Leadership is never easy.
The world is complex with multiple moving parts and attempting to exert rigid control is likely to be wasteful in terms of time and energy spent.
Instead, whether leading a team or organisation longer term, a shorter-term project or (may I be so bold) a country, people need to understand how you and what you are doing relates to them.
Only then can you hope that people you lead will actually take action (not merely act) in the way you would like, perform better and be motivated to continue to work towards your goals.
So, how do you make this a reality?
Simply by answering these short, straightforward questions:
Who am I?
Who are we?
What are we going to achieve together?
Every successful leader in history has been able to answer these questions in a way that separated them from the competition, raising themselves above the noise and inspiring people to vote for them, follow them, invest in their ideas or become evangelists for their brand.
“Who am I?” should, as with all good communications, be seen from the eyes of your audience.
Put yourself in their shoes before you attempt to answer this question. I’m your boss is not good enough. Your answer needs to be compelling and personal.
“Who are we?” is focussed on the group you are leading (or want to lead) and begins to create a shared narrative to take your followers along with you.
“What are we going to achieve together?” is your shared mission or sense or purpose.
Think of successful leaders from sport, business, politics and you will be able to spot this leadership storytelling in action.
Some examples to help you:
Richard Branson- “I’m a maverick”, “We are anti-establishment outsiders”, “We are going to shake up X industry for the good of all”.
Gareth Southgate- “I know what it is like to fail”, “We are all football fans who want to do things differently”, “We are going to make England successful and have fun”.
Donald Trump- “I’m a deal maker”, “We are Americans sick of being led by second rate politicians”, “We are going to make America great again”.
If you are not using storytelling as part of your communication tool kit you are putting yourself at a disadvantage to others that do.
If you are in a leadership position and you have not worked out what your leadership story is then don’t expect people to follow you.
A few minutes spent answering these questions today will make you a better leader tomorrow.