs – Attitude, Behavior, and Choices. Most of all, I know I cannot control others. It is my responsibility to get to know others, my followers, and understand them including their strengths, weaknesses, concerns, pains, and worries. I cannot motivate, but I can inspire by showing how much I care and cheering people on to bring their best, to be their best, to do their best for our team and organization.

These are the leadership questions I ask of myself and my followers:
What essential functions can only I, as a leader, perform?
How am I doing?
Who is the customer? Am I/are we serving them well?
Do we know what our business is?
Are we focused on that business?
What makes us good? What costs us to be good?
How can we break hierarchy and create networks?
If you come to me with an issue or problem, please bring a solution as well so we may resolve it together as quickly as possible.

Carrpe Diem!
David Carr