{"id":21239,"date":"2019-02-07T11:27:20","date_gmt":"2019-02-07T19:27:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dminlgp\/?p=21239"},"modified":"2019-02-07T11:27:20","modified_gmt":"2019-02-07T19:27:20","slug":"you-complete-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/you-complete-me\/","title":{"rendered":"You Complete Me?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Youth Director at my church saw me walking around this week carrying Dennis Tourish\u2019s book The Dark Side of Transformational Leadership: A Critical Perspective,\u00a0<\/em>and he asked me what it was about.\u00a0 This was before I had started reading it, so I took a guess.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s mostly about egotistical CEO\u2019s and why they\u2019re not as cool as they think.\u201d<\/p>\n

I wasn\u2019t far off.\u00a0 Tourish explains that \u201cThe core argument of this book is that leaders wield enormous power, not always wisely.\u201d<\/a>[1]\u00a0This is a business book that largely focuses on the charismatic leadership by CEO\u2019s and other \u201ctop brass\u201d.\u00a0 As with many books in this genre, the lessons and questions here can be applied much more broadly and will relate to leaders in many different arenas.<\/p>\n

For example, many pastoral leaders have heard the Bible passage from Proverbs 29:18 used in relation to church leadership.\u00a0 It says, \u201cwhere there is no vision, the people perish.\u201d\u00a0 Like many biblical \u201cslogans\u201d, this one is taken out of context but is often seen to mean that the leader, the one with vision, must step into a heroic, transformational role if the church is going to really grow and thrive.<\/p>\n

This is such a heavy burden to bear.\u00a0 It is as if everyone is walking around like Jerry Maguire in the eponymous movie, with half a heart or half a life, looking for the leader of whom it can be said, \u201cyou complete me\u201d.\u00a0 But this is how leaders are often expected to act.\"\"<\/p>\n

Tourish writes that \u201cone result is an implacable conviction on the part of leaders that they have a duty to fashion a vision and\u2014come what may\u2014push it down the ranks of their organizations.\u201d<\/a>[2]<\/p>\n

Of course, leadership is a key component in the healthy life of a business, church or other organization.\u00a0The saying \u201cnature abhors a vacuum\u201d indicates that a void, or a gap, or a space will necessarily be filled by something, and that is where transformational leaders come in.\u00a0Tourish writes, \u201cto those lost and looking for answers, idealism in almost any form can be alluring.\u201d<\/a>[3]\u00a0 He argues that there are even parallels between transformational leaders and leaders of cults.\u00a0 Both are trying to \u201cfill a void\u201d that they seek in an organization or in the lives of their followers.<\/p>\n

So, what does it take to have healthy transformational leadership?<\/p>\n

This week our lead mentor Jason Clark shared an article on Facebook that was about the importance of self-awareness for people (especially leaders).\u00a0 This is a key for leaders of all sorts.\u00a0 The article says, \u201cdeveloping clarity within yourself improves self-assessment, decision-making, and overall happiness.\u00a0 Rather than reacting in the heat of the moment, you can act with understanding, calm, and wisdom.\u00a0 Self-awareness is your ability to be mindful of what you are doing and understand why you are doing it.\u201d<\/a>[4]<\/p>\n

This assessment concurs with much of the reading and discussion that our Cohort has had over the years.\u00a0 The development of the person, their own interior life, a life with God, a mature sense of self, all of this can mitigate against the \u201cdark side\u201d that Tourish is describing.\u00a0 As McIntosh and Rima, Sr, write, \u201cWhen our drive to achieve, fueled by unmet needs (e.g., the need for approval) and existential debt, is channeled in the right direction, it can be a power for good.\u00a0 However, when that need-fueled drive becomes misdirected, it can result in disaster as we have seen.\u201d<\/a>[5]<\/p>\n

