The Art of Leadership - Video 1
Summary
TLDRIn this leadership module, Sadal NE, a Harvard Business School professor and leadership expert, emphasizes the importance of leadership beyond formal authority. She encourages individuals to act like owners, solve problems, and lead teams to foster personal growth and prepare for future leadership roles. Sadal discusses the necessity of change management as a core leadership skill, the ability to invent the future by setting direction and vision, and the impact leaders can have on securing personal and communal futures. The conversation highlights the idea that leadership is accessible to all and can be a catalyst for positive change.
Takeaways
- 😀 Leadership is accessible to everyone, regardless of formal authority. You can be a leader by acting like an owner, solving problems, and engaging in conversations.
- 🌟 Leadership is about personal growth and setting up individuals for actual leadership positions. It's an attitude and behavior that can start early in life.
- 🔑 The concept of 'L in each of us' suggests that leadership potential is inherent, and it can be activated by taking responsibility and initiative in various settings.
- 🚀 Leading teams is a fundamental aspect of leadership. Being able to lead a small group effectively can scale to leading larger organizations.
- 🛠 Teams are critical for problem-solving, leveraging individual strengths, and achieving more than what one person can accomplish alone.
- 🌐 Inventing the future involves understanding the present and anticipating possibilities. Leaders act as beacons, guiding others towards a vision based on their understanding of current and future landscapes.
- 📚 Change is a core competency of leadership. It's about continuous improvement and adapting to the dynamic world, which requires leaders to be ready to transform when necessary.
- 🔄 Change management is not just a corporate buzzword; it's essential for leaders to drive improvements and meet evolving demands, which involves reshaping cultures and mindsets.
- 🌱 Investing in leadership skills can secure personal, familial, and even community futures by empowering others and shaping lives positively.
- 🌟 A favorite leadership quote by John Quincy Adams emphasizes that leaders inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, which is a beautiful definition of leadership impact.
- 🌏 Leadership is about being a global collaborator, understanding local contexts, and connecting with peers worldwide to lead effectively in an interconnected world.
Q & A
What is the significance of leadership according to the transcript?
-Leadership is significant because it is not just about holding a position of authority; it is about personal growth, acting like an owner, solving problems, and engaging in conversations, which can eventually lead to actual leadership positions.
Why is it important to care about leadership from an early age?
-Caring about leadership from an early age is important because it allows individuals to develop an attitude and behavior that can lead to positions of authority and is essential for personal growth and future leadership roles.
What does Sadal mean by 'acting like an owner' in the context of leadership?
-'Acting like an owner' means taking initiative, feeling a sense of obligation and personal responsibility, solving problems, and not being a bystander, which are behaviors that can develop leadership skills without formal authority.
How does leadership relate to team dynamics?
-Leadership is closely related to team dynamics because leading a team, regardless of its size, requires the same set of behaviors and skills that can be scaled to lead larger organizations, making it a fundamental aspect of leadership.
Why is inventing the future a part of leadership?
-Inventing the future is part of leadership because it involves understanding the current landscape, anticipating what could be possible, and setting a direction and vision for what's next, which requires leaders to be beacons that guide and shape the future.
What is the '30% rule' mentioned in the transcript?
-The '30% rule' refers to the idea that leaders need to learn enough about new technologies or areas to understand and shape them effectively, even if they are not experts in the field, which is a baseline knowledge requirement for leadership.
Why is change management a core competency for leaders?
-Change management is a core competency for leaders because it is about making improvements, anticipating the future, and adapting to the dynamic world, which are essential for leading organizations effectively.
How does leadership enable others to change?
-Leadership enables others to change by setting a vision, providing direction, and creating an environment where change is not only accepted but also embraced as a part of growth and development.
What does John Quincy Adams say about leadership in the quote mentioned in the transcript?
-John Quincy Adams says that if your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, then you are a leader, highlighting the importance of leadership in enabling others to grow and achieve more.
