Page 201 - Harnessing the Strengths

184 ■ Appendix: Meet the Authors

placed their own viewpoint onto another culture
where it did not fi t.
Fons: I could have made a similar mistake when I fi rst
started my career. It is a long learning process.
Ed: What was your most important lesson?
Fons: Looking for connections and harmony became sec-
ond nature. Sometimes we have serious discussions
internally, and I notice that in such situations I listen
more than I used to. Besides that, I am ever more
aware of the necessity to behave consistently. You
can say what you want but, in the end, what is most
important is what you do. Your behavior has to be
clear and just. That doesn’t mean, by the way, that
I now have the feeling that I have achieved a state
of wisdom. As I get older, I realize more and more
how much I don’t know. Constructive doubt, I like
to call it.
Ed: What does that mean for your leadership, Fons?
Fons: I think that over the years I have strengthened my
ability to lead and serve, but slowly I am leaning in the
direction of serving. I secretly like to have the driver’s
wheel because I like to have everything under control.
But I am consciously trying to let that go.
Ed: Where do you see that?
Fons: It gives me a real sense of satisfaction when I’m work-
ing on a new project with a client and he says, “You
don’t have to come yourself. Just send one of your
colleagues.” There is nothing easier than always put-
ting yourself forward, but as a leader, it is good to
consciously step aside. On the one hand, that makes
you feel vulnerable because you don’t have the con-
trol in your own hands; on the other hand, it is also
fantastic to see how people can grow when they get