What is this \u201cdisaster\u201d that is being described?\u00a0 One instance that is cited is the \u201cGreat Recession\u201d, which was partially fueled by leaders in large businesses, banks and organizations not heeding warning signs and pushing straight ahead.\u00a0 One of Tourish\u2019s main criticisms is that \u201ctransformational leadership theories may well become unfalsifiable.\u00a0 Whatever happens, or whatever could possibly happen, is evidence of the theory\u2019s correctness\u2026 success is due to the correct application of the transformational leadership model. Failures are due to external factors beyond its control.\u00a0 In either case, the solution is more transformational leadership.\u201d<\/a>[6]<\/p>\n

This is a tautological argument, where organizations need transformational leadership in order to thrive, but also that when this kind of leadership has caused a major problem, the solution is also \u201cmore transformational leadership\u201d.<\/p>\n

It seems to me that there is a balance to be struck in any organizational setting.\u00a0 As a pastor in a local congregation, many people see me as the \u201cvisionary leader\u201d or the one who sets the agenda and directs the ship.\u00a0However, if this instinct that people have is not checked and appropriately managed, it can lead to the kind of \u201chubris and narcissism\u201d<\/a>[7]that Tourish is describing.\u00a0Self-knowledge is one attribute that a leader needs in order to avoid this fate.\u00a0 But it also takes having open, trusting relationships with others around you, which allows for honest feedback and critique.\u00a0 It is a humbling thing to try and lead people who have high expectations and hopes for what you will do, and the reality is that no leader can do it all.<\/p>\n

In the end, I still struggle to find the right balance within myself between the lofty leader up in the front, and the reality of the limitations that I actually have. Maybe it’s enough to be reminded that I don’t need other people’s applause or approval to make me whole, and it isn’t my job to make others whole in their lives. \u00a0And that’s okay!<\/p>\n

<\/a>[1]Dennis Tourish,\u00a0The Dark Side of Transformational Leadership: A Critical Perspective<\/em>\u00a0(East Sussex: Routledge, 2013), 8.<\/p>\n

<\/a>[2]Dennis Tourish,\u00a0The Dark Side of Transformational Leadership: A Critical Perspective<\/em>\u00a0(East Sussex: Routledge, 2013), 29.<\/p>\n

<\/a>[3]Dennis Tourish,\u00a0The Dark Side of Transformational Leadership: A Critical Perspective<\/em>\u00a0(East Sussex: Routledge, 2013), 161.<\/p>\n

<\/a>[4]Gustavo Razzetti, \u201cHow to Increase Self-Awareness and Be at Peace with Yourself,\u201d\u00a0Liberationist Blog<\/em>,\u00a0Medium<\/em>, February 4, 2019,\u00a0https:\/\/blog.liberationist.org\/how-to-increase-self-awareness-and-be-at-peace-with-yourself-74df445bc26c?fbclid=IwAR3zQElEk3EgQHgJ48ElM7erEyqq8uy7PCX6vq_yyTqijHSEpHFOMxUpWIY<\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/a>[5]Gary L. McIntosh and Samuel D. Rima, Sr.,\u00a0Overcoming the Dark Side of Leadership: The Paradox of Personal Dysfunction<\/em>\u00a0(Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1997), 80-81.<\/p>\n

<\/a>[6]Dennis Tourish,\u00a0The Dark Side of Transformational Leadership: A Critical Perspective<\/em>\u00a0(East Sussex: Routledge, 2013), 28.<\/p>\n

<\/a>[7]Dennis Tourish,\u00a0The Dark Side of Transformational Leadership: A Critical Perspective<\/em>\u00a0(East Sussex: Routledge, 2013), 98.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Youth Director at my church saw me walking around this week carrying Dennis Tourish\u2019s book The Dark Side of Transformational Leadership: A Critical Perspective,\u00a0and he asked me what it was about.\u00a0 This was before I had started reading it, so I took a guess.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s mostly about egotistical CEO\u2019s and why they\u2019re not as […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":103,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[1439],"class_list":["post-21239","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-tourish","cohort-lgp8"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21239","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/103"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21239"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21239\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21241,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21239\/revisions\/21241"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21239"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21239"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21239"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}