A
RAVEN saw a Swan and desired to secure for himself
the same beautiful plumage. Supposing that the Swan’s
splendid white color arose from his washing in the
water in which he swam, the Raven left the altars in
the neighborhood where he picked up his living, and
took up residence in the lakes and pools. But cleansing
his feathers as often as he would, he could not change
their color, while through want of food he perished.
Aesop's
Fables
Point
of the Story: To avoid the agony of failure, one must
know what one can transform and what one cannot.
Most
theories of leadership development stress how to be effective within
the status quo—what's called transactional leadership.
A leader using this style can be very influential, but
they change very little. To use a popular expression,
these people are good at “rearranging the deck
chairs on the Titanic", but they can’t keep
the ship from sinking.
Unfortunately,
many organizations run lean on transformational leaders,
the vast majority of the leaders inside organizations
being transactional. Thus we see organizations decline
as there is an increasingly disconnect between “the
way things should be done” and “the way we
do things here.”
The
Transformational Leadership Style
Transformational
leadership is about implementing new ideas; these individuals
continually change themselves; they stay flexible and
adaptable; and continually improve those around them.
Transformational leaders has been written about for thousands
of years--being both praised (Christ and Buddha) and
cursed (Attila the Hun and Genghis Khan).
The
two theorists most associated with its modern incarnation
in America are Bass and Burns. In many articles and in
his book, Improving Organizational Effectiveness
Through Transformational Leadership, Bass talked
about the fundamental theoretical qualities that define
transformational leadership from it's polar opposite,
transactional leadership.
And
before him, James McGregor Burns wrote a Pulitzer Prize
winning book titled Leadership.
He eloquently described qualities transformational leaders
possess in different fields of endeavors ranging from
the military, to business, to politics.
Transformational Leadership Characteristics
According to Bass, these individuals possess:
Charisma. This
is one of those leadership qualities that is hard to
define; like beauty, you know it when you experience
it. I remember a quote, about a charismatic individual
by the name of Oliver North. One of his men once said
about him, "I would follow him to hell since he
is the only man I know who could get me back."
Vision. This involves
the creation of a compelling picture of the future,
a desired future state that people identify with. By
creating this vision, the leader provides a means for
people to develop commitment, a common goal around
around which to rally, and a way for people to feel
successful.
Intellectual stimulation. Transformational
leaders show new ways of looking at old problems, they
challenge the existing boundaries and the mental prisons
people put themselves into.
Inspiration. To
inspire is difficult, requiring as as it does a decent
understanding of psychology.
Our
Approach To Transformational Leadership Development
We
take a different approach compared
to Bass who describes what is. We provide a knowledge base and an approach to transforamtional leadership development.
To become a great transformational leader, one must build on Four Core Strengths. These are:
Self-Mastery. Often the greatest barrier to success in not others, not the environment, it is ourself.
The Transformational Mind-set. Action is supported by a set of beliefs or one has mindless impulses.
Influence. Mangers rely on authority, leaders rely on influence. Enough said.
Skills Development. Few know how to build a skill, so they waste countless hours in futile effort. One cannot build a skill by reading about it.
Video:
The Symbolic Side of Transformational Leadership
Only
one man in a thousand is a leader of men -- the other
999 follow women.
Groucho
Marx
Copyright
@ 2004 by Murray Johannsen. All Rights Reserved
Primal Leadership. Harnessing emotion
is an important aspect underlying successful transformational
leadership. In a recent book called Primal Leadership,
Goleman talks about how important it is for leaders to monitor,
control and harness the emotions of those around them. The article
presents a basic overview and a definition of emotional intelligence.
Transformational
Leadership Bibliography. Just when you thought you were
an expert, along comes more articles on transformational
leadership. This page contains a list of 192 books and articles
put together by National Defense University.
David
Gurr: Greatness Revisited. This
scholarly article suggests that Bass's transformational
leadership model has its difficulties despite the fact
that transformational leadership is related to the great
founder theory of entrepreneurship and the hero of history.
