Why There Is No Such Thing As Humble Leadership By Benson Agoha

Stop preaching this sermon about humility as an attribute of leadership. Let me stress this, I do not believe and, I say it again, do NOT believe, there is anything like a `humble’ leader. The reality of our world dictates that you either be a leader or a follower – which makes it both simple and complicated at the same time.

Management scholars have continually peered into the field of leadership, both to define it and to see how the leader can best be qualified in terms of expectation, capability and delivery of results. While things are often muddled up, it seems to me that because leadership is a by-product of social dynamics, a good leader will best be attributed to corporate organisations, whereas a great leader is for political and military institutions. Why? Because corporate organisations view a leader in terms of whether he is a democratic and compassionate or not, while political and military institutions view him in terms of excercise of strenght - strong will, might, or raw power.

You may wonder why I maintain these two stand points, but consider that leadership is not a word that emanates within horizontal associates or functional colleagues. Leadership stems from the search for the `head’ from among, or to guide a group. A leader must possess the strength of character that will enable him ride the tides of leading. And humility is not one of them.

Am I saying that every leader must hate the world humility? Far from it, but the point I am making is that, leaders, like most other professionals, are role players. For this reason, they must be trained to understand that a leader today, can be a follower tomorrow. Or that a leader in point `A’, may become a follower at point `B’. It is just a matter of the `role’ he is playing at that point in time.

It is wrong to attribute `humility’ to a leader who is playing the role of a follower. What choice has he got than to be humble to those in whose hands his own fate rests for the time being? Academics understand this very well. For example if a professor comes to study under an Assistant Senior Lecturer, he understands that, for that period he is automatically following, just as the ASL would when he finds himself handling a project under the Prof. This creates the need, and room, for mutual respect, tolerance and accommodation.

A better and effective leader is he who is trained to understand that the role is timed and temporary and that he is both a leader and follower at the same time. He must be intelligent, knowledgeable, have strong mental attitude and character, reasonable, attentive, tolerant, compassionate, assertive, accommodating – but not humble.

Some Pastors, are generally perceived as humble, but while this is good for their image, the truth is that they are just humble to God, a Supreme power over which they have no choice - not to their church members.

In 10 Attributes of a Humble Leader, Ron Edmonton argued that `Humility always demands a certain level of trust. A humble leader is willing to take a risk on others, trusting them with the sacredness of the vision, even at the chance they may be disappointed with the outcome’. There again, this writer indicated his religious background, and it is then easy to understand his take on humility.

But while I accept totally, RE’s recognition of God’s supremacy over man, I have to point out that delegation and trusting others with the vision is a requirement of management, and scientific management requires that the skilled hands be put in the right places for a greater chance of achieving results. If we recognise the need to respect and obey higher powers, how then can a leader be said to be humble when he is playing that role of which he is already constrained to actually play.

Although in “Humility Key to Effective Leadership”, Jacqueline Ghosen insists, as does Prof. Bradley Owens, that, "Leaders of all ranks view admitting mistakes, spotlighting follower strengths and modeling teachability as being at the core of humble leadership," leadership maybe about admission of errors, obedience and respect to higher powers as well as tolerance of followers. Giving instruction or delegation to subordinates is not arrogance but part of his/her responsibilities. How he/she chooses to do this marks him/her out as popular or well-loved or not. It doesn’t make him arrogant, except he/she shows disrespect to superiors.

Lastly, I have to point out that a leader must not look down, except he/she is doing it with compassion. Looking down, is not a symbol of humility, but a dangerous move that no leader should practice. Looking down has pitfalls and temptation and brings down a leader faster than other types of incompetence. Looking down demeans the strategic focus and vision and endangers to collective goal.

A leader who looks down runs a serious risk of failure through temptation, of envy and jealousy and short-sightedness, of loss of dignity respect from his followers – except of course he/she does so with and for sake of compassion on the followers.

What do you think?

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Benson Agoha is the founder of Woolwich Online

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Write in and join "Benson and his Cronies at Leadership Lane": Articles for publication must have full contact details, including name, address and telephone number of sender and sent by email to: onlinewoolwich@yahoo.co.uk.

