From: Bizjournals
Photo: ISTOCK (PEOPLEIMAGES)
An intentional human being is the most powerful force on the planet. So when did we decide to take our humanity out of the business mix?
In every industry, we keep cutting ourselves off at the knees, insisting that processes trump people and systems matter more than heart.
CEOs, entrepreneurs, and leaders at every level, know this: Your organization will never achieve peak performance as long as you insist on ignoring and even stifling what makes human beings exceptional in the first place.
We are emotional. We are social. We have souls.
A new breed of corporate provocateurs understands and practices these truths. I call them all-in leaders.
All-in leaders are 21st-century heroes who put people first in the workplace, even when doing so invites ridicule or even condemnation. They think for themselves, and ultimately understand that massive change starts with them.
Hero or heretic?
There is another name for this kind of independent thinker: a heretic.
Heretic is not a traditional compliment, but it is the most accurate label for just about anyone who has accomplished anything worth discussing since the beginning of time.
Think about it: From Galileo to Mandela to Jobs, the greatest heroes have always been heretics.
We don’t like to dwell on our tendency to ostracize the innovators among us. What comes to mind when you hear the word “hero”? A dashing figure, riding wave after wave of praise? Accolades and awards bestowed upon a champion by a fawning public?
Not so fast. All too often, we forget that those rosy images of leaders being embraced by society come at the end of the story, if at all. Swept up in the fairytale, we fail to remember that the real heroes have always begun as disrupters and outsiders whose threats to the status quo left them out in the cold, not hoisted on shoulders or thrown parades.
Galileo was condemned by the Church he loved. Mandela was imprisoned by the country he was trying to save. Jobs was fired from the company he built.
Rejection and redemption
Early heroism isn’t a party. It’s lonely. Even when we accept that’s true, actually living it out is another challenge entirely. I’ve weathered both the rejection and redemption that can come with forsaking the status quo –– but to get there, I had to experience tragedy first.
My world crumbled a few decades ago after a man working at a plant I supervised died on the job. I explore the day of the accident in my new book, Heretics to Heroes, and share a humbling confession: My attitude made me culpable in that man’s death. I didn’t see him as a human being. I saw him as a contractor. And he was less safe because of it.
The experience changed me forever. After honest soul-searching, I emerged able to lead people in a variety of cultures and dangerous work environments all over the world to achieve results in productivity, safety, and profitability that broke records. Today, I show others how I did it.
Making a commitment
To get started, you must understand two truths:
- The idea that it is necessary to sacrifice people––their lives, safety, and dignity –– to achieve success is a lie.
- The only leader who needs to change is you.
It’s initially a bit dizzying to realize that the ability to transform not just teams but entire industries lies within you. Those of you who accept the challenge will begin a journey of self-discovery and influencing others.
When you disrupt the establishment and use relationship-based tools such as social accountability that are hard to quantify but infinitely more powerful than protocols, many will ignore you. Some will mock you. You may even be blacklisted. Take heart: That often means you’re on the right track.
Going against the grain isn’t enough on its own. I push heretical women and men to reach three realizations, embody four faculties, and master six skills. When formed, that foundation allows newly minted all-in leaders not only to create better environments for their people, but to lead their teams to extraordinary performance they once believed impossible.
Half-hearted commitment won’t shift a paradigm, and human-less automation won’t save a business. In the acknowledgements section of Heretics to Heroes, I wrote:
“I wrote this book for those of you who spend your days toiling in organizations, waiting for someone in leadership to understand you and your heretical ideas. My request to you is simply this: get off your butts and start leading!”
So what are you waiting for? Let’s go all-In.
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