By EventEducation.com
What Batman Can('t) Teach You About Leadership
Many managers see themselves as a corporate Batman, the misunderstood and disguised hero that comes to the rescue and with relentless bravery, sharpness, and expertise, takes care of the menace and disappears in the middle of the night, making everyone wonder who that mysterious savior was.
So many ‘modern’ managers suffer from this harmful kind of individualism! They solve problems, assume authority, organize and oversee, from time to time give certain team members some power, and end up focusing on putting out day-to-day fires. More often than not, they handle more than they can and they end up exhausted.
It is very common to hear managers talk about the quantity of emails and voice mails they receive, about the amount of projects, meetings, and endless hours they work, and one never knows if they are bragging or complaining. One thing is certain though, these managers get trapped into this vicious cycle because it makes them feel important, because it puts them in the heart of the action, because they are making things happen. They depend on the adrenaline rush that comes with solving urgent problems, on being the savior of their poor and ill-fated team.
True leaders normally don’t focus on solving problems themselves. They devote their time to ensuring that the right problems are addressed. If Batman were a true leader instead of a comic hero with very powerful gadgets and the right amount of mystery on his side, he would probably arrive to the scene after being summoned by the bat light, he would get down from his bat bike, would take off his mask, and would guide the people of Gotham City towards solving the crisis by themselves. He would meet the people and match them according to strengths and capabilities to make them stronger. After helping them through the crisis, he would ride off, and the citizens would be left commenting on how they just learned to solve a problem. He would have helped Gotham citizens help themselves.
Next time, Batman would be called, but most probably as an advisor, while Gotham City people would be the ones handling the problem. With each experience, their capacity to pinpoint and get rid of the real causes of the problems would grow, as would their ability to work as a team and their confidence. Eventually, Batman would have to look for another city to “save”, and would become a legend that is passed from generation to generation. (But let’s give Batman some credit; he was trying to do just that in his last movie…)
Batman most definitely would lose presence as a true leader. There would be no drama or action, and he wouldn’t save the day. Intercepting problems and correcting root causes eliminate the rush and agitation of putting off fires. When teams are able to share the work and become self-sufficient, everything runs smoothly and there are no adrenaline rushes. The leader of the team assumes a different role and center.
The truth of the matter is that most companies need both, managers and leaders. It truly will depend on the situation; sometimes you need a manager to take charge, run things, and get them done in any way he can; however, these cases should only be short-term reactions to a period of crisis.
The real issue arises when managers remain in crisis alert permanently, because this debilitates the team, multiplies its workload, strengthens the team’s dependence on them, weakens commitment and ownership, and discourages collaboration. In other words, you have weak personal, team, and organization growth. And remember, Batman is only human…
John Hersey
John Hersey is a successful business owner, published author and motivational leadership speaker. John writes one of the most recognized leadership blogs in the business world: http://www.JohnHersey.com/blog
Tags: leadership, motivational, speaker
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