Influence.
Rhoads, a social psychologist, explains the importance of persuasion
in the study of leadership, giving many concepts important
in the process of influence and a number of persuasive patterns
and tactics leaders of all types can use.
Dealing
With Overconfidence. What are great leaders to do when
there is too much enthusiasm, too much optimism and not enough
complaining at work? One could always cut their pay; but
short of that, you can always purchase some calendars and
mugs at this site. A favorite poster goes: "Get To Work:
You aren't being paid to believe in the power of your
dreams."
Ethics
and Transformational Leadership.
This scholarly article by Bass addresses the issue of whether
transformational leaders
are ethical or must functional ethically to be effective.
Transformational
Leadership Books & Articles. Questia
is a for pay service that lists a number of articles and books
on leadership and other topics. While a book may
be on leadership in general, the service will list a particular
chapter that is specifically
dedicated to transformational leadership for example.
Testing
Transformational Leadership Theory Across Cultures. This
study looked at how the Americans and the mainland Chinese
compare according to five factors of transformational leadership.It
turns out that transformational leadership traits are not the
same for the two cultures.
Effective
Leadership Steps. This article uses
the transformational leadership model from The Leadership
Challenge and discusses how these principle
work within Islamic organizations.
Famous Business and Historical Transformational Leaders
Gandhi Some leaders accomplish things through the use
of the sword, others though their words and personal example.
Douglas
McArthur As a general, he had a long and illustrious
history. Transformational to a great degree, he set-up a
new and completely different Japan compared to what had existed
before World War II. This article also lists a series of
leadership questions one can ask about your treatment of
others.
Genghis
Khan Genghis Khan is undergoing something of leadership
revival in Mongolia today. This site presents background
information on the life of a transformational leader few
of us would want to face, let alone oppose.
Transformational Leadership Theory
The sad fact is, experience teaches
little; it's only when sound theory is wrapped within a framework
of experience that we learn. Below are a few classic transformational
leadership books useful in growing your
knowledge base.
Twenty-five years after the publication of Leadership,
Burns expands his theories on how leaders cultivate transformational
leadership skills in themselves and in their successors.
He starts
with the explaining the two opposing styles: those who
occupy the position (they arrange the deck chairs on the
Titanic) and those who transform not only their own position, but
those around it (they fix the ship).
He draws
on
numerous
examples
from
history, citing meaningful examples from the lives of great political
transformational leaders. Unlike many writers, Burns possesses
deep insight
into recent psychological approaches and so has a more profound
understanding of transformational leadership.
Considered a classic by many, the book was the
winner of both a Pulitzer Prize and a National Book Award after
it was published in 1978. It focuses on the many different
types of leadership. Burns argues that the type of leadership
exercised by a general in the military is in many respects different
from that used by an executive in a multinational corporation,
a mayor of city or the head of a religious organization.
Two chapters of the book cover power and purpose
of leadership, three chapters on the origin of leadership, four
chapters are dedicated
to understanding transformational leadership and five chapters
cover transactional leadership. On the change side
of things, he covers heroic, moral, revolutionary and reform
styles of transformational leadership.
He illustrates his points with vivid historical
stories on Joan of Arc, Freud, Gandhi, Mao, the Roosevelt's,
Stalin
and others. He also puts forth his
belief
that great leaders play to mutual need, empathy and growth;
whether one lives
within the status quo or tries to transform it.
• Paperback: 544 pages
A cynic once said in speaking about politics, "The name of the game
is power, who has it, who controls it, and what constraints it." While
most of us will not be involved in the battles for influence that occur
in large corporations or government; as leaders, one must exercise influence.
The laws
of influence are partly based on the laws of reciprocity.
These
rules have been known for long time, but few people seem
to
understand
them.
