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Talking Technology By Steve Burns, Capital News contributor In our continuing series on the Leadership Summit put together by the Leadership Centre of Willow Creek Canada (www.growingleadership.com), we looked last week at the issue of “Challenge Spikes.” A challenge spike can be your finest hour as a leader, when you rise above your own abilities and deliver leadership capabilities that you didn't even know that you had. This week we will cover the leadership lessons of Pat Summitt, who has maintained a championship basketball program at the University of Tennessee for almost three decades. She is the fourth women's basketball coach to be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame, and is the author of two inspirational books, Reach for the Summit and Raise the Roof. Summitt not only came to the conference with enormous credibility, but also with a message that any leader needs to hear. Summitt's message was particularly applicable to me as I am a basketball fanatic and I enjoy coaching soccer and basketball teams. She certainly had my undivided attention. She talked about what she terms her “Definite Dozen” system for success as a leader, which includes key principles that can be applied to any leadership scenario: respect yourself and others; take full responsibility; develop and demonstrate loyalty; learn to be a great communicator; discipline yourself so no one else has to; make hard work your passion; don't just work hard, work smart; put the team before yourself; make winning an attitude; be a competitor; change is a must; and handle success like you handle failure. In the midst of Summitt's definite dozen, I found some key takeaways for the control freak in all of us. For example, I made the fatal assumption that the only leadership style that worked with most teams was for the coach to have the answers and to direct the team. After all, not having the answers isn't a fun place for a control freak to be. In fact, Summit says that as part of working smart and not hard she has her team determine many things, including what the vision for the team will be, what their perceived strengths and weaknesses as individuals and as a team are, what areas they want to excel in. She gives her team a tremendous amount of input and control and it shows in their performance – an 84 per cent winning average. She considers herself to be as much their coach as their guide to help the team collectively make the right decisions. How difficult this is to apply for the typical type A personality leader. We so want to push our agenda forward that we sacrifice the input of our team. We then wonder why no one follows us. It was by asking herself the question years before, “Would I want to work with me?”, that Summitt answered an emphatic no and realized that her approach to leadership needed a dramatic overhaul. By providing her team with many opportunities for input, she has their respect and their unwavering commitment to meet the goals that they have set for themselves. Although she admits that she has mellowed over the years, she is still tough. For instance, if a player does not go to class, she cannot step on the court. Also, players must sit in the first three rows in class and pay attention. They are expected to complete all assignments and respect everyone. No tattoos may be shown in public. There is a price to be paid for being on her team and it's a large commitment and a responsibility on and off the court. “We're teaching life skills,” Summitt said. “I don't want average people. Average people cut corners. Winners know that the long road to success involves no short cuts.” As a result, Summitt is able to elevate the team's performance without breaking the spirit of the players. As leaders, sometimes we make assumptions about team members that are based on our own biases. It wasn't until Summitt started to get to know her players one on one that she realized that she had it wrong all along. By finding out what each team member thought they could contribute, she was able to leverage their passion, motivate them to believe in themselves and challenge them to reach their potential as a team member and individual athlete. By building a mutual respect relationship she is both a friend and a mentor to her players. In summary, here are some challenges to think about in relation to your area(s) of leadership: 1. How much input does your team have into your direction? Have you asked them how they feel about this? 2. How willing are you to relinquish control by allowing your team to craft the vision for their collective future? 3. In what ways can you better leverage the combined and individual strengths of your team members? 4. How does your leadership style need to change to allow team members with more opportunity for input both initially and ongoing? 5.Would you work with you? If not, what radical changes in your approach to leadership need to occur? 6. What fatal assumptions are you making about individual team members, that is limiting their ability to contribute in a meaningful way to the team? 7. What are the top three ways that you can improve as a leader, guide, friend and mentor to your team? Next week we will look further into leadership lessons from other summit speakers. Steve Burns, CA, CMC, CFP, is the president and CEO of Burns Innovation Group Inc. You can reach Steve at 763-4716 or via e-mail at:
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