“You can’t make me be nice. You can’t make me be good. You can’t make me believe. But your example, your kindness, your patience and love will affect me perhaps enough that eventually I may choose to do those things.”
― Richelle E. Goodrich
Subordinates look to their leaders to see what right looks like and to figure out what the norms are within an organization. Leaders may espouse that looking professional is important, but if that leader shows up in dirty, wrinkled, or smelly clothing, the subordinates will receive a very different message.
One of the most effective, though time consuming, types of leadership is transformational leadership. Transformational leaders create an intrinsic motivation to accomplish tasks within their subordinates. The leader is also able to “transform” the attitudes, values, and beliefs of their subordinates. One of the four components of transformational leadership is idealized influence. Idealized influence is the idea that subordinates want to be like their leader and emulate certain qualities of that leader. This fits into the idea that the leader is an example for those around him/her.
The example leaders set is not limited to the normal work day; it extends to everything a leader does or does not do at any time. Leaders may want to compartmentalize their lives and say what happens outside of work does not impact my ability to lead at work. However, this is just not true. Say a subordinate sees their leader out late Friday night/into Saturday morning. The leader is heavily intoxicated… so intoxicated that they are urinating on a wall. Do you think this will not affect how the subordinate sees the leader? Let’s say a leader is at a mall with friends and tells an off-color joke. A subordinate, unbeknownst to the leader, overhears this joke and finds it offensive. Will this not impact the leader’s image or ability to do their job in some capacity? It is impossible to say how every subordinate would react to each of these examples. However, these situations highlight how important it is for a leader to remember that people may always be looking at them.
Being an example can be a powerful influence on subordinates and those around a leader. When leaders demonstrate they mean what they say and back up their values with actions, they build trust. Waren Bennis in On Becoming a Leader said, “Trust, of course, cannot be acquired but can only be given.” Trust is a powerful tool for a leader and it starts with the leader being an example for those around them. Think about the best leaders you know in your own life. Have you never looked up to them? Have you never tried to emulate something that they did or some characteristic of theirs? My guess is you have. They served as a powerful example for you. It is on you to be a powerful example for your subordinates.
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In this series we will explore characteristics of successful leaders. Here is our list of traits so far:
Character
Mission Accomplishment
Which characteristics do you think are the most important? Do you agree with our list so far? Comment below and tell us what we have right, what we have wrong, and what we should add.
References
Banks, B. B. (2018). Transformational Leadership: What leaders in values-based organizations must strive to exercise. In Smith, Swain, Brazil, Cornwell, Britt, Bond, Eslinger, and Eljdid (Eds.), West Point Leadership. New York, NY: Rowan Technology Solutions.
(Photo used with permission of Chad Plenge)
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Chad Plenge teaches leadership psychology at the United States Military Academy and develops high potential leaders with the US Army’s Center for Junior Officers. He holds a Master of Arts in Organizational Psychology from Columbia University, a Master of Business Administration, and a Bachelor of Science from the United States Military Academy. Chad is a certified Project Management Professional and an active duty officer in the US Army. In his free time, he serves as the President of the board of directors as well as an Assistant Director for a non-profit organization.
