Last week we talked about Authoritarians, Micromanagers, and Cool Bosses.
All three types of leaders discourage teams from action and initiative.
Initiative is important because it’s what happens (or doesn’t) when the boss isn’t around. It requires both alignment (understanding the intent) and autonomy (acting independently).
Let’s explore how these leaders affect initiative (in terms of alignment and autonomy), from the team’s perspective.
The Effect of Authority
“I’ll do exactly what you say and no more, because going beyond that is unsafe.”
The Effect of Micromanagement
“No matter what I do, you’ll say it’s wrong, so I’ll do just enough to trigger correction.”
The Effect of Coolness (Absenteeism)
“What am I supposed to do? What even matters!?”
or
“No one’s told us not to do this, so why not?!”
These experiences are what “stuck” looks like.
But other ways are possible.
We’ll explore this more soon.
Until next time,
Ben and David
StrategyTeaming.com
P.S. Look familiar?
The Art of Action, Stephen Bungay (2011)