Leadership is not power or authority, it is an action and example
That link above will take you to my very thoughtful portfolio I have created as an end of semester project. And here you thought college was all fun and beer pong. But the truth is it’s not. All students, including myself are in it to better ourselves and make the most of our lives. School gives you knowledge, power, opportunity, and you guessed it – leadership.
I hope you will find my portfolio inspiring and a bit of a happy ending. Although, truthfully, I am just getting started. đ
If you have read through my blog, one thing should be standing out, shining, glaring in your eyes… It’s LEADERSHIP of course! I have learned so much about the different theories of leadership and how they do or don’t apply. Trait theories seem to be the old school approach, while LMX gives a step by step, and Situational theories like to categorize leadership. All in all, it is clear that leadership can be complicated. Before you call someone a leader you have to look at their outward actions, deeper intentions, and connections with peers and subordinates alike.
Something you may have learned about me personally if you read this blog is that I am on the fence about whether leadership is inherent or earned. I tend to lean on inherent. And no, I don’t mean trait theory, but more that some people are just natural leaders. Our professor will argue that leadership can absolutely be taught and I believe there is some truth to that. But I am more likely to believe that leadership can be shaped and acquired through life experiences over being taught. However I am no expert and my comments here may just mean I have that much more to learn. But I have learned a lot, which leads me to my next post..
As I mentioned in my last post, The Noble Experiment truly sells you an experience. And while I love the experience they are selling, the question is, “How do they do it?” After talking to some of the staff they claim it lies in the training and practices. The bartenders are trained from speakeasy bartenders in New York, apparently where the speakeasy movement started. They learn to make prohibition era drinks along with more modern day specialty cocktails. They don’t use sugary, prepackaged mixers like sour mix or lime juice concentrate, they make it all themselves in house. Most drinks have more than 3 ingredients because they are working to create a balance of flavors. Sure it takes longer and more work but these practices set the tone for the experience being sold. Everything they do is intentional from the menu to decor to the limited capacity space. They want it to feel intimate and personal. They don’t want 50 people crowded around the bar fighting for the bartenders attention because that is the not the  speakeasy experience. This is also why there is so much emphasis on customer service. Everyone is trained to make the customer feel like they are part of an elite group. And once you visit the place, I can almost guarantee that is exactly how you will feel. From my experiences, feedback from friends experiences, and from talking to the staff, I cannot point out any disconnects. I may be tooting their horn a bit hard but they really have it down right.
The experience I chose is a bar in downtown San Diego called âNoble Experiment.â While there are many bars in downtown, this one sets itself apart for several reasons. For starters it is a true speakeasy. You cannot get in without a reservation (typically at least 1 week in advance) that is only made via text message. The texting and secrecy get you started on a feeling of exclusivity, which is not an exaggeration, this place only holds about 30 people. To get there, you must enter a completely different restaurant by another name. You walk to the back near the restrooms and there is a wall with half beer kegs on it that is actually the door. There is no one there telling you where to go or any signage telling you youâve made it, you just have to be in the know. When you push that door open, there is a hostess on the other side waiting to check you in. Once checked in they will escort you to your seat. Due to the limited capacity there is no open seating. If you are lucky, you will get a seat at the bar. The reason I call it lucky is because you can watch the bartenders make all the drinks with crazy looking utensils and mixtures from science beakers. They provide amazing customer service, will always chat you up, usually give you drink samples via straws, and will be happy to discuss you preferences to make you a custom designed cocktail. The drinks are a mixologists dream come true! All expertly crafted and perfectly balanced, with fresh ingredients, and served in all different types of drink ware with different types of ice. Because the place is so small and intimate, it is common to talk to the other patrons as you feel you are in some sort of private party. The walls are lined with skulls, yet donât feel overly goth or cryptic. The lighting is dim and there is always some groovy music playing. The Noble Experiment truly sells you an experience that speaks to the senses, is surprising, provides unique social interaction, and rewards you with an amazing cocktail in a VIP setting.
In his talk Driving Employee Engagement, Daniel Pink brought up some very valid points that I have heard before. These points regarded money and key motivators.
While money is something every working American is interested in, it is not the most important motivator, as many people would believe. Yes we all want fair (or above fair) compensation for the work we do, but even the highest paid job does guarantee high commitment to the position or your level of engagement to a company. Daniel states that pay should be fair enough to take the money off the table. By that he means, that if people are not worried about whether or not their pay is fair, they free up their brains to be fully engaged and focused on their work. For example, if you think you are not being paid enough at your job, that preoccupation may cause you to waste time intentionally or hold back from giving your full effort. Without that preoccupation, you can be fully engaged in the task at hand.
