In search of the referring leadership
It is true that we are immersed in a digital revolution that is affecting the ranks of all organizations. Furthermore, this revolution is accompanied by a world in the VUCA state, that is, a state in which everything is volatile, uncertain, changing and ambiguous, which means that everything must be transformed, although often it is not known where.
In reference to this aspect, we can see how this revolution has also reached society and how strong movements are appearing that are beginning to raise upward processes of change that, most of the time, those above, do not know how to approach them and even less, how to solve them. For this reason, we need to rethink and evolve our models of thought, behavior and, obviously, leadership.
This model will be new, but deep down, a large part of what is now considered new, was already in essence hundreds and thousands of years ago, but what is clear is that with the irruption of technology it can be said that many things are the same but the tools are different.
To analyze what the change itself means, let’s review what the experts said hundreds and hundreds of years ago.
Heraclitus said that change was the only permanent. Aristotle said that perfect governments were not necessary, but practical. Sun Tzu said that the battle that is won is one that is not fought. And so we could continue with many other examples of centuries ago that show us that certain details can serve as a guide.
So where does all this take us?
We need leaders who are more than leaders, we need them to be leaders too.
I will not enter to describe or think about what a leader or its characteristics are, because I think that there is a lot of content about this aspect and I am going to focus on what are the basic differences. The referent:
It is chosen and never imposed
He is a teacher and transformer of people
They do not just talk about homework, they also talk about emotions
It has consciousness of reference
He likes to surround himself with people better than him
It transcends its stage as it develops new leaders
The first point to keep in mind and that I consider the most important of all and is usually a consequence of the others, is that a referent is chosen and a leader is not necessarily. Let’s see a very simple example.
We start to work in a company, they introduce us to our department colleagues, they take us to the largest office in the plant and we greet a person, who is introduced to us: ‘I present to you’ such ‘, responsible for the department’. At this moment we have been told that this person is the leader of the team with what I have not been able to choose, I have put or imposed, as you want to explain.
The desire of everyone responsible for a team or company should be that people choose him and they will say:
‘I want you to be my leader!’ When they will really be saying ‘You are my referent!’
I have been analyzing, interviewing and studying people for years, and I assure you that, in all these cases, this choice is what generates the true emotional bonds that, accompanied by professional efficiency, is the beginning of the creation of great teams .
Leadership in organizations
The second value is that while the leader is based on helping us achieve our goals, the leader has a great capacity for training and development of people that helps him develop people. That is to say, it has an important degree of mastery that in addition to having students ready, promotes their personal development at the same time that they achieve their objectives.
The third point is also based on this. He not only talks about tasks but also talks about emotions and personal issues because he understands that a team does not have members, he knows that a team has people who are also members of a team.
The fourth point is that a referent has reference consciousness and if I speak of reference consciousness it does not mean that he is a conceited person, on the contrary. He knows what people expect from him, he must assume it. Consciousness is based on consciousness and not on excess of self-confidence or arrogance, to put it in a diplomatic way.
The fifth point is very important. A good referent likes to surround himself with people better than him because he knows that you can not be excellent in everything and that if someone can reach excellence, it is only in the form of a team and interacting with each other as people and as workers.
And the sixth and vital although it is the last one. The transcendence A referent or referent leader knows that he is there to prepare others for when he is no longer there. He knows that his time in the organization or for the life of the people will not come because of his work while he is in charge. His work will be bigger depending on how the organization when the years go by and he is no longer there in body but in essence. To finish I invite you to ask yourself. What would happen if my children saw me as a leader and not as a reference? The members of my team would work better with a leader or with a teacher? With a more focused environment in development people would adapt better to change? I invite everyone to work to be chosen by the people around them, to think about forming people so that they are what they want to be, they talk about emotions because we all have them, that they become aware of the impact of their actions, that we should not be afraid to surround ourselves with better people and, above all, think more about the organization so that it transcends We will leave the current situation with more references in the houses, in the schools, in the companies, in politics, everywhere, for this reason I encourage you to seek and develop this reference leadership.