Written by: gfesadmin on October 18, 2012

It is so rare to see a musical band stay together for more than a decade. Sure, there is U2, Aerosmith and a few others, but most break apart.  After a period of time, crazy schedules, the pressures of fame, life on the road and often a lack of significant leadership cause bands to simply break apart. At the heart of many of these bands lies a paradox.  The paradox being that bands are made up of amazing super gifted individuals which are now asked to place aside their self interest, individualism and think more in regards of the team. Sometimes the more talented and gifted individual team members are, the more spectacular the break up.

This past spring I heard about the YouTube sensation “Walk off the Earth” and their viral video remake of Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used To Know”.  As my wife and I watched the video for the first time I was struck at the uncanny ability for this team of five musicians to work simultaneous as one.  This past week while reading the Handbook of Leadership Theory and Practice by Notin Nohria and Rakesh Khurana I was struck by the concept of “leadership paradox”.  At the core of this paradox is a central truth that our success is absolutely dependent upon others.  Those who we lead.  However, most leaders have gained their position through exceptional personal achievements or contributions. Now, the very individualism that helped a person arrive in this position maybe one of the largest hindrances to success for the team.  While reading I was drawn to this very paradox being played out for the band “Walk off the Earth”. Watch and enjoy!

Paradox Essentials…  Leaders Must learn How To…

Become others focused… Many leaders have obtained their positions through significant personal achievement. Now, all of a sudden that same leader is being asked to think of others.  Team member’s needs, gifts, strengths, weaknesses and even caring for them through what ever they may be facing in their personal life are now important to the success of the team.  All of these areas are essential for the leader to be effective in his or her leadership of those around them.  Without becoming others focused the leader becomes quickly isolated and relegated to a task master.

Create environments that allow their team to thrive… Healthy leaders learn their team members strengths, weaknesses and even preferences. It is essential to create an environment where your team knows they are valued and are essential to accomplishing the vision of the organization or team.  Caring for team members in a holistic way by providing significant pay, good benefits, appropriate time off and even the occasional bonus creates an environment where team members often thrive.

Empower others… For many strong leaders, empowering others has probably not been high on their priority list. Strong leaders have spent most of their lives getting it done themselves. However now, you are not just assessed on your own work but also the work of those you lead.  Empowering others has an internal component as well as external.  Internally, the leader needs to begin to release the need for control or even power.  Externally, the leader needs to build up and allow others to perform tasks that maybe even he or she could do better, but the goal is not for you to excel, rather for team members to be equipped and supported.

Release and celebrate… For the individual leader, success has been a way of life.  Accolades and performance has become your friend, maybe even your identity.  Now, as the team leader it is essential to set others free to succeed and receive the praise.  More specifically, the praise from you as their leader.  A healthy leader is marked by their ability to release well and celebrate those on the team who have offered a significant contribution to the team.  I have often heard it said, “Healthy leaders often produce other healthy leaders.”

The “Unknown Leader”

When you watch this video by “Walk off the Earth”, it becomes very clear that a team effort like this does not just happen.  There must be someone who is the glue, the brains or the unknown leader.  In this young bands case Joel Cassidy the percussionist is the leader, yet many of us probably had trouble picking him out as the key to their success.  Successful leaders manage the paradox, placing their team before their own interests and in the end creating a beautiful piece of music for others to enjoy.

How are you at navigating the paradox?

Watch again and enjoy the harmony of one.

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