A book that I have really enjoyed is Remarkable Leadership by Kevin Eikenberry (2007). Early in the text he makes a statement that really got my attention when I read it. He said, “Deep down you know you can be remarkable. You shouldn’t settle for anything less than your best self, reaching ever closer to your potential – whether as a leader or in any other part of your life.” Now, before you just dismiss this statement as another positive-self-esteem-building cliché from a self-help guru, keep in mind that this book didn’t come from the “all about me” aisle of the book store. It is a textbook and is filled with academia and case studies. Yes, even in the world of higher education, we can have a positive attitude towards ourselves and our potential! Eikenberry defines a remarkable leader as one who not only leads, but also develops others. This resonated with me because I work with such a large amount of volunteers, all of whom rely on me to help them develop their gifts and talents in the fulfillment of our organizational mission. As you read further in this wonderful book, you will discover that Eikenberry outlines a very doable plan to become a remarkable leader. However, the first requirement is that you want to. Eikenberry is very clear that becoming a remarkable leader won’t just happen and can’t be forced on you. He states, “Ultimately you are responsible for becoming the remarkable leader you were meant to be.” It’s up to you.
We don’t have time in this blog to go into the whole plan for developing into a remarkable leader, but Eikenberry outlines that leaders become remarkable through learning, curiosity, observation, and reflection, just to name a few. But then he tackles one of the key requirements that it takes to become this level of leader – willingness to change. Ouch. All of us who have been in leadership prefer to do things the way we have found have worked in the past, but we also know that in our constantly changing culture, we must adapt and change our way of doing things. Our message may, and often should, stay the same, but our methods must be flexible if we are to remain effective.
Eikenberry goes on to deal with how real change comes about in the life of a developing remarkable leader. The four levels of change he describes are:
- Dissatisfaction with the current situation
- Vision of a desired future
- A plan for achieving or implementing the goal
- The costs or risks (both real and perceived) of the change
I’m certain that you are like me in that there are things in your leadership life with which you are dissatisfied. I’m relatively sure that you’ve, at least, day-dreamed about what you would like to see in your future. My question then becomes, have developed a plan and considered the costs? I am personally in year five of a 15 year plan which I developed during a period where it had become clear that I would be in the need of making changes in my professional life. As I review it from time to time, I see that the desired future remains steadfast, although there have been some modifications along the way. It is a fluid document and vision.
I will be bold to say that if you are dissatisfied with your current situation, you need to start developing a vision and plan to make a change. If you just stay where you are and survive, you won’t be giving the people you lead your best, and I believe you will fall short of the level, remarkable. It’s up to you.
Lead well.