Power is critical to leadership, but
very often leaders (and those who follow them) misunderstand it. The traditional view of leadership is often
Machiavellian, meaning it’s about getting and maintaining power in a zero-sum
world where one person’s increase in power is another person’s deficit. This model lacks an ethical center and
success is defined only in terms of who has the most power, regardless of the
process used to get it. Power is an end,
in and of itself. Those who enact this
philosophy typically leave casualties in the wake of their climb to the top of the
power pyramid, creating a sea of animosity, which they often mistake for envy. Often the power-oriented leader is ultimately
dissatisfied. In that world, there is
never enough power to go around, they must constantly guard against other
power-grabbers (which is exhausting), and many are left at the end of a career
or life surrounded by those who are interested in them only to the extent that
they can offer a transactional power benefit.
Many people see these types of games
play out and, unwilling to make the ethical sacrifices to grab power (and
afraid of becoming a real-life Mr.
Burns), they end up opting out, believing
that leadership isn’t for them. Servant
leadership and similar leadership philosophies offer an antidote. Servant leadership defines success not in
terms of who has the most of anything, power included, but who accomplishes the most through helping
others to grow beyond expectations. Kent
Keith says “Power-oriented leaders want to make
people do things. Servant-leaders want to help
people do things” (Keith, 2008, p. 29).
Servant leadership offers an alternative to the Gordon
Gekko-style, “me-first” pursuit of
power often offered by the traditional power model of leadership. It offers a
way to accomplish a great deal for organizations and individuals while
maintaining ethics and building skills in self and others.
It’s important to avoid any false
dichotomies when considering the power and servant leadership models. It’s not a matter of choosing to have power
or not have power and servant leaders do not ignore or eschew power. Servant leaders understand power (including its dangers), recognizing it as a valuable tool that can be used
to shape outcomes and create value for others.
Servant leaders do not worship power nor do they see power as an end in a
winner-take-all game. Servant leaders use the influence of power to
gather the right people and get the best outcomes for the clients, customers,
students, and organizations they serve and for their team members. Servant leaders work from an abundance mentality, empowering others to reach their full potential, with the
understanding that power takes many forms and can be obtained by all.
Citation:
Keith, K. M. (2008). The case for servant leadership.
Westfield, IN: The Greenleaf Center for
Servant Leadership.
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