I have a yoga practice and have recently begun to explore the Anusara approach. I am learning many new things that bridge my time on the mat and my time exploring leadership. I’ll be sharing these from time to time, particularly as they relate to leading in the virtual environment. One thing I’ve noticed with Anusara is acknowledgment and respect for one’s teachers. As I understand it at this point, their approach to the role of teacher is based on the assumption that we will always be learning as we participate in the dance of life, that teachers will come from many places, and that it is our responsibility and our gift to be able to acknowledge those who teach us and pass on the learning. Entertaining this concept has helped me acknowledge with gratitude the many teachers I have in my life, from all corners of my life: yoga, work, friends and all generations of family.
As I think about leading effectively in the virtual environment, I see a clear similarity. The teachers in the virtual scenario become the people you connect with through virtual channels: blogs, social networks, podcasts. As you endeavor to lead, what can you learn from them as they respond to your message? Can you begin to think of those you are trying to reach not as being those you need to “convince”, but as the ones who will teach you about how your message is received and how your vision could become reality?
Taking stock of your current teachers, is an interesting exercise and a great first step. From there, it is a logical next step to think of all the potential teachers out there. All those within your broad virtual reach you have the opportunity to learn from about your vision for the future, if you can accept with honor the merged role of leader and eternal student.
The topic of charity has come across my radar recently in a couple of interesting ways. I read Chris Brogan’s post about ending hunger and l loved that he made it so easy:
There are three things you can do today: give, volunteer, or share, which means that you could donate some money or some time, or you could at least share the news with others.
In other words, just do something. This morning I listened to Diane Rehm interview Peter Singer. The conversation drove home the kind of impact the individual can have. He talked about his book The Life You Can Save as well as some wonderful sites for finding an entry point into the world of giving that works best for you like GivingWell.org.
What has this got to do with leading online? Well, it occurred to me these are both examples of people understanding the power of virtual networking and using it in a way that aligns to the values they hold and ones they hope others will share. This is what leaders do. They identify their values, from those values they create a compelling vision of the future that others can then choose to align with and work towards. In the scenario above, these two men are leaders in their own fields who I would submit have tapped into two essentials of leading online:
Be clear about your beliefs and values, i.e. being credible, and align your actions with those values-consistently.
Using the viral power of net to be transparent about those values, share your vision for the future and make it accessible.
So check these sites out. My guess is you will want to crack open your wallets-however tiny they may feel these days. Peter Singer shared another valuable lesson. Focusing on making lots of money you keep to yourself, and being consumed by consumerism, is a very narrow interpretation of “doing well”. It feels good to help others and there are plenty of ways to do this.
I caught a segment on NPR’s Weekend Saturday by Andy Carvin “Welcome to the Twitterverse”. It featured Daniel Schorr, who as always added interesting perspective. Here’s one thing that got me thinking:
“We’re losing the difference between audience and conversation,” Schorr added. “It’s all becoming part of one vast thing. … You’re not really communicating one to one anymore … and the whole world is going to end up as an audience.”
So what’s the implication of that statement for those who are exploring their ability to lead in the virtual environment? It’s good news. Leaders want audience, right? Engaged, comitted audience. But wait, they also need conversation. Leadership at it’s heart is about relationship, and relationship is built one conversation at a time. So if twitter means the end of conversation, that’s very bad news isn’t it? Thoughts?
I just caught a webinar by Mzinga around Social Learning. It was great. He referenced an article from the Wall Street Journal . In it, Robert Cross, a professor of management at the University of Virginia referenced a project he was doing where
…employees of 20 companies were surveyed and asked to identify colleagues who have helped them perform better; about two-thirds of the names weren’t on the firms’ previous lists of top performers, Mr. Cross said.
So who is influencing…leading…these people and how do leaders identify and connect with them? The implications are far reaching.
There was a lot of great food for thought that I kept putting through the filter of “Leadership Learning”, but I kept coming back to the issue of getting leaders to use the tools. If they currently play in these spaces, great. If not, how do we get them there so they can practice the behaviors we know can make a difference for them and those they try to lead? Ideas?
I am slowly collecting data around which of the many available web2.0 technologies leaders choose to use. And, which ones they use successfully. What I am finding is very interesting. Although they are aware of the online options, leaders I’ve surveyed tend to use what’s handy, or what’s comfortable. No big surprise there. Don’t we usually go with the known vs. the unknown? We use the words we are comfortable with when we speak and write. As we get proficient at a sport we cling to the habits that have brought us success. Try to change your grip on a golf club, baseball bat, or tennis racquet after you’ve developed some game and you know what I mean. Changing habits is not easy. More than anything it takes a commitment to change and growth.
In order to take advantage of the technologies available to create compelling vision and community and to increase their online toolbox, leaders need to hold tight to that commitment and bravely experiment with their virtual voice. Supporting them is what this site is all about. I am going to try and find examples (good and bad) that we can use in this discussion. If you have any examples; emails, blog posts, podcasts, webinar, wikis, etc., please send them on. Let’s fill this toolbox with what works.
In the work I do I have ample opportunity to watch leaders discover their potential for achieving extraordinary results. It’s amazing to see. What I’ve noticed is that returning to work and putting this new found knowledge into action is the tough part.
What they experience in a setting where they are face to face with others isn’t easily accessible when they return to emails, conference calls, online forums, etc.. They now know what they need to do to lead effectively: they need to create a compelling vision of the future, they need to engage others in that vision and make them feel empowered to achieve it, and they need to build a sense of community and shared values.
Doing all that effectively in the virtual channels we all use today is not as clear or easy.
Are there technologies that are well matched to some tasks? For example, are blogs the way to establish a vision?
Are these technologies ones that your constituents are comfortable using, i.e. do they read and comment on blogs?
Does your organization dictate or restrict the technologies you have access to, i.e. “No Facebook allowed on company time.”? Can you advocate for change?
Are there best practices that are emerging that will help us as leaders to engage our followers and build the relationship with them that we need to be effective?
How do we best engage others in meaningful conversation when we are not face to face, or in the same location or even in the same time zone?
All of these are questions we will address on this site. There will be links to useful articles, books, other blogs, audio and video content. As best practices, tools and tips, articles develop I will post them and ask that you do the same.
What would be helpful to you?What are you struggling with as a leader who must function in the virtual environment?
