1.5 - About University

R ECURSIVE M AXIM #1The best way to elicit model behavior is to model the behavior you want from others.People are quick to sense disconnects between what is said versus what is actually being done.NonrecursiveOthers will find it hard to:• Listen to a leader who is not listening to them.• Accept feedback from a leader who does not acceptfeedback.• Give recognition to a leader who does not givethem recognition.• Share confidences with a leader who cannot keepconfidences.• Think highly of a leader who does not think highlyof them.• Be innovative and creative with a leader who is notcreative about creativity.RecursiveIf you want others:✔ to accept change—be open to change yourself.✔ to consider you a leader—assume leadership roles.✔ to be strategic with your time—be strategic withtheirs.✔ to open up—ask open-ended questions and beopen to their answers.✔ not to have hidden agendas with you—don’t havehidden agendas with them.✔ to be reasonable with you—be reasonable withthem.✔ to accept your inadequacies—admit to your ownand accept their inadequacies.✔ to exhibit model behavior—model model behavior.Many leadership gurus talk about authenticity as a basis for effective leadership. At the rootof authenticity is a set of espoused leadership processes enacted in a recursively consistent way.Recursive thinking continually challenges a leader to ask, “Are what I say and what I do congruentwith what I say I’m about?” Acting recursively minimizes disconnects. Recursion is atthe heart of integrity. [☛ 1.11 Integrity]R ECURSIVE M AXIM #2One reason a leadership tool fails is because the process isn’t recursive with the content.Many of the tools in this book have had a roller-coaster ride. One example is managementby objectives (MBO), with its slow ride up to acceptance, its giddy ride down, then up again,while gurus and leaders debated how to use the tool effectively. Finally, in frustration, MBOground to a halt as leaders got off and ran to find another leadership tool. Recursively, it couldbe asked, “Do we truly understand the goal of a goal-setting program like MBO?”If a leadership tool is to succeed, it should be turned back on itself to ensure that the processmirrors itself. You may find as you read through this table that it reads like a series of mirrorsreflecting one another.Someleadership toolsStrategyclarificationGoal settingValueclarificationIf you want the tool to succeed:✔ Have a clear strategy for the strategy clarification.✔ Be strategic about clarifying and introducing a strategy.✔ Be strategic about revising the strategy.✔ Have a clear goal for setting goals.✔ The point of goal setting is to have the end—the goal—drive the means. Don’t let the processof producing goal statements overwhelm the end—results.✔ Mirror the values while clarifying and communicating the values. For example, if a value isteamwork, use teamwork to clarify and introduce the values.26 SECTION 1 FOUNDATIONAL CONCEPTS