Difficult Decision.
Every organization (no matter the vision) will DRIFT in the absence of authentic and consistent leadership. By far, one of the most difficult decisions any middle-tier leader can make when discovering that the organization he or she is apart of is now drifting…
…is deciding whether or not to step up and TAKE THE WHEEL.
For those of us who have ever had the opportunity to sit in the passenger seat of a car driven by someone who has become WEARY or DISTRACTED while behind the wheel, I am sure you will agree it can be a very frightening experience. More often than not, whenever we see the car where riding in drift over into an area that can prove to be dangerous, we tend to one of two things.
Either we try to shake or awaken the person responsible for driving the car…
…or we decide to take the wheel ourselves and steer the car to safety.
Believe it or not, both of these reactions can prove to be right and wrong, depending on how fast the car is moving as well as whether or not there are other moving vehicles nearby on the road. As a middle-tier leader, I recommend adding a third option:
Offer to drive EARLY.
When sitting in the passenger seat of your particular organization, it is extremely important to use this time to take a continuous assessment of how your boss or point leader is driving and leading the car you’re in. This is not a time to lean back and get some rest. Point leaders tend to drive even when they know they shouldn’t, simply because no one has taken the initiative to drive for them.
When you and I begin to focus on the safety of the car, or in this case, the vision of the organization, and not on whether or we not we have driven more hours than those who lead over us, we will soon discover this one very important truth:
Everyone in the car, regardless of who has driven more,
will always arrive at the same place. At the same time.
When your destination is valued more than your position, your position will then change.
But not until then.