A key motivator for employee engagement is autonomy. Autonomy is defined as âfreedom from external control or influence â independence.â Employees who are self-directed in their time, task, team, and technique will exhibit the highest levels of engagement. This is because the autonomy creates its own level of accountability. Employees want to feel trusted that they know what they are doing and can do it effectively. No one wants to be micro-managed or have the boss breathing down their neck. Further autonomy allows creativity from employees in how they approach their work. Not every idea or solution is cookie-cutter. When employees have freedom they can explore ideas outside the box and actually implement them, which usually leads to higher productivity and customer service.
When it comes to leadership, transactional leaders are typically laid back and easy going. They motivate their followers in the direction of established goals by clarifying role and task requirements, and providing a reward for a job well done. You do this correctly and on time for me, and I will reward you in some way. They are effective and get the job done, but don’t foster change or inspiration.
Transformational leaders inspire followers to transcend their own self-interests and are capable of having a profound and extraordinary effect others. They are charismatic, foster creativity, and build consensus amongst the group. They build a “can-do” attitude in others and produce levels of effort beyond that of transactional leadership.
I have experienced both of these leadership styles first-hand. At my last job we had a series of GM’s over the course of 5 years. Four different GM’s to be exact. Two in particular stand out for examples of each of these types of leadership. I will use fake names for the sake of privacy. You never know who may be trolling around your blog! đ
Joe was one of our last GM’s before the company shut down. He was a nice guy with a lot of executive level experience and a long list of qualifications. Joe would come in in the morning and go straight to his office. I would run into him in the break room or he might pop into my office if he needed me to do something for him. Despite this he was approachable, pretty easy going, and had no trouble getting a job accomplished. However, he was not a real team player. If any department was overwhelmed with work or needed help meeting a shipping deadline, he would not assist. When I worked trade shows with him, he would never help set up or tear down the booth, even if I was the only other person there. Although, he might take me to dinner after. If the team met their sales goals, he would compliment us on a job well done and buy the office lunch on the company dollar.In my opinion he was a transactional leader. Nothing special but effective and easy to work with.
Larry was our GM about a year prior to Joe. Larry was very energetic, personable, and had a great sense of humor. Everyday when he would get to the office, Larry would go around to everyone’s office to see how to say good morning and see how we were doing. At around 10:30 we would have a company “coffee break” in the break room where he would go over goals for the week and anything that was coming up. If the team was getting backed up with work, Larry himself would jump in and help out. No job was ever beneath him and he constantly preached a team effort. At times when sales were down, he would have brainstorming sessions with us to come up with a strategy to turn things around. Sometimes the strategies worked and sometimes they didn’t but he would always support and appreciate our efforts. He implemented a weekly “Friday Fun day” policy where we would barbecue every Friday for lunch. He felt this was beneficial for team building and give us a chance the review the good and bad in the week that had just passed. Needless to say, we loved Larry. I believe he was a transformational leader. He didn’t need to get on us to do things or take initiative on tasks because we felt we were all a team and we wanted to please him. We had our best numbers overall when Larry was our GM. He was not afraid to get his hands dirty with us and always boosted our morale.
From these experiences I know I want to be a transformational leader. Not just because it can bring good results, but because I know my followers will feel good about working for me. Joe could’ve been transformational if he just cared a bit more and took time to be one of the team. Being transactional is just being the boss where being transformational is really being a leader.
I decided to take what I thought was the easy route, and was actually the hard route, and look at all my classmateâs blogs. It is interesting to read so many perspectives on the same topics. It was also fun learning more of the deeper side of the people I interact with on a casual basis. Everyoneâs blog has a piece of them in it, whether they are talking about their personal life or just sharing their opinions. What may have started out as just another tedious assignment, is beginning to take a life of its own. Here are some other things I learned:
Okay, okay, that’s actually a picture of a Dundie award, but that’s only because I love The Office and Michael Scott! Back to the awards – hope you have the popcorn ready!
And the nominees are….
Most Colorful – Tiffany Choy
Most Soulful – Elizabeth Barbanell
Most Conversational – Kaitlyn Andrew
Most Informative – Tran Dinh
As for me, it was an honor just being nominated! đ 
Free to Lead 