Linking In with Matt

Matthew Richter posts daily comments in LinkedIn—well, almost daily. You can follow him and join the conversation by going to http://linkedin.com/in/matthew-richter-0738b84.
For the benefit of our readers, we decide to compile and reprint some of his provocative pieces from the past. Let us know what you think.

This is a Lie

Is it OK to lie to your participants?

At the simplest level, we lie all the time when providing supportive or positive feedback. Some learner performance is, frankly, horrible. Giving them some constructive guidance is in itself an art form. Pointing out the absolute and objective truth would be both harmful and unhelpful.

We also lie when we tell non-fiction stories. We make them better, taking poetic license to heightened levels. Is this ethically wrong? No.

We lie all the time in real life, too. If my wife asks about her hair--I love it always, no matter what. These white lies are essential to keeping the peace.

We lie to our children all the time: Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy.

Forget about the lies we tell ourselves everyday as we perpetuate the various delusions that keep us happy.
Lying is wrong when it hurts someone, yields an unethical outcome, undermines education and fundamental understandings of history and how some stuff works. Lying to protect yourself from consequences from your mistakes is very wrong. But we shouldn’t delude ourselves thinking lying is an absolute no-no when we happily do it every day. In other words, as with all things, the answer is more textured, nuanced, and complex. It deserves proper reflection and discussion.


Leadership

Neither predictable, nor consistent in how we understand it. History books are filled with stories of great men and women who led others through historic times. But historians, business professors, politicians, and journalists argue over what made them leaders. For every reason based on the leader's knowledge and skill, others will argue she was born for the situation. Still others (like me) will confidently state that it was the context and the leader's sheer luck to fall into the opportunity that made him a leader. Leadership is then, whatever we decide it is. Just google it and there are hundreds of definitions-- some like others and more extremely unlike others. So, what does this mean? It means that leadership is really a narrative. It is a story both in the definition and in how we interpret those that lead. For example, why aren't there more women identified clearly as world class leaders in our history books? Name the great leaders of the 20th century and few will be women. Not because they didn't exist. Not because they didn't have the capability, but because their stories were not the ones told and perpetuated. Leadership is a bit like the falling tree in the woods. If no one sees it, perhaps it didn't happen.


Leadership Definitions Revisited

We often confuse the objective of leadership with the mechanisms for getting it and the qualities for evaluating it. A common objective is to mobilize a group of people from one place to another. A simple understanding that generally works. Moving people to a different place equals leadership. Mechanisms, or processes, are the models, behaviors, or systems we use to make that motion occur. Mechanisms can be as complex as various trait and skill theories, or as simple as inspiration, authenticity, or role modeling. Embedded in them are often guiding principles that put order around the process. James MacGregor Burns said leadership is an arousal process of moving people from Point A to B. He mixed both the process, stated obviously—an arousal process with the objective of moving people. Mechanisms can also be negative, as well— like coercion, fear mongering, or blackmail. Finally, the qualities of leadership are where we too often get confused. Positive leadership, true leadership, happy leadership--these describe the mechanism and the attainment of the objective in some form. They are also values-infused and essential narratives that help make the mechanism attractive for followers.