Blog XIX: Defining leadership through a Transformational Servant Leadership approach

This quote from Buddha, used by Buddhist monk Ricard (2010), represents a shift in the understanding of leadership where leaders must continuously improve themselves before impacting others. Referring back to the first chapter of Northouse’s (2016, p. 6) ‘Leadership’ textbook, he defines leadership as “a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal.” Notice that I italicized four words which make up the key components of leadership: 1) process, 2) influence, 3) group, and 4) common goal.

Northouse and several other scholars emphasize that leadership is a process more so than a specific set of qualities that special people have. Although anyone can be placed in a leadership or management role, true leadership is not characterized by the titles or offices that these people hold, but in their interactions with their followers (Northouse, 2016, p. 6). True leaders embark on a never-ending journey, the process, of developing their leadership capabilities through their interactions with followers and their adaptation to the environment (Northouse, 2016, p. 6). Leaders can play the role of teacher and learner simultaneously. They allow themselves to be transformed from those they’re influenced by, whether this may be the people physically around them, people they follow online, from key experiences, or even from their followers. Leaders should have the mindset of a humble learner, accepting that they will never know everything but hungry to learn anything.

One key insight I gained from Jack Ma, the billionaire founder of the Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba, was to use every experience we go through in life as a learning process (E-learning, 2016). Whether good or bad, successes or failures, every experience can provide us with something useful to draw on in the future, especially our failures (E-learning, 2016). The key is to adopt an attitude that our failures can help us attain success in the future, rather than allow it to consume us with self-doubt or grief. However, mistakes and failure will only be useful if we reflect on how these mistakes were made and then either strategize around them or resolve them in the future. But the root of these ideals, again, comes back to adopting a mindset where our self-development and our leadership capabilities are a process. So with this in mind, go forth and make many mistakes!

While leaders are willing learners, they should be just as willing to share information with their followers and thus transform them in the process. This next interaction with followers describes the influence component of leadership. Although leadership was traditionally understood as a one-way interaction between leaders and followers, modern understanding of leadership characterize it as a two-way process (Northouse, 2016, p. 6). Transformational servant leadership is an approach emphasized by Trinity Western’s MA program, which focuses on the leaders’ ability to transform and serve his or her followers. Not only do transformational-servant leaders focus on teaching their followers and developing them to their full capabilities but also placing followers at the heart of their actions. Transformational-servant leaders understand that to build strong teams, strong followers are needed to envelop that team. They understand that their role is to develop the competency of their followers with a strong sense of their moral philosophy.

Another thing to note about leadership is that it’s not only a personal endeavor but also a social endeavour towards group development. Transformational-servant leaders who place followers at the heart of their actions must, in essence, also emphasize the group’s development as a whole. Leadership does not exist elsewhere but in a group context. Transformational-servant leaders must also be willing to sacrifice the most for their group with the mindset of a humble servant, rather than it’s ‘shining star.’ Many leaders we see today forget that their accomplishments as a leader were also attained by the efforts of their followers. Although a leader’s main objective is to guide a group towards a common goal, a leader can only go as far as their followers will go with them. Transformational-servant leaders understand this which is why, again, they place followers and their group at the heart of everything they do. They develop a self-awareness of their actions, motivations, and limitations as an individual and then focus on developing their groups and thus accomplishing much more than any individual’s efforts. Ultimately, the goal of the transformational-servant leader does not only maximize the capacity of their followers but also to build them up to be leaders themselves who then pass on these principles to others.

Leaders and groups with advanced moral development place priority in achieving the greater good as the center of their common goal. As mentioned earlier, not only are leaders focused on developing the competency of their followers, but they’re also concerned with developing their ethical principles. Developing a strong understanding of ethical principles and the moral values which guide both the group and it’s individuals is also a key component of Transformational Servant Leadership. Transforming the competency of followers paradoxically can also produce great evils, with Hitler’s brainwashing of Nazi Germany being one of the biggest examples in human history. Leaders acknowledge that they and their group are part of a much larger community and adopt a vision to improve this community.

Buddha’s quote: “Change yourself, change the world,” truly summarizes the concept of leadership as a process that’s inside-out. Leaders must focus on developing themselves internally before externally changing those around them. This internal process involves developing their moral values and allowing others to transform them, even their followers. In doing so, leaders aim to either spark or guide this process onto others hoping their influence empowers them to adopt a similar set of leadership values. However, this process doesn’t happen without the authentic transformation of the leader as an individual. At the end of the day, individuals only have complete control of their actions so if they allow themselves to evolve as leaders, the rest will follow suit.

References

E-learning. (2016, June 23). Keys to Success from Jack Ma | Self-Made Billionaire and CEO of Alibaba [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9WjHZ5wLe6w

Imbenzi, G., Williaume, D. & Page, D. (2013). Transformational servant leadership. Unpublished manuscript, Master of Arts in Leadership. Trinity Western University: Langley, Canada.

Northouse, P. G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and Practice, Seventh Edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. ISBN 971452203409

UBCinterdisciplinary. (2010, May 20). Mathieu Ricard – (1 of 12) [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7cgFQ1Sqcc