Comtemporary Leadership Practices

Twenty-first century leadership is more about who people are, how they contribute and what others see in them, than ever before. Leaders are no longer locked into the old Newtonian view of each team member as a cog in a complicated machine.

Contemporary leadership recognises that the workplace, like the rest of human existence, is more a complex web of relationships in which communication is vital and the voice of leadership needs to be heard as compassionate, courageous, and consistently authentic.

How do we recognise the voice of an authentic leader?

The authentic leader isn’t obvious. We learn to appreciate them over time. We learn to trust them through conversation and consistency. When we get to know them, we often see them as the people who are most in touch with their own voice and yet need to say the least and can listen most deeply. They teach us that real voice is not only about the words.

What they don’t do

 As we get to know them we become aware as much about what they don’t do as what they do.  They don’t confuse their job title or role with who they are as people. They don’t seek credit for success, or recognition for accomplishment. They do not blame. They don’t confuse criticism with hostility or correction with animosity. They don’t mistake truth for authority or power. They don’t confuse, knowledge with wisdom, busy-ness with action, or reasons with results.

Who they are

We gradually see that it is not what they do, so much as who they are, that makes the biggest difference. They are listeners whose listening goes way beyond their own agenda, hearing what is not said as well as what is. They are compassionate and caring. They are able to laugh at themselves. They can be with another’s pain. They know the difference between saying yes and no. They have the courage take a stand.

They lead as they live and they live as they lead.