What does it mean to have an authentic leadership style? In my own experience, I lived between two tensions, embodying a leadership approach that felt authentic to me and embodying one that my male peers demonstrated. My leadership approach was to invest a lot in relationships. I once lent my Dr. Ho TENS machine to someone on my team because she had a sore neck. Too personal? Perhaps in some situations, but that is what feels natural to me. I care about my team and if they are not feeling well, I will do what I can to help them. I don’t want them to be off work for an indefinite amount of time. Their presence and contributions are critical to the success of the team and the organization.
Leading in an Authentic Way
I distinctly remember a time when my male colleague invited me to his office. He wanted to share his concerns about one of my direct reports. He proceeded to tell me how he would have dealt with the situation and that I should follow his advice if I want to keep my team in line. My first sentiment after leaving his office was that I failed to lead my team appropriately. But that feeling was quickly replaced with frustration and anger that he had the audacity to tell me how to do my job!
His observations were not observations, but assumptions of why someone on my team was behaving a certain way. And this was coming from a manager who would take calls during one-on-ones with his direct reports and would undermine them by rudely challenging everything they did. The one thing I regret is that I didn’t march back into his office and tell him that his mansplaining was patronizing and inappropriate. He can lead his way and I will lead my way, thank you very much. Actually, I could have taught him a thing or two. He had high turnover in his team, whereas I did not. Proof is in the pudding, as they say. So, the lesson I learned is that leading in an authentic way means living your life according to your inner being, not someone else’s.
You cannot subscribe to someone else’s vision, ideals, or philosophy of leadership. It is about defining leadership for yourself and how to embody the characteristics of a leader that you would be proud to follow. Your authentic approach to leading yourself and others has to align with your passion and purpose. I inherently believe what drives people to excellence is igniting their passion through their purpose. So, developing your authentic leadership style begins with figuring out why you want to be a formal leader in the first place.
Being a leader is tough. I am sure we all have moments where we wonder if it is worth it. Knowing why you want to lead others in the first place can help sustain you during the most challenging times. No one wants to run over a pedestrian because they are absorbed in thoughts of how they are going to manage another crazy day.
Knowing what you are passionate about and how it aligns to your reason for being a leader is critical. In fact, I encourage everyone to ask that question at the next interview. Don’t ask, “Why do you want this job?” Ask “Why do you want to lead others?” The response may make your decision much easier. I do not want to hire someone who says, “Well, it is the next natural progression in my career.” I want someone who says, “I believe in the mission of this organization and I want to inspire others in achieving it.” Damn straight! That is the person I want on my team.
Embrace your Superpowers
The next thing we need to focus on is defining our superpowers. I first heard the term superpowers in this context from a woman I admire. She had participated in the Judy Project, which is one of Canada’s leading executive forums, uniquely designed to prepare women for executive and C-suite positions.[i] As part of the Judy Project, participants are asked to pay it forward and that is what she did. She brought her teachings back to her organization to share with others.
During one of her seminars, she referred to a superpower as a strength someone possesses, but one that is more than just a strength. It’s a strength on steroids. When you ask a someone to think of about their superpower, they have to embrace what they are great at and not make excuses for it. I loved the term so much that I brought it back to my team. I told them we would spend the next several weeks exploring our superpowers. They laughed and said they forgot their capes at home. They eventually expressed that they were not comfortable thinking about themselves in that way, which cemented the importance of conducting the activity for me.
Over the next several weeks we learned things about ourselves that we had not known. We became extremely efficient and effective as a team because we reduced the amount of time we took to complete tasks. We learned who could take on certain tasks, which made my job easier. I no longer felt the pressure to have to be good at everything, because there were strong women on my team who could do things better than me. It was very empowering.
When I decided to resign from the Government of Alberta to start Sinogap Solutions, I sent out a five-question survey to people I trusted would be honest with me. I needed to explore my superpowers in more depth to build my confidence to take a huge leap of faith and quit my job as a senior manager. The questions I asked were:
When have you seen me thriving at my best (i.e., what was I doing or working on)?
What are three adjectives that best describe me?
What is something you think I do well?
What is something you think I do not do well?
What have you learned from me by working with me or by observing me?
The answers I received gave me so much insight into what my superpowers are and where I can still grow and develop.
Knowing your strengths and areas for growth is where we all have to begin. There is a lot of self-empowerment in embracing ourselves and being proud of who we are and what we have to offer, in spite of the expectations we feel others place on us as women, men, mothers, fathers, friends, and colleagues.
Knowing Thyself
And now we come full circle. It all starts with self-awareness. Know your superpowers and areas for growth. Discover your passion and purpose as it relates to leadership. Your authentic approach in leading yourself and others has to align with your passion and purpose. Earlier I wrote that I inherently believe what drives people to excellence is igniting their passion through their purpose. Knowing yourself is all about knowing what you are passionate about and how that influences every decision you make. So, ask yourself, “how do my passions drive me toward personal excellence?”
Being a manager myself, I have struggled with balancing my managerial duties with my leadership responsibilities. There were times throughout my career when I wondered if I were doing it right. I constantly asked myself questions such as, does my team like me, do they think I’m competent, and do they trust me? One of the key insights I gained over the years is employees do not get to choose their manager. For better or worse, employees are stuck with the manager picked for them by someone else. Leading in an authentic way means choosing to be a leader others would want to follow. So, in closing…
What kind of leader will you choose to be?
About the Author
Dr. Johanna Pagonis is the owner of the leadership consulting firm, Sinogap Solutions. She has 20 years’ experience in leadership and organizational development gained throughout her professional and academic career.
Johanna’s book, “Choose to Be a Leader Others Would Want to Follow” grew out of her PhD thesis and two decades of experience in the field of learning and development. Her goal for her book is that those, especially leaders in top ranks, will be motivated to create a workplace environment where managers are supported and encouraged to embrace their vulnerability. Johanna explores the workplace as enriched landscape for managerial learning and leadership development.