How does leadership contribute to securing personal and communal futures?
-Leadership contributes to securing personal and communal futures by empowering individuals to make an impact, shape lives, and drive change that benefits not just themselves but also their families, communities, and potentially their countries.
What role can young leaders play in the context of rapid societal and technological changes?
-Young leaders can play the role of agents of change, skill amplifiers, and global collaborators, adapting to and shaping the rapid changes in technology, societal norms, and cultures, and connecting with peers worldwide to lead effectively in their local contexts.
Outlines
😀 Introduction to Leadership Module
The script opens with a warm welcome to a leadership module, highlighting the esteemed guest, Sadal, a close friend of the host and a renowned professor at Harvard Business School. Sadal's impressive CV and her expertise in leadership, change, and digital mindset are emphasized. The host expresses gratitude for her presence and outlines the session's agenda, which includes discussing the importance of leadership, defining it, exploring whether leaders are born or made, and sharing essential tools for aspiring leaders. The conversation aims to inspire the audience to prioritize leadership and understand its significance in personal and professional growth.
🤔 The Significance of Leadership Beyond Authority
This paragraph delves into the concept that leadership is not confined to those with formal authority. Sadal emphasizes that anyone can act as a leader by taking initiative, solving problems, and engaging in meaningful conversations. The host reflects on his own misconceptions about leadership and learns that leadership is an attitude and behavior that can be cultivated from an early age. Sadal advises the audience, especially the younger generation, to start acting like owners and develop the 'L' in them, which can eventually lead to formal leadership roles.
🛠 The Role of Teams in Leadership
The speaker discusses the importance of teams in the leadership process, stating that leading a team is a critical early step in developing leadership skills. Teams are essential for solving complex problems and achieving more significant outcomes than an individual could. The ability to structure, motivate, and manage a team is a crucial leadership function. Sadal suggests that leading a small team effectively can scale up to leading larger organizations, as the fundamental behaviors and skills required remain consistent.
🌟 Inventing the Future and Change Management
The script touches on the idea of 'inventing the future,' which involves anticipating and shaping what's possible based on current observations. Leaders are described as beacons, able to foresee and set direction and vision for what's to come. The concept of change management is introduced as a core leadership competency, with change equated to improvement. Leaders are expected to drive change, transform cultures, and adapt to the dynamic world. The discussion also addresses the resistance to change that people often exhibit and the leader's role in enabling others to embrace and adapt to change.
🔒 Securing Futures Through Leadership
The final paragraph focuses on the broader impact of leadership, emphasizing its role in securing personal, familial, community, and even national futures. Investing in leadership skills is portrayed as a means to make a significant impact on the world. The importance of being proactive rather than reactive is stressed, with leadership positioned as a way to empower others and shape lives. The conversation concludes with a memorable quote from John Quincy Adams about inspiring others to dream, learn, do, and become more, encapsulating the essence of true leadership.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Leadership
💡Authority
💡Personal Growth
💡Change Management
💡Innovation
💡Direction
💡Vision
💡Team
💡Empowerment
💡Global Collaborator
💡Digital Mindset
Highlights
Sadal is a renowned authority on leadership and change, with a significant online presence and impressive CV.
Leadership is not about formal authority; anyone can act like an owner and solve problems.
Leadership is about personal growth and can lead to actual leadership positions.
The 'L' in each of us can come alive by taking initiative and responsibility.
Leadership begins with acting like an owner and can scale to leading teams and organizations.
Leading teams is a critical early step in developing leadership skills.
Leadership is about structuring, motivating, and creating processes for team operations.
Inventing the future involves anticipating possibilities and setting direction based on current understanding.
Leaders act as beacons, able to see the landscape and imagine future necessities.
Leadership involves understanding and shaping technology, even for non-technologists.
The '30% rule' suggests learning enough about a technology to shape its direction.
Leadership is about change management, which is a core competency for improvement.
