Leadership is about making the tough decision even when all the planes are in the air. Sometimes you have to have the nerve to say, “Come on back.” ~Samuel Bacharach

It’s election season! I know, what a surprise. Whenever election season rolls around it amuses me how candidates will ridicule their opponent for waffling or changing their mind. Making statements like, “In 2007 so and so voted against ‘x’ and now they are saying they are for ‘x.’ They’re waffling; they can’t be trusted.” If that statement were really true, then that means political candidates have all the information needed to make every decision and no new information ever comes to light after a decision has been made. In other words, this assumption does not take into account that little thing called reality.

The same could be said about leaders in general. They make a statement one day holding a particular position. Then at some point in the future they make another statement that seems to contradict their initial position. As Samuel Bacharach said, “sometimes leaders have to have the nerve to say, ‘come on back.'” In other words, change their mind.

When we change our mind how do we know if we are waffling or evolving? Here are three questions that might help determine the answer.

1. Can you explain, explicitly, how your perspective has evolved and why?

You may now have access to information that you didn’t have before. The information or data may have changed. You may now see the information from a different perspective; your paradigm has shifted. The most important part is, can you clearly and convincingly articulate how and why you have evolved.

2. Is your change in position opportunistic or principled?

Another way to ask this question might be, is the change you’re suggesting based on your values or on convenience? Opportunism can come across as self-centered, not taking into account the broader constituency whether that be employees or another group. Principled, however, comes across as being focused on the greater good because you’re making the change from a position of closely held values.

3. Is the outcome the same, but the means or method to achieve the outcome has changed?

If the outcome clearly remains intact and you’ve changed the method or tactic to achieve that outcome, your credibility may be spared.  However, if you’ve changed the outcome, you will have a much more difficult time convincing others that you’re not waffling.

These are three basic questions to test your leadership effectiveness when changing your mind.

Samuel Bacharach also said, “The ability to change your mind is an essential quality of leadership. Done well, the change of course looks like a moment of courage. Done badly, the change of course looks like pure opportunism or lack of conviction.”

We all have a second job that we’re doing all the time. We’re managing how we come across. We’re trying to hide our weaknesses. We’re trying to influence what other people think about us.  ~ Robert Kegan and Lisa Lahey

An Everyone Culture, co-authored by Robert Kegan and Lisa Lahey, suggests a new kind of organizational culture. They believe that we all spend at least part of our energy hiding our weaknesses and our inadequacies. Consequently, work is no longer a place where we are likely to grow and develop, and this benefits no one.

Instead, imagine a culture where you are encouraged to see your weaknesses as an opportunity to grow, to learn, to do something differently, to improve your backhand.

Here are two examples of this “everyone culture.”

1. Do you lean arrogant or insecure?

Here’s how one company, Next Jump, lives a culture where energy is focused on growth and development as opposed to hiding weaknesses. First they simplified the concept. They determined that it’s good to be confident, but it is not good to be so confident that you always think you’re right.  So they call it what it is – arrogance. Likewise, it’s good to be humble, but it’s not good to be so humble that you’re discrediting yourself, so they call that what it is – insecurity.

So at Next Jump employees will very quickly let you know if they lean arrogant or lean insecure, because everybody leans in one direction or the other. One of their suggestions is when insecure people are in meetings, they should get their voice in early. And if you lean arrogant, wait before jumping into the conversation. At Next Jump, they call this their backhand. While everyone hits with their forehand better; everybody has a backhand that could use some improvement.

Your backhand isn’t something you hide. It’s something you’re continuously bringing out and getting support to get better at.

2. What are your sources of frustration?

Ask yourself, what is something you really want to be able to do, but believe you can’t. Then look at the source of your frustration (aka: blind spot).  Ask yourself a self-reflective question like, “what am I actually doing that works against my effort to do X”? In other words, start asking why instead of jumping to what you need to do differently.

As an example, if you really want to be able to delegate more, ask yourself, “what am I doing that works against my effort to delegate more”? Identify the source, then begin making changes at the source. Said another way, strengthen your backhand by identifying your blind spots and focusing on change at the source of your frustration.

Robert Kegan said, “These everyone culture organizations are very high-performing by not being so performance-oriented as they are practice-oriented. It’s leading a culture as a kind of strategy.”

It’s improving your leadership backhand.

If your character is not strengthening, your capacity is weakening.  We need to check our leadership for leaks. ~Sheila Heen

It’s summer time!  That should mean it’s time to fire up the grill and enjoy some outdoor cooking. Well, that’s exactly what I’ve tried to do for the past several weekends, but with no success. My grill isn’t allowing gas to get to the burner, causing much chagrin and frustration.  It’s a small grill, really a very simple appliance, and I’ve certainly invested time checking for leaks and using the process of elimination to determine what’s wrong.

Likewise, our leadership can also use some intentional effort looking for leaks.  It sneaks up on us, until it gets to a point where the organization is no longer working well, or maybe not working at all.

There are 5 C’s to expand our leadership capacity and each of these five also provide the opportunity to look for leaks.  I’ve noticed a number of authors refer to these 5 C’s, so I’m not quite sure whom to give credit to, but since I first discovered them in a quote from Sheila Heen, I’ll give her the credit.

5 C’s to expand your leadership capacity and to check for leadership leaks!

1. Build your Confidence.

Signs of a leak: looking for scapegoats, not owning your work, putting yourself down.

How to fix the leak: one simple way to build your confidence is staring a WWW journal.  No, that’s not a world wide web journal, it’s a “what went well” journal.  At the end of every day, list at least three things that went well.  Focus on the positive and you will begin to build your confidence.

