Curmudge, I want to be a leader. What does it take?

“Congrats, Jaded Julie. I want you to be a leader, too. It takes character, and you have plenty of that. Tell me again why you want to be a leader.”

“With Lean, the workers in gemba need to use their heads as well as their hands. They need to become problem-solvers and idea-producers; this will require their being the best that they are capable of being. Constructive leaders will be necessary to help them develop these talents. That’s where it’s ‘at’ in health care, and I want to be there.”

“Let’s start by defining leadership, using the words of Hunter: ‘The skills of influencing people to enthusiastically work toward goals identified as being for the common good, with character that inspires confidence.’ The importance of character is emphasized in this familiar statement: Management is what we do; leadership is who we are.”

“Hey, Curmudge. After I learn how to become a leader, maybe I can get the kids to put their toys away enthusiastically. That would be for the common good of our household, but it’s sure not a common occurrence.”

“These are qualities that people tend to desire in their leader: honest, respectful, fair, appreciative, predictable, and good communication. We can learn from this list by advising folks who are already managers to ‘be the leader that you want your leader to be’.”

“Anything that sounds that Biblical has to be good advice.”

“Every author seems to have his own list of leadership essentials. This is the list proposed by Hunter:

· Patience and self-control. Predictable in mood and actions.

· Kindness. Appreciate, listen well, and give credit for efforts.

· Humility. Be authentic, without pride or arrogance.

· Respect. Treat all people as important people.

· Selflessness. An Army lieutenant sees that his people are fed first.

· Forgiveness. Separate the person from his behavior.

· Honesty. Behaving with honesty and integrity builds trust. But you must hold your people accountable for their actions.

· Commitment. Have passion for personal and organizational continuous improvement.”

“Curmudge, if I had all those qualities, my husband would think that he married an angel.”

“That would be nice, Julie, but it’s not our objective. We want you to develop these qualities and demonstrate to your boss that she hired a saint.”

“It’s not as easy as you suggest, Curmudge. I suspect that most people—and I’m one of them—read a book or attend a workshop and then go back to their job and do things the way they always did. People tend to suffer not only from a leaky memory but also a leaky conscience. Senior citizens like you must know all about leaky memories.”

“Sad but true. In our next conversation, we’ll talk about the problem of building people’s commitment to becoming a constructive leader.”

“Great idea. Tell me again when we are going to meet next time.”

“Sorry, Julie. I forgot.”

Affinity’s Kaizen Curmudgeon