Leaders must enable others to change, despite the natural resistance to it.
Leadership is about securing personal, family, community, and even national futures.
Leadership is accessible and should be a goal for everyone to consider.
A favorite leadership quote by John Quincy Adams emphasizes inspiring others to dream, learn, do, and become more.
Leadership is about enabling others to become more, which defines a true leader.
Leaders can be community builders, economic catalysts, and agents of change.
Leadership involves being a global collaborator and learning from peers worldwide.
The journey of leadership begins with imagining oneself as a leader and is accessible to everyone.
Transcripts
welcome to the leadership module I'm so
delighted and excited to have with me
sadal NE sadal is first of all a good
friend of mine we've known each other
for 17 years yeah uh sadal is the n
fitzu professor of business
administration at the harvor business
school she's also the senior associate
Dean uh at the haror business school and
my boss uh yeah I reported to her uh and
is one of the leading authorities on
leadership and change digital mindset
and remote work if you see her CV it's
incredible if you see her on YouTube 12
million views about her teaching at the
Hard business school so I am truly uh
grateful and blessed that sadal is with
us to talk about her area of expertise
which is leadership I'm so happy to be
here Kareem I'm really excited to talk
about leadership and to be with all of
you yeah so what we're going to do in
our in our in this in this module is why
should we first care about leadership in
the first place why do our our audience
should make this uh a priority for
themselves then we'll get into defining
leadership what does it mean the
dimensions of it um then an essential
question that everybody asks our leaders
born or made I know you have definite
opinions about that so would love to get
that perspective and then we're going to
open up the leadership toolkit what are
the essential uh for aspiring
Trailblazers who want to be leaders who
needed to be leaders in in their worlds
in their communities as well so should
we begin let's go go I'm excited um so
sadal I mean you've been studying this
for your whole life and youve also been
practicing this for your whole life why
should we care about leadership in the
first place why should our audience care
about leadership you know leadership is
one of those things that's incredibly
important because you don't have to have
you don't have you don't need you don't
need to have have a position of
authority to be a leader okay you can
act like an owner you can solve problems
you can engage in conversations you see
a problem you solve it you need to be a
follower you become a follower in a role
of a leader so leadership is all around
us and it's about not only our personal
growth but it sets us up for actual
leadership positions well wait can hang
on a second you said something profound
you said like you don't need formal
authority to be a leader can we just
double click on that because I think
when I was their age long time ago uh I
thought like leader with a capital l
like you had to have a leader or
executive blah blah blah in your title
or like stand on a big mountain and be
the leader like tell tell me about this
view because that's new to me there's an
L in each and every one of us there's an
L in each and every one one of us and
the way in which this L Comes Alive
before we have these positions of
authority is by acting like owners is by
feeling a sense of obligation and person
responsibility so if there's a problem
you solve it as opposed to being a
bystander if there's um uh a moment when
we need to speak up we need to speak up
and we can do this in our families we
can do this in our communities we can do
this in our school RS and this is where
it begins that l in us can grow into
that position of authority but it's an
attitude it's a behavior it's a
definition that starts out early so my
big advice for everyone starting from
the age of 18 and on is to begin to act
like an owner on route to becoming a
true leader with authority I love that
so what else what else uh why else
should we care about uh about leadership
listen leadership is really interesting
it's actually a social science and it
starts out like I said with ourselves
that L and all of us and acting like an
owner and eventually we begin to lead
others and most often where we see this
early on is in teams leading teams and
leading teams teams are defined uh as
three people or more so if you have
three people or or more and you take on
a leadership role whether it's at school
or otherwise it's really important
because Kareem if you can lead a group
of three people yes or 10 or 15 yes you
can actually lead an organization of
15,000 people SC it scales completely
it's the same set of behaviors that
scales because if you can lead those 10
people or 15 people it is through them
that you lead wide organizations it's
through them that you lead communities
it's through your team that you lead
even countries wow and I guess I guess
the the thing about why you need to
think about teams is because to solve
important problems right you need a team
