Page 242 - The extraordinary leader

What Individuals Do to Become Great Leaders • 219

Some executives have created their personal board of directors whose
function is to give them feedback on the way they are managing their career
and on their current performance in their job.
We see the movement toward coaching as one that will continue to grow.
It is driven in part by the fact that most executives are not comfortable with,
or good at, providing constructive feedback to people around them. What is
especially effective is the coach who calls on a regular basis and discusses the
leader’s success in taking some agreed-upon action steps. This process builds
strong accountability and produces remarkable behavioral outcomes.

5. Identify your strengths
Peter Drucker argues, “Self-development is making oneself better at what one
is already good at. It also means not worrying about the things one cannot be
good at.” To accomplish this, Drucker advises:
5
● List your major contributions over the past two or three years.
● Specify precisely the things the organization expects from you and for
which you are held accountable.
● Be clear about what you cannot do, as well as what you can do.
● Look for demanding assignments that make a difference. 6

With characteristic wisdom and insight, Drucker gives useful advice to all
leaders. Taking time to inventory the major contributions you have made in
the past few years is a step that few leaders take. But what better place is there
to start to understand your strengths? It also reveals where you are likely to
make significant contributions in the future. Listing accomplishments also is
a good barometer of your focus on results behavior. Everyone who is a leader,
or aspires to serious leadership, should be able to itemize a list of contribu-
tions to the organization. If you are unable to do that, then consider seriously
whether you suffer from the fatal flaw of inaction.
Repeated studies in organizations reveal that people are relatively unclear
about what is expected of them, and especially what they are personally being
held accountable to perform by their colleagues and bosses. We have argued
strenuously that an emphasis on expanding strengths is far more valuable and
productive than slogging away at trying to remedy weaknesses.
We begin by appealing to every reader’s own experience. Think back to
high school and college experiences. Let’s assume for a moment that you
were extremely adept at mathematics and anything quantitative. Your grades