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Developing a leadership philosophy leads to consistent decision making, teamwork, and results. Begin the process by identifying core values and principles to craft a clear statement of purpose.

What is a leadership philosophy?

What is your philosophy? We may have a philosophy about how to achieve professional success, find happiness, or discover the best hamburger in all of [insert favorite tourist destination here]. Since this blog is mostly about leadership, let’s talk about your leadership philosophy.

Every leader has a leadership philosophy, whether they know it or not, and they act on that philosophy, whether they realize it or not. Our leadership philosophy comes from our values, purpose, and principles, and that philosophy then fuels our behavior. When we understand and develop our leadership philosophy, we align our behavior with the leader we aspire to be and the impact we want to have on our team and business.

The benefits of identifying our leadership philosophy include–

Clear decision-making. A well-thought-out leadership philosophy reflects the leader’s belief and priorities based on core values. Leaders who have a clear understanding of what is most important create a foundation for making decisions that align with their goals and purposes.

Consistency and stability. A clear leadership philosophy provides a framework for consistent communication and decision-making. Team members know what’s expected and can work toward common goals, creating a sense of stability and cohesion.

Unity and alignment. Communicating a compelling vision brings teams together. Adopting and applying clear principles creates a shared understanding and purpose.

Resilience in challenging times. A strong leadership philosophy provides a foundation for navigating challenges and unfamiliar terrain with resilience in times of uncertainty. It drives decisions and actions.

Identifying and implementing your leadership philosophy

Here are suggestions for developing your leadership philosophy:

Identify Values. Start by thinking through your values and beliefs. What is most important to you? What values do you want to demonstrate as a leader to be authentic and true to who you are? Your values will be the foundation that guides your decisions and actions.

Define Purpose. The next step is to define your purpose. What do you want to achieve? Why does your organization exist? What makes it special? Is your personal purpose in alignment with your company’s? Once you’ve defined your purpose, both personal and organizational, think broadly about your goals to achieve that purpose.

Assess Strengths and Weaknesses. Identify your strengths and weaknesses, as well as those of your team. How will you develop your leadership? What does your team need to develop and thrive? Answering these questions will connect your philosophy to how you show up as a leader.

Write it Down. Put your leadership philosophy into action. Review your values, purpose, strengths, and weaknesses and look for themes. Use them as a guide to craft clear statements about who you are as a leader.

Stay flexible. Remember that your leadership philosophy will always be a work in progress. The core of who you are will not change, but the demands of your environment will. Revisit and revise your philosophy and actions as your experience grows and your perspectives evolve.

Different Ways of Implementing Leadership philosophy

Next, put your leadership philosophy into action.

Authentic leadership. Build trust and connection to empower a more engaged team. Authentic leaders value integrity and make principled decisions rather than expedient ones. They rely on both business goals and emotional intelligence to develop team cohesion.

Servant leadership. Servant leadership is often condensed into three simple practices: (1) Ask questions and pay close attention to the answers; (2) Focus on growth, development, and empowerment of people; and (3) develop new leaders.

Adaptive leadership. Meet the challenges of disruptive change. Adaptive leaders create an environment where novelty and “out of the box” thinking thrives. They exhibit self-awareness and confidence to admit they don’t have all the answers, and they leverage the wisdom and experience of the team.

Situational leadership. Adjust your approach based on the needs of the business, your team, and even individuals. Ensure people on your team first develop the fundamental, practical skills they need to succeed. Then, coach and motivate them to look at their work holistically and problem-solve in the context of the bigger picture. Situational leadership gives team members more responsibility and autonomy as they become ready.

When we clearly define our leadership philosophy, we connect our actions to the core of our leadership. We make better decisions, create higher performing teams, and, even in the most turbulent times, we stand on a firm foundation to navigate the unknown.

If you would like to learn more about developing your leadership philosophy, please contact us.

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Rachel Burr is an executive and leadership coach with over 20 years of experience working with CEOs and the C-suite across all industries, in organizations of from 200 to 10,000 employees. Rachel holds dual master’s degrees in Organization Development and Clinical Psychology, and numerous certifications in the field of executive coaching. Rachel is a “people expert” who works with clients to unleash their leadership potential. If you would like to learn more, please contact us.

To prepare your organization for the future, begin by finding your purpose and values. Then put your vision into practice by developing a purpose-driven culture. These are the building blocks that will connect the dots towards a future proof organization for the long term, beyond technological trends.

There is no way to “future proof” our organizations any more than we can “future proof” our lives. It can’t be done. “Future proof” sounds like we need to create an impenetrable force field, and then change will bounce right off. That’s not how it works, and if we think it does, we won’t be ready when change hits us. What we CAN do is to be clear about who we are and what’s important to us, and then build on that solid foundation. Then, when change happens, we’re ready, and even if it knocks us off balance, it won’t knock us down. And when it does knock us down, we’ll learn, get back up, and grow stronger. So, rather than delude ourselves about being “future proof,” let’s look at making ourselves “future-ready.”

