Leadership Forces for Your Inner Compass

by Mark S. Fulton

Consider these messages that can be found on T-shirts at your local casual clothing boutique:
• “Boss spelled backwards is double SOB.”
• “I’d follow my boss anywhere––but only out of morbid curiosity.”
• “Tell the boss what you really think and the truth will set you free.”

Presumably, people who buy these garments don’t wear them to the company picnic. Nevertheless, these and other scornful sentiments toward bosses are bouncing around in the brains of many employees every day in the workplace.

How do some managers––at every level of corporate life––manage to engender such disdain among the people who work for them? How do others inspire their subordinates to aspire to excellence?

I believe the disparity between ineffective and inspirational management originates in the individual manager’s internal guidance system––his or her inner compass.

Your inner compass comprises six faculties––intellect, common sense, intuition, knowledge, experience and spirit––that enable you to contemplate ideas, make decisions, take action, respond to circumstances and form relationships. (See the last edition of “Business Sense” for a discussion of these inner compass components.)

Just as Earth’s magnetic field affects a regular compass, there are forces that influence your inner compass––let’s call them personality forces. These mental, emotional, temperamental and behavioral forces are the character traits that prompt you to think, feel and act in certain ways.

Depending on which forces influence your inner compass, your thoughts, feelings and behaviors can be either constructive or destructive. Personality forces such as dishonesty, negativity, insensitivity, passivity, conformity and insecurity can influence managers to behave like Darth Vader having a bad day.

Here are six personality forces––let’s call them leadership forces––that will point your inner compass in the right direction and help you develop a positive leadership modus operandi:

Integrity - Each of us faces decisions every day that require us to weigh right and wrong. Some are small. Some are huge. Your credibility as a leader largely depends on your standard of integrity.

Integrity is a force that emanates from the core of your character. Call it ethics or morality, integrity is the code of honor that exemplifies what you stand for. As a leader, you have the responsibility of setting an example of honesty, decency and fairness for your people to follow.

Positivity - American psychologist and philosopher William James wrote: “The greatest discovery of my generation is that people can alter their lives by altering their attitudes of mind.” Motivational speaker Zig Ziglar said, “Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude.”

Your attitude tells the world what you expect in return. A positive, cheerful, enthusiastic, grateful and expectant attitude will stimulate those around you to reflect the same. The leadership force of positivity turns obstacles into stepping stones.

Sensitivity - More than simply saying “I feel your pain,” sensitivity is best expressed by behavior that demonstrates empathy for others. Sensitivity springs from a combination of self-awareness, self-control and self confidence that frees you to focus on someone other than yourself.

A sensitive person tries to see things from the another person’s perspective and considers that person’s feelings. Sensitivity is a force that leads you to seek equity in your relationships––to give as much as you get.

Tenacity - Think of this leadership force as your ability to deal with adversity. Adversity is often opportunity in disguise. Sometimes our most valuable lessons come from hanging in there through tough times.

Tenacity in adversity helps you to find the reservoir of courage and character that lies at the center of our being, focus on the truly significant things in your life and tune out the rest.

Creativity - Creativity pushes you to break away from the pack and achieve distinction in the minds of others. Call it imagination, ingenuity, inventiveness––creativity is a leadership force that breaks down the walls of conventional thinking and opens doors to new ideas.

The power of the brain grows in proportion to the breadth and diversity of the experiences we give it. Try feeding your brain a diet rich in assorted mental activities, such as reading a variety of books and publications, learning a new skill, meeting new people and visiting new places.

Authority - Like all of the leadership forces mentioned above, authority has many dimensions. One type of authority is the power you wield by virtue of your position. However, authority is also a character trait that comes from within.

One of the most influential forms of authority is the conviction that you are good at what you do. Unlike its ugly cousin arrogance, authority is a quiet assurance based on skill, knowledge or ability. As you refine and develop your areas of competence, you earn the respect of others.

On your journey to personal and professional excellence, make sure that the forces guiding your inner compass are leadership forces. Then the people who work for you will be more likely to wear T-shirts that say, “Take this job and love it!”

Copyright 2002 © Mark S. Fulton