Leadership in the Moment

This Week in Global Leadership: Strength in Recovery

Global Leadership Series, Issue 1 | Issue 2 |  Issue 3

This Week: Mark Carney

The world of finance is an ever changing one. From one day to the next, it’s hard for the untrained eye to detect whether a crisis has been averted or needs to be dealt with. In any case, the world has been in a financial panic for the majority of my adult life. Entering this market as a recent college graduate, I am tempted to join in the panic and give in to the resounding fear. However, I see a glimmer of hope, a leader unfettered by the perpetuation of global financial chaos.

Mark Carney, Governor of the Bank of Canada, has been nothing if not level-headed throughout this global recession. He was able to keep Canada’s economy strong enough to avoid the worst impacts of the recession using both caution and confidence. Though I’m not well versed in the details of how Carney was able to achieve this (I am no economist and will not pretend to understand the intricacies of how adjusting interest rates and inflation affects the individual), it is clear to me that with his broad experience in the market and his level-headed decision making, he was able to assist Canada in the recent years of crises enough to keep it one of the strongest economies in the industrialized world.

Before becoming the Governor of the Bank of Canada in 2008, Carney worked with Goldman Sachs in London, Tokyo, New York and Toronto for 13 years. He has degrees in economics from Harvard and a masters and doctorate from Oxford. He is a devoted father, apparently even coaching his daughter at soccer.

There was a fantastic interview with Carney for Reuters just over a year ago (see video here). In the interview, Carney is confident, yet he admits to short-comings with a level of genuine humility that is utterly refreshing in politics. No, he can’t say precisely what the future will bring, but he will do what he can with the skills he has. Truly, Mark Carney is an inspiration, exemplifying strong leadership in tough times with a clear vision for the future and confidence in the process.

Vision and Leadership: Let's Make It Clear

“It is a terrible thing to see and to have no vision”. Helen Keller 

We know that as leaders, our constituents expect us to lead with vision. The importance of this is obvious, but it can be hard to do.

Helen Keller had it right, it really is a terrible thing to see and have no vision, both in life and in a leadership role. What if you have a vague idea of what the future may bring, but you, as a leader, are more interested in getting results this quarter? Isn’t that what we work for? I recently heard Ram Charan speak and he admitted it is difficult to have leaders share their visions when we are driven by results: “People get paid for results not vision”.

So what do we do? I think sometimes we just get caught up on the word “vision”.
In the leadership program, The Leadership Challenge, - The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership, we aspire to “Inspire a Shared Vision” - a tall order for leaders who are confronted with a turbulent economy, employee discontent  - or just apathy.

Its easy to get caught up in the “Inspire” and “shared” aspects of vision when you think about it as somehow outside of yourself.  Yet we know that time and time again, inspired leadership comes from the inside out.  A surprising tool that we learn from The Leadership Challenge is that in aiming for the future, you need to look back into your past.

This is more than pure conjecture: reflecting on the past makes your vision of the future clearer. Sometimes known as “the Janus Effect,” its the concept of leading with awareness of where you’re coming from, and being aware of patterns in your life, making room for a more refined vision, one that is easier to convey to others and follow through on.

This “Janus Effect” was observed in chief executive officers who were asked to both look into their future, and into their personal pasts - and to list out ten events and dates that had happened, or that they anticipated happening  to them. Surprisingly, those who  were asked to list their past events first, had a longer future time horizon than the executives that listed their future events first. (The Leadership Challenge, 4th edition, p 107.)

The suggestion here is that our understanding of the future is elongated when we first look into our past. How do we carry this into our daily leadership practices? Reflecting and moving forward are essential aspects to leadership; sharing that experience, recalling collective efforts and successes makes visions of the future stronger and feel more attainable. Perhaps a first step to looking at vision for yourself as a leader, or for your organization, is looking to what led you to where you are today.

Over 25 years of ongoing research, with data from over 3 million individuals makes The Leadership Challenge® the most trusted name in developing leaders.

This Week in Global Leadership: Facing Fears

Global Leadership Series, Issue 1 | Issue 2 |  Issue 3

Read our series on global leaders who embody "The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership", of The Leadership Challenge.

This week: Daw Aung San Suu Kyi

The story reads like a heroic tale. A powerful figure is locked away, a defender of humanity denied access to her people. And yet, her well-wishers fought tirelessly to see her freed.

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, defender of freedom in Burma and Nobel Peace Prize winner in 1991, turned 66 last month, just 7 months after being released from house-arrest. She spent 15 of the last 21 years imprisoned but remarkably, over and over again she said that she felt no fear.

Somehow, I’d only heard rumor of Dr. Suu Kyi—until two days ago. Born in Rangoon in 1947, daughter to the founder of the Burmese army, Aung San, who was assassinated the same year she was born, Suu Kyi was raised by her mother. She went to school in India and England, achieving a degree in philosophy, politics and economics at Oxford. She worked for the UN in New York for three years before marrying Dr. Michael Aris, having her two children and raising them in England, where she got her PhD at the University of London. She returned to Burma to help her ailing mother where she was soon put under house arrest for her actions towards achieving democracy.

After spending hours combing through article after article, video after video, I find myself completely enamoured of Aung San Suu Kyi. I see Dr. Suu Kyi as a beacon of hope and a symbol of freedom. In her oft quoted speech from 1990, “Freedom from Fear”, Dr. Suu Kyi states her belief that “Fearlessness may be a gift, but perhaps more precious is the courage acquired through endeavour, courage that comes from cultivating the habit of refusing to let fear dictate one's actions, courage that could be described as 'grace under pressure'—grace which is renewed repeatedly in the face of harsh, unremitting pressure.”

Aung San Suu Kyi embodies leadership and courage. She has been recognized the world over as a leader in non-violent heroism, activism, and in efforts defending human rights. More than anything, I am proud to [finally] know that such an incredible example of human dignity endures today. I hope more leaders and individuals can live up to the standards of grace and courage that Aung San Suu Kyi has symbolized and embodied for decades.

“A leader's dynamic does not come from special powers. It comes from a strong belief in a purpose and a willingness to express that conviction.”  Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner, The Leadership Challenge.
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