The future isn’t coming, it’s happening now. Every moment is different. Every day. Every year. The question is, How do we prepare ourselves to meet those challenges head-on? It may be tempting to plunge into the latest trends in technology, management, or business development. There is always something new, and some of it is truly revolutionary. However, when we’re chasing the “next best thing,” how do we know it’s a thing that’s right for us? A better way to future-ready your organization is to start at your core and make meaningful decisions about what best serves your unique purpose and the culture that puts that purpose into practice.

Answering the question, “Why are we here?” is a good place to start. What is our purpose that will help us define a compelling vision? What are the values and motivations that make our organization unique? Those qualities are powerful tools to engage employees, inspire customers and stakeholders, and prepare us to be future-ready.

Find your purpose to unlock potential

Purpose “embodies everything the organization stands for from a historical, emotional, social, and practical point of view.” Finding purpose has the power to unlock “greater focus, more engaged employees, more loyal customers, and better financial performance,” according to a study published in the MIT Sloan Management Review.

“Why are we here?” leads to, “What do we stand for?” and “What makes us different?” These seem like straightforward questions on the surface, but to really answer them, we need to dig deep into our core. When answers come from generic words tossed around a conference room, a company will never be able to communicate what makes them truly unique. All companies want to be “nimble,” “customer-focused,” “collaborative,” etc. Duh! Dig deeper. What does “nimble” look like in your organization? What does it mean? Why is it important? For example, “We are [what nimble looks like in our organization], so that [how that benefits our customers, employees, the world, etc.]. A future-ready organization will be able to clearly state what it stands for and why it exists.

Do companies need to make money? Of course! But the P&L statement is not a compelling vision, and net revenue is not a lever we pull. Success metrics are the results of creating a compelling vision, aligning that with strategy, and executing on our goals. AND all of that is guided by a purpose and through a culture that either supports results or hinders them. So, do you want a compelling vision? You bet your sweet $$ you do.

To create a compelling vision, we need to inspire people. We need to inspire our employees (people), our customers (also people), and our shareholders (yup, more people). What is a compelling vision? A compelling vision paints the picture of who we are (purpose and meaning), where we’re going (future destination), why that’s important (values), the impact we’ll have (results), and what we (people) will do to get there. When we create that level of clarity from our core, our organization is not just “ready” for the future, we create it.

Future-ready your organization with a purpose-driven culture

When an organization puts its values into action, a purpose-driven culture is the result. While many organizations believe they act in accordance with their values and purpose, objective data shows a gap between the ideal and reality. For example:

Only 40% of employees feel strongly that their organization’s purpose makes their job important;
Just 39% of employees agree that actions are aligned with the organization’s values and direction; and,
A slim 20% of employees feel strongly connected to their organization’s culture.

When our organization’s actions and values are not aligned, people (employees, customers, shareholders) see it, feel it, smell it, taste it. This disconnect not only undermines a culture, it defines the culture, through which we drive our results. We may say we have values X, Y, and Z, but behaviors express our values far more than words. From our daily tasks to large scale change and everything in between. Our behaviors not only identify “how we do things” but “who we are,” and if our behaviors do not support who we want to be, we need to change those behaviors to change our culture.

Communicate vision. Aligning purpose and culture begins at the top. Leaders must define a purpose that will inspire employees, customers, and stakeholders. The vision should be the result of asking hard questions about what the organization values and what it stands for.

Set the tone. Leaders are advocates for the organization’s culture. They need to communicate the organization’s purpose and values to inspire others, and they must define behaviors that will make the vision a reality.

Prepare the people. The first step to future-ready an organization is to help people continually update their skills (e.g., upskilling and reskilling) to be not only “relevant” but ready for change. Upskilling refers to people keeping their skills up to date, while reskilling refers to moving people into positions that meet growth needs, both for the person and the organization. Developing future-ready skills goes beyond tangible technical skills to also building “critical intangible” people skills we need to successfully navigate change together.

Connect performance with purpose. We connect performance with purpose by showing people how their day-to-day work aligns with organizational purpose. Leaders (also people) must not only talk about these connections, but model the attitudes and behaviors they promote to fulfill the organization’s vision.

Empower people. A future-ready organization must provide employees with guidelines and context for making decisions in line with the values and purpose. Once in place, give people latitude to develop solutions. Empowering decision-making connects people and their work to the guiding purpose to achieve the best results.

In summary, when we identify our company’s unique purpose and clarify our values, we create a strong foundation on which to build a future-ready organization. From this foundation, we then create a compelling vision that aligns our purpose and values, and empowers the actions we all need to take to be ready for the changes to come and create the future we want to live.