5 Ways You Can Support Your Leader During Rough Times By Benson Agoha

When The Chips Are Down, The Leader needs encouragement!

Imagine walking into the office to see your boss and find him or her in tears! The leader is expected to tick the perceived right boxes. The reality is that even the leader experiences down times, and when this happens, need someone also to lean on. If your boss is that tall, elegant, straight-legged and intelligent, knowledgeable, respectable, confident, widely travelled and expert man/woman, it would seem that they are unbreakable. Still, even for those who tick these boxes there, sometimes, comes a moment of truth.

To inspire anyone, you must understand them and what influences them. The argument about who motivates whom has been on-going and has elicited spirited passionate responses from both sides.

Carol Quinn, umpire of one of the longest running threads on LinkedIn is passionate in her insistence that employees should have the responsibility to motivate themselves. While, one cannot fully reject this suggestion, one must consider that even the boss or leader may need motivating at some point. Should subordinates shy away from this?

Motivation is an arrowed two-way vector that can be better understood when placed in context. Motivation, by nature, also oscillates, making it difficult to achieve with the same treatment every time. Oftentimes, when employees are not motivating themselves, it is headed in one direction from the leader, to the subordinates or followers. When the pendulum swings, employees and subordinates need to understand their environment, their bosses and what to do under the circumstances to motivate them for a change. After all, the rich also cry.

Oftentimes, the leader is the one researching his employees and followers and applying his lessons to trying and keep them motivated and productive. But once in a while, he falls behind, either with illness, depression, stress, or out-rightly cracks up, some break down in tears.

So what will you do if you found the leader crying? Will you just stand there and watch him scramble to get himself composed, wipe out his tears, say he was sorry and try to attend to your `needs’ – again? To tell you the truth, not many subordinates can handle a situation like this, but if they manage to pull it off, their resourcefulness will no doubt be highlighted and better appreciated.

If your leader breaks down or begin to crack up unexpectedly, here are 5 suggestions about on how to handle the situation:

1) Get Composed: No matter your own personal situation, try and get yourself composed as quickly as possible. Remember, in the land of the blind, the one eyed man is usually the king. The leader can be led, even if momentarily, at times like that. Regaining your composure will enable you to muster the strength necessary to deal with the situation. To do this, you will have to think fast and appear organised. Leaders have been trained to watch out for the best among their subordinates and one of the ways they know this is in times of crises. So even when they are down, they are not usually totally out. What you do and how you do it there and then will enable him to trust you to handle that and, maybe subsequent, situations.”

2) Show Concern: Apologise for coming in at that particular moment, even if you knocked, and ask if he/she is OK. In most offices, subordinates are used to a certain culture of `knocking and entering’. You may have come in at a time he/she was not expecting anyone and was probably trying to deal with a shocking news or burden, alone. So making excuses in case you are interrupting is in line with showing the leader respect. And although you may ask, don’t expect to be told. Leaders won’t necessarily open the ‘tap’ so easily. Ask whether you can get them anything – glass of water, handkerchief, similar. Then ask if you should come back before you attempt to leave.

3) Do Not Blab: When you get back to your office or join your other colleagues, do not necessarily start blabbing about what you have just seen. Think about it, you could have been in that situation. Reconsider the situation and decide whether you should ask for a meeting with the leader. If that is the first time you are seeing them, it may help to have a special one-on-one when he/she is better composed and back to their real self. If they want to talk about it frankly, that would be the time to address it. If it is the pressure of work, that would also be the time to suggest a holiday.

4) Offer To Help: If you have asked for a meeting, it is the appropriate place to ask again what was wrong, listen and offer suggestions – if you have any. If the company is going through difficult times, financially speaking, consider if you can makes sacrifices like working for the next month or two without pay or even at half salary. If the company’s creditors are on his/her neck, are you able to help? Do you know anyone who can be of help? If the company’s debtors are delaying payment, are you able to help there also? If he/she is having problem with an important client who is threatening to withdraw their accounts, see if you know a way by which this can be averted. Offer to speak to someone who can make a difference to the ugly situation. Even bosses get hated and told off by important or big clients sometimes.

