Episode #278: Modern Leaders Fear Talent In The Ranks

Business today has become vicious. Having a long career in a company is not something that is highly probable anymore. Firms have no compunction about throwing people on the scrapheap, despite the years of loyal service they have put in. We have all become part of the gig economy, only some of us haven’t worked that one out yet. Just look at banking. Having a long career in banking was once a thing. Not today. People are forced to move, divisions are expunged and the people are shed as easily as cats shed their fur. Bin liners are handed out and low paid, burly security guards see you off the premises. Industry after industry, tenure has become a tenuous construct.

Politics in big organizations, patronage, new brooms, new boards, new shareholders – you name it, there are multiple launching pads in companies now ready and able to blast you out of the organization. In this mix isn’t it natural for leaders to look for places to get a fingernail hold? If there are no people below you capable enough to replace you, isn’t that a little bit of protection from the fickle, wild winds of fate?

It well may be for a while, but it is not a long-term solution. Politicking subordinates are encouraged from above or from the side to undermine you. Other aspirant escapees from their own hell are looking at your patch with envy and seek a chance to take your job to avoid their own painful elimination.

Realise that the only protection you have is employability. Employment per se is no longer a guarantee of anything, because within a month, you are standing in the street wondering what happened to your job. Employability keeps reproducing opportunities.

What does employability look like? Leaders have two jobs. One is to run the processes, so that everything works. The other is to build people. There seems to be a contradiction here doesn’t there. If I build my people, that will only make it easier for my evil bosses to deep six me. Aren’t I better off protecting myself by not building my people? The self protection part won’t last, because your people won’t be matching the increasing demands for results and you will be road kill anyway.

We need to take a longer term look at this. If we are to become expert in building people, then we need to become equally expert in communication, people skills, coaching and leading. The problem is when we feel threatened by the system, we tend to hunker down and try to become as small a target as possible, hoping the bullet will miss us. We often get caught up in running the business, as opposed to working on the business. The hours are torturous, the stress is enormous and we are drained everyday as a result. It is very hard to even think straight in this situation, let alone come up with genius ideas on how to better run the machine.

Nevertheless, the lifesaver is study and the application of our newfound knowledge. Learning, experimenting, spreading expertise within the team through really coaching the people is our future salvation. We get our mind into a positive groove. We cast off the shackles of worry about our uncertainty over the future. Rather than worrying about “what will I do if I lose my job?”, we switch across to how can I make myself more employable?

Think like this: “I have this live laboratory here at my disposal to try the things I have been learning, to see how well they can work, to refine my art of leadership”.

Yes, your current boss is probably a dork. The organisation itself may be corrupt and staffed with vicious senior executives, who have reptile brains, sharp claws and big fangs. You can’t change them, but you can work on changing you.

Feeding your brain with positive, motivating information and rich technical content is a great way to build mental muscle. These are like the brain building equivalent to those drink supplements body builders are consuming everyday to bulk up.

Your current role in your organization may be a looming disaster and the wheels may be ready to fall off into the muddy, deep ditch and take you with them. However, what you are doing around daily study, consistent coaching of subordinates and applying the power of your positive mindset will be attractive to other companies. Or you will have the confidence to start your own firm.

Don’t worry by the way. All those horrible, petty, small minded, nobody people you are working for now will get theirs in the end. The radius of the circle of karma is much shorter than they can understand. The office politicians who are your present nightmare will be like Icarus and eventually fly too close to the sun to be smashed when they fall.

Your job is to keep moving forward with developing skills, gaining experience, and pushing innovation. We need to follow Winston Churchill’s famous advice about going from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm. In the end we will prevail.