you'll need more than yourself if it was
a problem that you could solve yourself
that takes you so far but problems that
are big that are naughty that need U
leaders like you to be engaged you need
to be thinking by teams absolutely in
fact teams are critical to leverage
yourself to scale teams are critical for
the division of labor teams are critical
uh in order to achieve much more than
what an individual can do and so how to
structure a team how to motivate a team
how to create the processes by which a
team operates is a very crucial function
of leaders so once you establish that
you can act like an owner and be an
owner and then the first thing to do is
to find ways to lead a very small team
and once you figure that out you can
lead entire
organizations that's fabulous so also so
I often say one of the things that
leaders need to do is invent the future
do you agree with that is that is that
like how does that fit within your sort
of research and practice of leadership
you know inventing the Future these are
such intimidating words right inventing
the future but what it is it's really
determining and thinking about what's in
the present and beginning to anticipate
what can be possible in the future
sometimes is to say whoa I see an
oncoming train I see it others don't so
that's part of the future other times is
to say whoa I see all these dots imagine
if we connect them yeah what new
possibilities can we engage in and so
part of that is we talk about this in um
uh our leadership work here at the
Harvard Business School As Leaders as
beacons yes to be able to see the
landscape yeah and
to imagine what may be the very next
thing that we all need to think about so
you're right in a sense that is
inventing the future and it comes com
from understanding the landscape
understanding today in order to imagine
what's for tomorrow which means we need
to be exposed yeah to a lot of things
and so and so this is like setting
Direction and vision right like part of
inventing the future is Direction and
vision it's absolutely Direction and
vision I mean even if you think about
the image of the leader as a beacon uh
it's the ability to look far um and to
set uh a a direction and a vision based
on not facts that are very much in front
of you but the facts that you imagine
will be in the future so if you think
about all of the innovators of our world
those who've invented telephones uh
those who've invented new ways of doing
things and as you know we're living at a
time where there's so much Innovation
going going on but it took leaders to be
a ble to see those things and sometimes
it's also responding to what's here yeah
uh in in an affirmative way so for
example we know that technology is
moving very fast and Leadership requires
us to understand those Technologies to
start shaping those Technologies that's
where Vision Direction but what happens
if you're not a technologist you learn
as much as you need to learn often time
there's a baseline we call it in fact
the 30% rule you've done a lot of
research on this ton of research my
latest book with uh poon Aris called the
digital mindset and you learn the
baseline or some Basics some common
vocabularies languages around these
Technologies and you shape it that's
what it means to be a beacon you shape
it and to shape it you have to
understand it yeah now one of the things
I've heard you say quite a bit when
you've been uh you know sadal talks to
leaders everywhere Executives of large
companies uh around the world um you've
often talked about like the importance
of becoming good at change so why should
our audience care about change change
management because that seems like a
thing that companies do you know like
you're old fart company sorry you're old
company around for long and then the the
old line Executives say we need change
management why should they care about
change and and becoming good at change
change is a fundamental core competency
of leadership because what is change
ultimately it's Improvement it's either
small Improvement or big Improvement and
change management is actually an entire
field uh we can teach a whole a whole
module on it uh but it's a core
leadership competency otherwise you're
presiding over something and you're not
anticipating the future and you're not
making any improvements so to make
improvements to think about the future
it requires change and change management
and there um two ways to think about
leadership one is leaders uh as um or
the role of leaders as transactional
which is the presiding over to make sure
the trains are running and the uh buses
are running and everything that need to
run on time on time and
adequately but that's not enough the
world is so Dynamic it changes so much
all the time that we need to be ready to
improve and change and meet the moment
and at times we need to transform that's
why it's a very core competency for
leadership change yeah you and you know
like you have to be able to
change cultures
organizations people their mindsets
their perspectives and and that to me is
part of this leadership Journey right
like how do you actually enable people
to change because most people tend to at
least what I found in all of my
inventing the future activities that she
knows all about uh that I come to her