5) Don’t Expect Too Much: But whatever advice you offer, bear in mind that they are not under obligation to take it. Most likely than not, your advice will not be immediately accepted – something to do with pride. Or he/she may promise to consider it. But the advantage from this is that of personal image building and creation of a good rapport between you and the leader. It shows, you are dependable and mature and can be trusted with additional or higher responsibilities. And whatever you do, don’t forget that a lot will also depend on the two personalities – yours and the leaders personality.

Being able to support your leader emotionally has important psychological implications and not only will it show that you care for others, but l also it will show that you can be relied upon to keep the project on the right track. Besides, should the situation warrant an absence from the leader, you can be counted upon to provide the support necessary to keep others focused and performing till the leader returns.

Succeeding in Today's Workplace. Panel Discussion

by Martin Udogie

The workplace is changing, in many ways. What may have guaranteed career success in the past are becoming less so. Certain skills have become more critical and therefore more valued in the workplace.

And of course, the market for skilled labour is now global. Anyone can be hired anywhere. Just as possession of certain skills-set can take you anywhere, anyone can also come to your country to fill a particular vacancy.

How is today’s workplace different from the past era? What skills are critical to success in today’s global, competitive job market? And what are the implications for our educational and school curricular? What is relevant extra-curricular? What role for parents, government and corporate organisations?

These and more will be explored by our Panel of experts in the next edition of BUSINESS HOUR with Martin Udogie, this Saturday, at 12 noon, on the network service of Radio Nigeria.

Mrs. Catherine Bickersteth co-founded Strategic Educational Advisory Services Limited, which focuses on developing world-class intellect. She is a former executive with Citibank and was for a decade with the UK Department for International Development.

She is also the West African Director of African Leadership Academy, based in Johannesburg and a Trustee of Hope4Girls, among others.

Mrs. Chioma Isiadinso is the CEO of EXPARTUS (www.expartus.com), a global admissions consulting company that has worked with clients from over 50 countries.

She was a former Harvard Business School admissions board member and a former director of admissions at Carnegie Mellon University. Chioma is the author of The Best Business Schools’ Admissions Secrets and is a sought after international speaker on the subject of admissions, personal branding, and leadership development.

She has been interviewed by Financial Times, New York Times, The Guardian and on CNBC’s “Power Lunch”. She is now based in Lagos, Nigeria.

We speak to her on Saturday, February 16, 2013, at 12 Noon. Join the network which will also be streamed Live online at www.radionigeriaonline.com.

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Martin Udogie, Trainer and Public Speaker, and publisher, is a Programme Host for Radio Nigeria Network. He wrote from Nigeria.

UAC of Nigeria and the Incredible Jews by Martin Udogie

We will come to the Jews shortly.

But first, my Special Interview Guest tomorrow is Mr. Larry Ettah, Group MD/CEO of UAC of Nigeria Plc.

No company has stood shoulder to shoulder through thick and thin with Nigeria than UACN. At 130 years, the company is older than Nigeria. Lord Lugard, Nigeria’s first Governor General was first a staff of UACN (then Royal Niger Company).

Legend has it that whenever the Governor General was away from the country, the CEO of UACN stood in for him.

As Nigeria flags off its Centenary celebrations, Mr. Larry Ettah takes us down memory lane, and what UACN stands for today.

Tomorrow’s Take Away is on the Jews, and why they are so phenomenally successful, against all odds.

Jewish Americans make up just 2% of the U.S population. Just 2%. Please don’t forget that. There are just about 6 million Jews out of America’s 300 million people.

But the achievement of this tiny group of people is astonishing.

Jewish Americans are, as a group, the wealthiest ethnic group in America.

One-third (that is over 30%) of American multimillionaires are Jewish.

25% of America’s Nobel Prize winners are Jewish.

50% of the 25 Most Powerful Women in America are Jewish.

Sergei Brin and Larry Page (founders of Google) are Jewish. Their combined stake in Google as at 2008 was over $32 billion

Max Levchin, founder of Pay Pal is a Jew. He sold the company to e-Bay for $1.5billion

And you should know this. Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook is a Jew.

And not just success in wealth, business and career alone. 50% of marriages in America end in divorce. Jewish families have a divorce rate of just 12%.

