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"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful,
committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that
ever has."
- Margaret Mead -
Are you are in a formal leadership position? If so, you probably know
better than anyone that leadership represents far more than merely a job
position. Leadership spans a spectrum of skills and
qualities.
If you aren't the formal leader, it's quite likely that you've had ideas
about what your leader "should" be doing. Perhaps you've felt powerless to
affect any change from where you stand.
Facilitative leadership is an attitude that anyone can practice.
The basic definition of Facilitation is to make easy. In terms of group
facilitation, to design, conduct, and manage a healthy group process
making it easier for the group to accomplish its purpose.
Facilitative leadership invites and empowers others as opposed to
commanding and directing. While there are situations where facilitative
leadership may not work, in most instances, it's the best way to lead,
especially when you want to build leadership within your team. As a
relational form of leadership, it also lends itself to being practiced by
unofficial leaders.
Again, leadership is more than a mere position. John Tropman has this to
say about leadership in his book, Making Meetings Work: Achieving High
Quality Group Decisions:
"Leadership can exist everywhere and anywhere-in the firm, in the family,
and in the civic organization. It's not associated with a position as
such, though common parlance often makes thatassociation. We talk, for
example, about senior managers as organizational leadership, we expect
moms and dads to exercise family leadership, and we think of clergy as
religious leaders. This misconception needs correction. Leaders are, as
defined above, people who help us to change. They sometimes are those who
occupy positions of power, but often they are not. Indeed, many
individuals in high positions continually disappoint in the leadership
dimension."
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Ten Qualities of Facilitative Leaders
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So now you may be asking, "How do I improve myself as a facilitative
leader? What does one look like?" The following list will help you
identify some of the behaviors, attitudes, and characteristics of a
facilitative leader. Try them on one at a time and see how they work for
you in your groups.
1. You're Facilitative vs. Directive. Facilitative leaders know that
they're not here to "fix" anyone. While they may be the "designated"
leader, they understand that they don't always need to have all the
answers. As a facilitative leader, you see your job as one where you help
your team members expand the horizons of their awareness, and facilitate
them taking responsibility for their actions, past, present, and future.
2. You're not a "know-it-all." Being the leader doesn't necessarily mean
that you have to be the "authority" on the subject at hand. The amount of
brilliance unleashed in your team depends on how well you let go of your
need to know more than anyone else.
3. You're a guide on the side vs. a sage on center stage. The way most of
us were raised and schooled, we were conditioned to shut up and listen to
the wisdom of the "expert" on the podium or the person "in charge." But if
you consistently approach your leadership from the perspective that the
wisdom in the "room" is far more potent than the "sage" in front of the
room, you'll see your people more engaged, having more fun, and achieving
greater results.
4. You believe in your people. You see, invite, and challenge your people,
not based on what they've done, but what you know they can do based on the
latent abilities you see in them - abilities that they may not be aware of
just yet. Empowering your team takes a huge burden off of you to do
everything as the leader. This is replaced by the burden of faith you must
maintain in what's possible and hold that vision in the midst of chaos and
uncertainty.
5. You're transparent. You don't withhold relevant thoughts and feelings
to try to look good to your team. To the degree we are honest about what
we see and experience, the more effortlessly we will move forward, and the
more powerful our invitation is to others to accept and see what is.
6. You make adjustments instead of judgments. Facilitative leaders are
models of functional behavior. You engender trust by telling the truth and
doing what you say you will do. You gracefully accept constructive
feedback from your team members. When you make mistakes, you own them,
correct them, and move on.
7. You're over yourself. You accept yourself fully, flaws and all. You've
given up presenting an image you think others want to see and offer your
unique self as you are, placing your focus on greater visions, on others,
and on the task at hand.
8. You practice extreme responsibility. You get that you choose your
thoughts, feelings, and actions in every moment no matter the outer
circumstances. When the unexpected occurs, instead of letting
it set you back, you simply ask, "What's my next action?"
9. You practice being present. You live in the present knowing that this
is where you get your power and knowledge of right action. You simply
notice where you are and when you're not here, you choose to be "here"
now. People's ongoing patterns of behavior show up constantly in their
everyday interactions. Being available to the present moment helps you
discern these behaviors, provide compassionate feedback when possible, and
see the underlying dynamics that cause problems in groups. Ironically, the
best future possible will be derived from living solidly, fully, and
effectively in the now.
10. You take excellent care of yourself. You engage in regular centering
and self-care practices to help you stay in peak condition physically,
mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Engage in practices to expand and
cultivate your awareness such as meditation, marshal arts, tai chi, yoga,
good nutrition, exercise, diaphragmatic breathing, practicing presence,
etc.
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Your Homework:
Which of the qualities above really got your attention? Take aminute to
jot down some thoughts on what you can do to exercise this quality today.
Then go take action. What is your own definition of facilitative
leadership? Are there any qualities missing that you would add that you're
good at? That you'd like to improve?
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Formula
1 Petronas GP 2006 - 17th to 19thMarch 2006
