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The Mind-Set You Need to Succeed

Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others.

– Jack Welch

When Mary described how she felt about her first leadership job, she repeatedly used the same term: “off-center.”

Occasionally, she adjusted it to “totally off-center” or “completely off-center.” But the outcome was the same. Mary's first eight months as a leader made her realize how unprepared she was. She had moved from a production job to a sales function, with no prior sales experience, and she was managing others for the first time. An all-male team of 12! A female leader was a rarity in the male-dominated culture of chemical engineering, though Mary didn't have time to enjoy the sound of the glass ceiling shattering. Instead, she found herself eye-to-eye with an unhappy rival. One of her new team members had been groomed for the job she now had, and was none too happy about losing out. To make matters worse, the previous boss had been beloved by the team. How could Mary possibly fill his shoes? That dizzy, off-center feeling was her constant awareness of being in a totally unfamiliar landscape without the tools to navigate clear.

In Chapter 1 we mentioned our research on the stress associated with transition to a leadership role. Remember? Stress levels ranked somewhere between personal illness and raising a teenager. Do any of Mary's stressors sound familiar? Almost all leaders we interviewed found their first few months full of what we call transitional challenges. What are yours?

Reflection Point

Think about the first time you told friends about getting (or wanting) your new leadership job. What was appealing to you? What did you think it would mean for your career? Did you talk about perks or power? Competing with others? Getting away from people or job functions you didn't like? Be honest: What's really driving you?

Later in this chapter we'll dig deeper into transitional challenges, but let's start with your decision to become a leader in the first place. Maybe you struggled to decide if it was worth giving up a job you were good at – and maybe even loved – for an uncertain role rife with new risks. Typically, there are two circumstances surrounding this decision. The first is voluntary – you identified an opportunity and went for it. If this describes you, then your challenge is to make sure your leadership heart is in the right place. Examine your motivations. Did you make the leap for more power, money, or fringe benefits? If so, you could find yourself unhappy. Although there may be material rewards associated with a promotion, leadership is about giving up power. A good leader dedicates himself to seeing his team grow and making a difference to his organization. If you aren't prepared to do a leader's work, then no money will ever be enough.

Then there's the other scenario: You might have been asked to fill a leadership gap. Stepping up in this way can make you feel off-center for entirely different reasons. Maybe you felt pressured – worried that refusal to step up would signal a lack of ambition or dedication. Or, maybe you were afraid that you'd be passed over for special assignments or future promotions if you waved off the opportunity or changed your mind later. These are all valid concerns.

But consider one simple fact before you say “yes” to a leadership job thrust upon you. In our leadership transitions study,4 we asked over 600 participants whether they voluntarily chose to take a leadership position or were pressured into it. Then we asked how it worked out. The people who caved to the pressure eventually did make a decision.. to head for the door!

Our study showed that these people were three times more likely to be dissatisfied and twice as likely to consider quitting as those who voluntarily sought out the position. That's strong evidence that you should think more about your true career goals than the social pressure of your company environment when you leap into leadership.

What's in a Question?

So, are you ready? Let's unpack the question first. What you really need to ask yourself now is whether you have the mind-set or potential to lead. What's the difference? As we discussed in Chapter 1, leadership is a career journey that can span years. No one we have ever encountered had all the needed skills, experience, and knowledge when he stepped into his new positions. Good leaders are learning to lead every day. What you need to ask yourself is this: Do I have the potential to become a good leader over time?

Leaders aren't born; they are made. And they are made just like anything else, through hard work.

– Vince Lombardi, American professional football coach

Consider Jack, who was an excellent technical specialist. He loved working with clients and was very, very successful. His outstanding reputation soon earned him an offer to lead a small team. He accepted the position and immediately hated it. Although he gave it some time, he asked for his old job back about a year later. Recognizing his talents, the company gladly returned him to his previous role, where he has been happy and highly engaged ever since.

Jack was smart to understand his own strengths and abilities. And smarter still to make sure that his skills stayed sharp so he could maintain his value to the company. But Jack was smart in yet another way: He knew his own leadership heart. Being a leader simply wasn't a role he enjoyed. And he learned that there is more than one way to grow and to succeed. Jack could have benefitted by using Tool 3.1 to reflect on his leadership mind-set.

Assessing Your Leadership Mind-Set

In our work with clients, we've developed a set of potential factors that predict the probability of a leader's success. We've condensed those factors into seven clusters of questions to consider as you choose to assume a leadership position.. or not!

Use this tool to consider your own strengths and motivations. We suggest that you revisit these questions often as your leadership journey progresses. Consider using them as conversation starters with people in your network.

1. Are you really motivated to lead? Do you have an upward ambition to expand your sphere of influence in the organization?

2. As you interact with others, do you inspire performance and morale? Do you believe in the strengths of others? Do others look up to you as a leader, even informally?

3. Are you able to show confidence without being seen as a know-it-all? Do people trust you? Are you willing to be accountable for your own actions?

4. Are you open to constructive criticism? Do you seek feedback from others? Do you have insight into your own strengths and weaknesses?

5. Do you learn from past mistakes and success? Do you desire to learn new things? Seek out different experiences?

6. Do you have a sense of urgency? A desire to get things done? Do you rebound quickly from a setback and continue to pursue your desired goal?

7. Can you respond effectively to unclear or ambiguous situations? Can you see things in shades of gray rather than black and white? Can you adjust quickly to new situations and people?

What Do We Really Mean by “Transition”?

A transition, of course, is a change from doing one thing to doing something new and different. In today's workplace, transitions come in all forms and shapes. It can mean relocating to a new country, moving to a new business unit, or leaving one company for another. All of these transitions come with an abundance of new challenges, excitement, and anxiety. Although you might have experienced many changes at work before now, we're spending extra time on your decision to move into a first-time, frontline leadership role because it is so specific and unique. And transitional challenges don't disappear after your first two or three months. It can take one or more years to get used to your new role.

To give you a glimpse of the big picture, many organizations are using a model DDI introduced over a decade ago called the Leadership Pipeline. The pipeline analogy fits, because the objective is to ensure a ready-now cadre of leaders to move from one level to the next. Figure 3.1 represents a typical pipeline with four levels. Each move from one level to the next is labeled a transition or turn. Most of you reading this book will be making the transition from individual contributor (team member) to people leader (frontline).

Fig 3.1 Leadership Pipeline

Making the Jump Up

Each transition carries a unique set of challenges and differs in terms of accountability, decisions, number of direct reports, and so on. When we asked leaders in our study what was most difficult about their transitions, dealing with ambiguity topped the list.5 The percentages add to >100 percent as leaders selected their top three.

41 % Dealing with ambiguity and uncertainty

38 % Getting work done through others

35 % Navigating organizational politics

34 % Engaging and inspiring employees

32 % Creating a new network

In our opening story, Mary was facing a stressful transition. Let's take a closer look at some of the challenges you'll be facing as you make a transition into a frontline position.

4

Evan Sinar and Matt Paese, Leaders in Transition: Progressing along a Precarious Path (Pittsburgh: Development Dimensions International, 2014), 10–11.

5

Ibid., 5.