So, how come this tiny group, just 2% do exceptionally well in the general population. I can only give you a tip of the iceberg.

1. They understand that real wealth is portable. And that is knowledge. A famous Jewish saying is “My brain will set me free.” They seek knowledge and study relentlessly. They attend the best schools.

2. The Jews know how to overcome adversity, wherever they are. There’s an anecdote that goes as follows:

A new flood is predicted that would destroy the entire world.

The Dalai Lama tells his followers, all Buddhists in the world to “meditate and prepare for your reincarnation.”

The Pope tells all Catholics to “Confess your sins and pray.”

The Chief Rabbi of Israel goes on TV and says, “We have 5 days to learn how to live under water.”

3. Jews are selectively extravagant but prudently frugal. Jewish people read a lot. Purchases of Hard Cover Books. In any past 12 months: U.S Average 19%. Jews, 70%. Investment habits. Purchase of stocks and bonds. General public 27%. Jews 73%.

But those that own Ford cars. Jews 7.5%. National Average 20%.

These and more in tomorrow’s edition of BUSINESS HOUR with Martin Udogie, on over 40 FM Stations across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory. See full list of stations, state-by-state below.

Every Saturday, 12 noon (11am GMT).

The programme is also streamed Live on www.radionigeriaonline.com.

Transcripts is published every Thursday edition of Business Day.

Warm regards.

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Martin Udogie, is on LinkedIn , Facebook and Twitter as (MARTIN UDOGIE).

How To Lead Local Staff In a Foreign Market by Benson Agoha

As I write this piece, you may have been finalising your packing, ready for check-in ahead of your journey. By the time I post tomorrow morning, you are headed to your local airport for your new destination - a foreign country. You were chosen for your consistent delivery of quality leadership and high productivity. You have even gone through the usual tutelage on how to manage abroad. You were a student of International business in your high profile institute.

Well as someone who grew up working for and learning from an expatriate working abroad, here are my suggestions:

A) Be Open Minded: Drop every preconceptions or assumptions you have made from your studies at school or in-house training and development programmes organised for your by your organisation. Of course, they have done their best to provide you with information as much as they were able to gather. But no two environments are the same and even if it can be simulated, reality sometimes, play out differently. Even if you have been in that environment before, no two individuals are the same. So you will always find yourself having to need to learn something new. How much success you record depends on how well you do this. Understand that you are going to an environment that should, perceivably be on-going, with or without you.

B) Observe and learn about the culture: Know as much as you can about the peculiar cultures in both the micro and the macro environment. Things may need to be done in a certain way around the office, but before you make those all important changes, find out what works and what doesn’t. The previous manager may have introduced a style that, with time, has been embraced. If that doesn’t suit you, please don’t wreak havoc immediately. Culture change, if unavoidable, is best gradual, timed and communicated.

C) Be ready to be changed. Working in a foreign land requires that you make changes where necessary, but more important, my advice is that you try to be amenable yourself. Many a times an international manager finds that his style is perceived as too rigid, too hard, unworkable or too aggressive. There will be two options left for him – either he leaves or he changes. For you, which one will it be? I witnessed a few, Mr. Fischer allowed himself to be changed, and adapted so well that he moved from one position to the next and from one job to the next – in the same environment. Mr. Jones, was a bit more rigid, perhaps because of his profession (Accounting, Audit and Taxation) and he had himself locked out of his office by a group of protestors who accused him of wrecking your payslips. He begged to come back and pick his personal effects.

D) Understand your subordinates and accelerate at a catchable pace. Try to understand their accent and ensure they understand yours and hear you when you speak. It is very advisable that you help them relax around you and work with confidence with or without your presence. Find out what makes them laugh and try to be attuned with their sense of humour, even if you are not necessarily going to stick around cracking jokes. Because subordinates are instrumental to a manager’s success when working abroad, it is vital that you patiently explain how you expect things to be. Earn their trust and loyalty and you will be the man or woman after their heart.

E) Recommend additional training if necessary and if you think that will help, do the training yourself. Standing in front of them and making yourself heard has unbeatable advantages as it helps them get used to your accent and expectations, just as you get used to theirs. Trying out jokes enables you access their capacity and ability to tune to your sense of humour.