Can Leaders Learn - continued

How does an executive coach, like Marshall Goldsmith detect whether an executive is redeemable? My friends who do that work for a living say you can tell within seconds. It is based on how the executive responds to the report on the feedback (e.g., a 360 round of interviews of employees and peers) from the coach regarding what his employees (and others) say about him, even when extremely painful (and it usually is). In other words, malleability reveals itself within seconds. On the other hand, denial, blaming, excusing, etc. will begin in everyone else within 24 to 48 hours. They may appear to receive the information with equanimity, but immediately their thinking is saying, “This cannot be true about me.” “There is some mistake.” “The question weren’t asked properly,” or “people are out to get me.”

This characteristic of receptive malleability or openness, or teachability (even through pain), is an attribute of humility. The old English word is meekness. Meekness as used in Greek and in the New Testament had little to do with softness or weakness and everything to do with excellence under humble control. The Greek word in classic Greek was prautes and was used to characterize a well trained war horse that would be highly responsive to his rider, the cavalry soldier, even in the terrorizing heat of battle, a horse so big and powerful that he really didn’t need to pay attention to anyone! But was responsive when it counted. This is an attribute of a superb leader as well. The leader must be teachable, must be able to listen genuinely and effectively, must care about his employees, must be able to say, I might be wrong,” must be able to commend and give credit readily and generously. This in addition to the strategic technical skills it takes to run the organization. Patrick Lencioni is right (in his book, The Advantage), however; if a leader cannot create a healthy organization in terms of a high performance interpersonal culture, all else is for naught.