Managers
often do not understand these rules since they
tend to rely too much on their authority. The problem
is that authority doesn't work
when one wants to:
Much can be learned by a good book honed by
constant improvement. Originally published in 1981, Yukl's
book is now up to the fifth edition. The book is jammed packed
full
of sound theory on leadership. It contains fifteen chapters,
some of which are listed below:
By definition,
transforming something from average to great involves some type
of change and transformation. While the focus of this book is on
the organization, the first transformational principle discussed
in the book involves leadership.
Since there
is not an English word for what he was describing, Collins went
on to call it Level 5 leadership. This ia a very different set of
behaviors from those used by the publicity hungry, greed driven
CEO's in-charge of many United States based MNC's.
Daniel Goleman, Richard Boyatzis, Annie McKee, Richard E. Boyatzis
In his recent
book Primal Leadership, Goleman presents the theory
on why emotional intelligence is an important
foundation
for leader effectiveness.
It makes sense
that leaders are not only be aware and in control of their own
emotions, but also able to influence individuals at an emotional
level. Can you take someone who is feeling "down" and
leave them feeling "up?"
What does a psychologist know about leadership? Quite a lot in
this case. Technically, emotional intelligence is not about
leadership.
However, all individuals who aspire to become a transformational
leader have to master their own emotions since few individuals
wish
to follow someone who cannot control their anger.
The Emotional
Intelligence approach stresses five developmental areas:
There is a
story of a rather old professor who was adamant about not having
his students
read the first edition on any textbook. It was his belief that
good theory only gets better with age and reprints.
While not a
textbook, The Leadership Challenge continues to get
published and republished since it first came out in 1989.
The book presents
five leadership principles. These five are:
a. Challenge
The Process
b. Inspire
a Shared Vision
c. Model the
Way
d. Enable
Others to Act, and
e. Encourage
The Heart.
While not claiming
to be a book on transformational leadership, these principles lend
themselves to its implementation.
This is a book
written from the academic side of view--strong on theory and strong
on research. Bass, along with Burns, have developed
a very strong reputation as an expert in the area of transformational
leadership.
This book takes a different path and focuses on the transformational
leader in the context of the organization. It really goes into the
inside story of how to be a great leader in the world of business.
Books on Transformational Leaders
Studying
Great Leaders Helps One Become A Better Leader
Access Transformational Leadership Books
From Across the Globe
Strategic
Lessons from the Leader Who Built an Empire by
Alan Axelrod
There
are similarities between managing a corporation and running
a country. The most obvious difference—countries
are much harder to run.
When
Elizabeth began her reign, England was, to put it mildly,
a mess. Ascending to the throne at a particularly chaotic
time of British history, she was beset by enemies from
without and within. A betting man would have put good odds
on her getting through the first two-years alive.
However,
at the end of her 45 year reign, England had become the
richest and most powerful nation in Europe and was well
on its way to becoming one of the great powers of the modern
age. Bottomline: No Elizabeth—No British Commonwealth.
The
Timeless Lessons of History's Greatest Empire Builder By
Partha Bose
How
can one so young accomplish so much? By the time Alexander
died in 323 BC, he had not yet reached his 33rd birthday.
Yet, in that short time, he had created an empire that
stretched from Greece to India.
In
an age where tyrants ruled by brute force and fear, he
defied the conventional political wisdom of the time.
Rather than cleaning out the treasury of a conquered
nation and then taxing them them to the max, he built
new cities (often called Alexandria's), libraries; established
mechanisms for communication and commerce; had engineers
build new roads, and had scientists capture new knowledge.
Known
as much for his sound strategy and tactical innovation
in the military arena as his wise statesmanship in the
political sphere, he was the student of Aristotle who
went on to became even greater than his teacher.
A
page listing from the start of his campaign in Asia until
his death. It contains numerous hot links to more detailed
information on key people, events and places during that
period of history.
Development Services For Individuals and Organizations
Catalyst
For More Information
For Groups in Organizations
For Individual Development
The Transformational Mind-set
For what profits a man if he gains the whole world but loses his own soul? Mark 16:26, The Bible, King James Version
