INsight/ Influence or Manipulation

Photo by Gustavo Alves on Unsplash.

Manila, 15 February 2024 — Leadership is influence. What if that turns you off?

Story

It happened a few times over the past years. When we discussed in a training that leadership is about influencing, some participants would frown. When I asked, they shared negative impressions they had about leaders in their countries who seek to control and manipulate people. That was an off-putting experience for them that they had to get over to get to a place where they could engage in learning about leadership with an open mind and heart. What to do when you feel resistance to the idea of leadership as influencing others?

Let’s take three perspectives on this issue. First, leadership abilities can be used with good and bad intentions. In that sense, they are no different from any of the tools invented since the dawn of human history. Leadership is, therefore, not intrinsically good (or bad). Second, there is more to leadership than a binary distinction of being used in good or bad ways. In my experience, the many ways in which people see leadership is informed by their worldviews. This process tends to happen unconsciously and at TransformationFirst.Asia we help leaders become aware of this. More on that below.

Third, leadership and leadership development can be seen individually and as a social process that we engage in with others. Both are true. There is no leadership without self-leadership, as the wisdom traditions have taught us for millennia, and as researchers have confirmed during the past century. The point of leadership, however, goes beyond ourselves to serve a bigger purpose that involves other people. In our Three Worlds model, we explore how leadership is, simultaneously, an inside job (in our personal world), a contact sport (in our social world), and a bigger game (in our observed world).

Challenge

When you ask yourself the question if leadership is about influence or manipulation, it might simply be that you are too concerned with yourself. In our 21st century, leadership is seen more and more about working together to make a positive difference in the world. While self-leadership remains essential, we want to shift our focus from Me to We as soon as possible.

Researchers at the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL) have underlined the perspective that leadership is a social process. Even if you develop many qualities of a good leader, they argue, you won’t get very far on your own until you grasp this important perspective. In our experience, CCL’s leadership model of Direction, Alignment, and Commitment (DAC) is invariably helpful to the leaders we coach. 

The DAC model implies that leaders move in a common direction and align themselves to make progress, powered by a shared commitment. Does that happen by itself? Of course not, and that is what leadership development is about: how to influence people around us to inspire a shared vision or goal, to work in alignment, and to give it our full commitment. That’s why leaders need to become effective influencers. 

Question

Influencing other people to agree, align, and commit to a shared vision is a challenge. Colleagues in your workplace will unconsciously hold a variety of worldviews. Some will instinctively expect others to follow their words, ideas, or examples. Others will resist being influenced and prefer to follow traditions, build a set of rules, or find a consensus that everyone can conform to. Our Work In All Colors course helps leaders discover these different worldviews that work at an unconscious level, starting with developing an awareness of their own worldviews.

Understanding leadership as a social process of influence doesn’t stop with understanding people’s worldviews. Rather, those insights will empower leaders to speak a range of ‘leadership languages’ that can effectively appeal to the heads and hearts of their different colleagues. Learning how to do that is key, and becomes part and parcel of their influencing skills.

Here is my question for you this week: what drives you to develop your leadership abilities? I’d love to hear your answer.

P.S. If you want to invest in growing your or your team’s leadership abilities, set up a Free Strategy Call so we can discuss your plan and what you need to move forward.