Posted On February 1, 2008 at 12:51 am in Love Leadership
He who has a strong enough why can bear to live with almost any how.
-Friedrich Nietzsche
A definition of great leaders is that they have willing followers. But how do you attract willing followers?
The challenge of leadership is to first determine the clear what – what you want to accomplish. Secondly, the imperative is to develop a clear compelling why-why people would want to put effort or support into helping you accomplish your goals. Unfortunately some leaders think the best why is an “or else”
In my community we just completed a provincial election. What is amazing in the political world is much the strategy of motivating voters relies on fear. The wolf in sheep’s clothing is a tagline used by one of the political parties. Please understand I am making this commentary not to trash one party or the other, but rather to demonstrate how some leaders seek to motivate through the use of fear-based tactics.
I had an opportunity for a conversation with one of the candidates in this election. He asked me what I thought of their ‘wolf’ campaign. I told him honestly that I did not like it. I said that in my opinion many voters are waiting – fruitlessly at present – for a leader who can provide a clear picture of what they intend to accomplish, not one who tries to convince by fear in order to get me to vote against the other party. As it turn out the political party that used hope not fear won.
Not to get into international conflict with our good neighbor in the U.S., but it has always been my observation that the U.S. has a fear-based culture and the current president is unfortunately exceptionally adept at creating and sustaining that fear. Two of his public statements still ring in my ears: “You are either with us or against us” and “The axis of evil.”
Tragically, I think many leaders default to fear as their motivators. It is true in many areas, not only in politics. But, that being said, in the political arena fear-based politics sure shows up in big bold letters and a 64-point fonts size, because it adversely affects each and every one of us as well as our children and children’s children. This kind of scare tactic is the polar opposite of Love Leadership, which is why it is exactly what the world needs now.
Posted by Gregg Cochlan · Tags: fear-based culture, Love Leaders, Love Leadership · No Comments »
Posted On January 12, 2008 at 12:47 am in Love Leadership Events
Thursday evening October 18th was the much-anticipated book launch, held at the McNally Robinson Book Store in downtown Saskatoon. I think we shocked the McNally bookstore management that night. Business book launches typically do not draw large crowds. A few weeks before the launch, the store kindly and gently suggested we move the reading from the restaurant, which holds 125 people, to one of their back alcoves, which holds about 25-40 people. However, thankfully, they honored my request that we stay where we had planned. The launch drew over 200 people and afterwards I was told that I had outsold a well-known Canadian author who, in his book launch, had spoken before 500 people.
The book launch was one of the greatest thrills of my life. Family, friends and clients humbled me by their support and love. Two great friends of mine, Darrell and Roy, provided a wonderful musical backdrop to the reading.
Before the launch, I had an opportunity to talk to two groups, as well as to several individuals about the book. These pre-launch talks were fascinating and revealing experiences.
The first was a meeting with one of my favorite clients, who happens to be a great leader. While I was meeting with him, I passed him an invitation to my book launch. On the invitation was the title of my book, “Love Leadership.” He was excited until he read the title. Then there was this pregnant pause. He was clearly embarrassed and did not want to even look at me. I could see how uncomfortable he felt. My sense was he was uncomfortable with the word love in the title and that I was somehow surprising him. He may have even thought I was “coming out of the closet” with some sexual secret or religious belief. So I looked him in the eye and said, “This book is not about sex and it is not about religion.” He looked relieved, but puzzled. What then could it be about?
In order to clarify, I asked him if he had ever worked with a group of people or team he liked. “Of course, ” he responded. Next I asked him if he had ever worked with a group or team that he felt something for, something stronger than merely “liking” them – did he ever truly care about some of them? Again he responded in the affirmative. I then asked if he had ever worked with a group or team for whom he felt something stronger than “care.” “Yes.” I then asked him, “Okay, what was that?” He paused for a moment and then he got it. “I felt love, ” he said. Voila! Another Love Leader revealed!
I had another interesting experience along the same lines. I had sent an e-mail announcement out to several clients and directed them to my website to check the book out. I got e-mail back from several of them saying that they couldn’t get onto my site. After a little exploration into why, we found out that it was only when they tried to access loveleadership.com from work that they were not able to connect. It’s really amazing, but even technology is uncomfortable with that word. Anything that led with the word “love” wound up filtered out as spam – a telling symptom for the business world, and the very reason I wrote this book.
I also wrote this book to help leaders understand that it’s more than okay to allow love into your leadership and hopefully into your organization. These two telling examples continue to encourage me to keep on trying. I hope after you read my book you will feel the same way.
After you read Love Leadership: What the World Needs Now, please share your comments or questions about the book. I would very much like to hear what you have to say. I would also welcome your own Love Leadership stories, which I hope you will allow me to share with others who read this blog. They might also be included in my next book, which has the working title Love Leadership in Action: How Love is Changing Business and the World.
- Gregg Cochlan
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