I have been thinking a lot about what leadership is. In fact, though defining leadership has been a career long pursuit for me, leadership has never seemed to me to be more important to the world than it is today. In a recent post, I wrote of “2022 - the year of the soul”. I also think 2022 has to be the year of the leader and I suspect the two are closely linked.

I saw a post on LinkedIn the other day and the person was a little apologetic about sharing some content because he thought that it might not be “professional” enough for the forum. From my perspective it wasn’t even particularly personal and I couldn’t see why he was concerned. But it did illustrate that we still live in a binary world where professional and personal are expected to be kept separate. Body and mind are treated as though they are separate (but at least acknowledged) and the soul is that weird relative we never talk about…anywhere… except maybe in religious settings. As Parker Palmer said, “We look at the world through analytical lenses. We see everything as this or that and ….we fragment reality into an endless series of either-ors. In a phrase we think the world apart”.

This is a throwback to the scientific era where the world, as it was being discovered through science, was separated and classified and then reclassified into smaller and smaller classifications. In its quest for understanding, science pulled the world apart. This enabled the technological achievements of industrial society but it also meant that decisions were made in isolation from one another, without considering the ways the different parts might be connected and how a decision might impact another part. In turn, this has contributed to the wicked problems the world is experiencing today – rampant inequality, poverty and the global climate crisis, as examples. See my articles: Transforming our schools and Let’s stop sawing sawdust, for further discussion.

Jennifer Gidley suggested that what is needed is an evolution of human consciousness from binary thinking to “postformal reasoning” in which we think the world back together again. In her cogent analysis “Postformal Education: A Philosophy for Complex Futures”, Gidley showed across psychology and education and dating back hundreds of years, the emergence of a way or stage of adult thinking that is higher or more evolved. Gidley suggested that this way of thinking is what we need now. I suspect leaders are those who are able to think the world back together again.

So why is 2022 the year of the leader?

Because we need to stop sawing the sawdust. We need to stop talking/arguing about what needs to change and who is to blame, and actually make that change…. NOW. We need action and leaders are those who act. We need to understand that the world is holistic and connected and leaders are those who know.

To quote Greta Thunberg, “There’s one thing we need more than hope, and it’s action. But when we act, hope is all around us.”

So what is a leader in/for 2022?

Leaders have a strong sense of moral purpose

Leaders may not be in formal positions of leadership. However, they do (no matter what their role) have a strong sense of moral purpose. They know that there is more to life than what they want for themselves and that the world needs to be different. They are driven by a “higher purpose” - a purpose that is bigger than, and beyond, themselves. They are committed to making the world a better place for ALL and they are deeply resolved to effect that change and transformation in their sphere of influence. Equality and equity loom large for them. Increasingly they make their decisions based on principles and rationales, not personal preference.

Leaders model living authentic lives

Leaders have a strong commitment to living authentic lives and they model that life for others. They continually use reflection and feedback, which they grow to value and welcome, to close the gap between their espoused theories and their theories-in-action to ensure that what they say they do and what they actually do become the same thing. They “think out aloud” for others because they know that people sometimes need to be pointed to the learning that is available in situations and they openly share their failures as well as successes and the lessons they are learning. They know that living an authentic life is an ongoing process, so they develop learning relationships with others (such as coaches and mentors) who provide mirrors to enable them to see themselves more clearly and who will hold them accountable for the change.

Leaders take responsibility

Leaders act because they take responsibility. While the world argues about who is to blame, leaders realise this is disempowering (because it puts the power to act in someone else’s hands) and is a largely futile exercise that will not solve the problem. Leaders step up, take responsibility for changing the future. No matter where blame rests, they take actions that lead to change.

Leaders understand that the world is connected and holistic

Leaders know that though the world is diverse and made up of many different parts, it is connected and holistic and they do not hide from the complexity this creates. They understand that simplifying and reducing the world to its component parts and ignoring its complexity leads to fragmentation, dehumanisation and marginalisation which, in turn, leads to inequity.

Leaders understand what Charles Royal so clearly articulates here:

A ‘holistic’ view of the world and of knowledge is not blind to parts, boundaries, borders and thresholds, but rather sees these parts both as “wholes” in themselves as well as parts of larger wholes (holons). Life is a complex and multidimensional whole and the quest to see the “whole” is to render disciplines as part of a complex set of pathways leading to wholeness rather than fragmentation. In this way of viewing the world, understanding relationships is key to understanding the world. (Royal, 2011).

Leaders are strategic - they take deliberate actions to develop organisations as learning ecosystems

Ecosystems acknowledge the connectedness of all things. Leaders understand that man-made ecosystems such as schools or other organisations do not develop naturally, nor do they self-correct in the same way that ecosystems in nature do. They know that deliberate leadership actions and strategies will need to be taken to design the ecosystem, maintain balance, connectedness, coherence and equilibrium and to ensure ongoing growth and development. Leaders take deliberate actions to ensure a healthy ecosystem over time.

Leaders know that the growth and development of people is their most important focus

Leaders know that when they focus on people first, particularly on their growth and development, this creates a win-win. The people will feel that they are embraced as whole human beings and will feel cared for, nourished and fulfilled within the organisation/team etc., and, as a result, the organisation will have engaged, productive employees.  However, leaders don’t do it, first and foremost, for the benefit of the organisation (though they are aware of the benefits), but they do it because they know that people who are continually growing and developing will live better, more fulfilled lives and the world will be a better place because of it.

Leaders focus on their own growth and development because they know that for leadership to be sustainable, they also need to feel fulfilled and nourished; and that they can best help others grow and develop when they themselves are continually experiencing growth and development.

Leaders understand that leadership is a lifelong journey not a destination

Leaders understand that leadership is not a destination – it is not a place that can be arrived at; but is an ongoing process of remaining open to the learning that can be found in each and every human experience, whether it is of failure or success. Leadership is not an end point which is revealed by consistent adherence to a particular way of being but is revealed through increasing openness to learn from all experience and in the capacity to keep a particular narrative going over time. Leaders do not measure their success as leaders by how much they feel like leaders or how often they get things right, but rather by their continual growth and development and their faithfulness to their purpose. Even experienced leaders experience imposter syndrome because they know how far short of the mark they frequently fall.

Leadership is a complex, difficult, frustrating journey, but it is also exciting, fulfilling, gives meaning to life and it is needed right now. However, you may be frustrated and thinking, “This is all very well, but HOW?” This is a broad stroke post. Over subsequent posts and articles, I will provide more detail about what I have learned about the how of leadership.

Here’s to leading in 2022!

Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou katoa, e rangatira ma

Lesley