2. Expand your Connections/relationships.

Signs of a leak: it’s been more than a month since you asked someone you didn’t know well to coffee or lunch.

How to fix the leak: start putting lunch and coffee appointments on your calendar and then fill in the “with whom” part a week or two before the appointment.  Seeing that reoccurring appointment on your calendar will encourage you to find someone new to connect with.

3. Improve your Competence.

Signs of a leak: it’s been more than a year since you’ve engaged in some type of learning experience.

How to fix the leak: register for a seminar, take a class, hire a coach, but do something, at least every year, to continue to improve your competence. None of us are ever fully competent.

4. Strengthen your Character.

Signs of a leak: you recently fudged the truth a little to protect your own image, you took the credit for something that really should have gone to someone else, you handled a situation in a way that you wouldn’t want to appear on social media.

How to fix the leak: if you aren’t sure if you’re being honest with yourself, then find an accountability partner. This could be a friend, a mentor, a coach, someone who will hold you accountable to the character you want to exemplify.

5. Increase your Commitment.

Signs of a leak: when a situation became difficult you chose to back away, or you can make a list of the projects you’ve started that aren’t finished.

How to fix the leak: if possible, re-engage in the situation you backed away from and commit to seeing it through.  Or, select one of the projects you started and identify a completion date and stick to it until it’s done.

I could care less if it’s half-full or half-empty as long as I can fill it up.  ~Shawn Achor

Have you ever worked with a leader who had a scarcity mindset?  Maybe someone who never fully divulged all the information you needed to do your job.  Or someone who hoarded their network and connections.  Maybe it was that leader who always seemed to take the credit for everything, after all, you were their employee so shouldn’t they really get the credit?

These leaders’ typical leadership style focuses on keeping something for themselves—information, relationships, credit, etc.  They fear scarcity.  When leaders function from a mindset of scarcity, they focus inward, it’s about themselves.  But when leadership comes from a mindset of abundance, the focus is outward, it’s all about others.

I enjoy Shawn Achor’s writing and I love his TED Talk.  So when I came across his quote, “I could care less if it’s half-full or half-empty as long as I can fill it up,” I needed to read more.

I would suggest a different way of looking at the metaphorical glass. We get so focused on ourselves and what’s inside the glass—our physical possessions, daily moods, failures and triumphs—and we can argue forever about the merits of being an optimist or a pessimist. Ultimately, however, the contents of the glass don’t matter; what’s more important is to realize there’s a pitcher of water nearby. In other words, we have the capacity to refill the glass, or to change our outlook.

Instead of asking ourselves whether we see the glass as half-empty or half-full, what if we focus instead on our pitcher?  (Shawn Achor, Success magazine, January 23, 2015)

If we’re focusing on the pitcher, then we must have an abundance mindset.  Want to have more of an abundance mindset?  Here are two lists to get you started.  This first list is from Patrick Leddin, professor at Vanderbilt University, consultant, and writer.

1. Give others credit
2. Ask for input
3. Extend trust
4. Coach others
5. Share ideas
6. Connect people
7. Meet unspoken needs
8. Listen more

From John Maxwell’s 6 Tips to Develop and Model an Abundance Mindset

1. Offer words of appreciation
2. Choose to see opportunity
3. Remind yourself that there is more than enough
4. Carefully select the company you keep
5. Spend time in reflection
6. Give more of what you want

Now, go, lead as if a pitcher of water is nearby.

Leadership isn’t about being in-charge; leadership is about taking care of those that are in your charge.  ~Simon Sinek

I just ate my first Chobani yogurt, and I plan to eat a whole lot more!  If you didn’t see Chobani in the news last week, here’s a quick snippet from USA TODAY.

Employees of Greek yogurt maker Chobani are getting an unexpected windfall: an ownership stake in the company that could make millionaires of some.

CEO and Founder Hamdi Ulukaya told the company’s 2,000 full-time employees at its Upstate New York plant Tuesday they’ll receive shares worth up to 10% of the company’s value when it goes public or is sold.

“This isn’t a gift,” Ulukaya said in a letter to employees obtained by USA TODAY.  “It’s a mutual promise to work together with a shared purpose and responsibility.  To continue to create something special and of lasting value.”

“How we build this company matters to me, but how we grow it matters even more,” Ulukaya said in the letter.

“I want you not only to be a part of this growth—I want you to be the driving force of it.  To share in our success, to be rewarded by it.”

As I watched the story about Hamdi Ulukaya on the evening news, the reporter said that while the Chobani employees were grateful for the financial investment, what they really valued was being appreciated.  And I believe that if you truly appreciate someone, you are far more likely to take care of them, just as Hamdi Ulukaya is doing.

One of the things that I find perplexing about this entire situation is that we find it so surprising, uncommon, and maybe even a little shocking.  Let’s look at the facts.  Ulukaya came to the U.S. from Turkey with nothing in 1994 to study business.  His yogurt, Chobani, hit the shelves in 2007, he’s now worth $1.87 billion.  When you think about it, at that level, 10% can’t really be considered a personal sacrifice, but it can be life-changing for his employees.

I believe that we’re surprised and a little shocked – it’s clearly newsworthy given the coverage it’s received –  because it happens so rarely.  That begs the question, what really is our definition of leadership?  Simon Sinek suggests it should be about taking care of those in your charge.  Maybe we should all pause, and ask ourselves, what have we done lately to let those in our charge know that we are taking care of them?  Should Ulukaya’s example of leadership become the rule instead of the exception?