for therapy uh uh is is that you got to
be able to enable others to change to
sort of be comfortable with change
because most people resist change people
don't love change they may say they like
change and you know change is good for
others not for ourselves good for others
not for ourselves and you've heard
people say I love change you know I
change my hair all the time and change
change change that's not true people
like predictability they like certainty
and they like um stability yeah change
by definition is not about certainty
it's not about predictability it's not
about stability so they resist and
there's always this belief of if we
enact any of these changes are we
actually going to break things that are
working change is also breaking things
that are working yeah you're very
familiar with that aren't you a little
bit
you can ask our Dean about that I think
it's a big file in the Dean's office U
with f it's a good file yeah but you
know a lot of change lot of change um so
the other thing that I want to sort of
add to this about why we should care
about leadership is that for the young
leaders we're working with uh this is
about securing your personal future
right if you invest in learning about
leadership if you invest in practicing
leadership if you invest in actually
changing things then that's going to
secure your personal future because that
it will enable you to to to impact the
world in ways that others cannot can I
add to that sure it's also about
securing the future of your family it's
about securing the future of your
community it's for some people it can
even mean securing the future of your
country it's a very very big deal so you
either are a bystander or an observer or
you can help shape the the lives and the
future of many others so um so it's it's
about securing your future and the way
you secure your future is by empowering
shaping the lives of others I love that
so let's recap just just even this this
whole notion about why should be careful
leadership uh first is you got to act
like an owner right second is it's about
sort of the team and making sure the
team that you put together can actually
get the work done uh the third is is
inventing the future setting the
direction and vision then driving change
becoming good at change uh and then
securing
Futures do you have a favorite quote
about leadership is there anything that
that stands out to you I do actually
this is this comes from one of the
former US presidents I love it so much
because you don't have to be a current
leader to appreciate what he says so
this is John Quincy Adams yes and he
says that if your actions Inspire others
to dream more learn more do more and
become more you are a leader wow wow you
can you just repeat that again so if
your actions if your action inspires
others to dream more dream more that's
the vision that's like that's like the
the inventing the future yeah learn more
yes yes practice practice yes do more
yes get more things done solve more
problems and become more themselves
others becoming more so part of the
leadership is enabling others to become
more as well absolutely enabling others
to become more that's what defines you
as a leader isn't that a beautiful quote
Yeah I love that I love that quote maybe
that should be part of our motto as well
of this of this program for our program
we care a ton about leadership uh
because I think that that is you know
that is a core principle that we're
trying to uh
Infuse in young people around the world
um and for us U this is because we feel
as we've discussed that these leaders
can be Community Builders these leaders
can be uh economic catalysts they can
actually have meaningful impact in the
economies that they're work work in they
can be educa uh agents of change in
their in their environments and that's
so important because we don't want to be
stuck in a static world where technolog
is changing fast societal Norms are
changing fast cultures are changing fast
you can be the Agents of change and
actually nudge the change in the
direction you see important uh and that
also you can be a skill amplifier if you
act as a leader not just for yourself
but for others and then finally I I
really feel uh like you can be a global
collaborator right you can learn from
other peers from around the world and
because the the problem sit around uh
what's happening in Mogadishu is also
happening in Montreal it's also help in
in in Melbourne Australia and Melbourne
Florida at the same time yes we're such
an interconnected world that for us to
be true leaders we need to not only be
very aware of our local scenarios and
context but we need to understand beyond
our context and connect with others in
order to lead better uh uh locally even
I love all the things that you talked
about and the thing that I love most
about this and what I'm hoping is is um
going to be something that people
internalize is this journey only begins
if we begin to imagine ourselves as
leaders that we can be leaders and that
it's accessible to us and that can be a
goal the question is how do we learn to
be leaders and defining leadership it's
completely accessible to each and every
one of us
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