Leading Without Being in Charge

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It can be easy to compel others to do one’s bidding when one has the title of “boss”, but what if they do not have this title?  I believe that regardless of any direct authority a person may hold, they can be highly influential.  In fact, truly effective leaders hardly rely on using their authority at all but accept the notion that leadership can be a shared activity instead of a designated role (Jackson and Parry, 2011, p. 61).

With this mental shift, we can better frame ourselves as “influencers” thereby engaging other, less directive methods when leading.  Influencers possess three distinct qualities; firstly, their goals are crystal clear (Grenny, Patterson, Maxfield, McMillan, Switzler, 2013).  Influencers know exactly what they are working towards and work to inspire others by ensuring they are focused on that goal as well.  Vague goals not only leave room for various interpretations resulting in divisive efforts, but they fail to inspire because people are unable to see how they fit into that goal.

Secondly, they focus on behaviours are necessary to reach that goal (Bushe, 2005).  Influencers track the behaviours that they desire and work to amplify them by providing individualized, positive feedback to those they are influencing (Grenny et al, 2013).  Amplifying specific behaviours is particularly relevant when leading a team of highly motivated, capable, and diverse group of people, such as CEOs.

By amplifying certain behaviours, an influencer demonstrates the third quality of creating a clear culture for the group.  Group norms create a social motivation (Grenny et al, 2013) for individuals to stick to the goals because those norms create additional motivators to encourage working towards a goal.

Leading without being in charge requires creating clear goals for all to follow, encouraging behaviours that help the group achieve the goal, and creating a culture where such behaviours become the norm.  These strategies are less direct, but will create lasting, impactful change.

References

• Bushe, G. R. (2005). Appreciative Leadership. American Dietetic Association,105(15), 699-700. Retrieved September 15, 2018.

• Grenny, J., Patterson, K., Maxfield, D., McMillan, R., Switzler, A., (2013). Influencer (2nd ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.

• Jackson, B., & Parry, K. (2011).  A very short, fairly interesting and reasonably cheap book about studying leadership (2nd ed.). London: Sage.

Blog > Leading Without Being in Charge