eBook Leading Quietly ePub

Joseph Badaracco reminds us that the best leaders are not highly visible "heroes" who single-handedly set things right with dramatic deeds on center stage. They are restrained, modest and tenacious individuals working quietly in the shadows. If they are ever recognized, like Winston Churchill or Mother Theresa, it is only after many years or decades of quiet striving. We should not only recognize them, but learn to emulate their unassuming style.

Using case studies and clear prose, the author describes the techniques of quiet leadership, advising us to focus on small things that need to be handled every day. Quiet leaders accept that they will be surprised and will need to make decisions without knowing all of the facts. They are able to trust others, but verify information when possible. Quiet leaders are realists, accepting mixed motives in themselves and others. This allows them to find win-win solutions between individuals and organizations with different needs and goals.

Quiet leaders don't rush--or allow themselves to be rushed--into hasty decisions. They try to buy time to dig into the political and technical details and find a better solution. They build up political capital with others over time and "withdraw" this capital to help solve problems--or get extra time to solve them. Quiet leaders carefully consider drawing on this resource before taking on a problem. They may walk away from a problem they do not have the resources to address. They may bend the rules a bit to solve a problem, being careful to adhere to the principles they are based upon. A compromise is preferable to a conflict. If conflict seems necessary, quiet leaders move toward it carefully, escalating gradually, continually testing and trying for a low-key resolution.

In the closing chapter, Badaracco describes the case study methods used to gather data on quiet leaders and their egotistic counterparts. It is a good implementation of the "critical incident technique" described in Applied Measurement Methods in Industrial Psychology. He also acknowledges that: "Each of the tools presented in this book can be misused. Seeing the world as a complicated and uncertain place can serve as an excuse for not thinking about serious problems. Bending the rules can be an excuse for avoiding plain duties. Buying time and drilling down can evolve into procrastination or cowardice. Some compromises sell out basic principles. Some people invest their political capital so prudently and escalate so gently that they basically do nothing." (p. 169).

This book is highly recommended as a guide to working in a large organization's political environment.

An enjoyable read, framed around several "case studies" from life that Badaracco has discerned, including his review of great literature, engaged in the context of classrooms with learners at Harvard. Having gleaned insight from Macbeth, Antigone, The Prince, Death of a Salesman and many others, Badaracco suggests that the characters who "set out to become great men ended up disappointed" while the minor characters who are "unassuming" with modest ambitions, careful and sensitive intentions, "simply trying to do their bit" are actually "responsible, thoughtful and successful [in their] efforts to lead." (181-182).

The book is not a guide to the black-and-white issues of what every leader must do, in order to lead. There are no "be this" or "do this" manifestos articulated in the context of the book that are framed as the context within which leaders lead. Rather, the book explores the nuance and textures of leadership that are difficult to discern in complex contexts. A single quote that helps frame this, that Badarraco takes from a manager involves what he calls the Paradox of Quiet Leaders (p. 88) while noting that Quiet Leaders have "the courage to prudently tackle tough situations" (89). Courage and prudence, while tackling - but not tackling in ways that "stay and fight" nor "fight recklessly" but "consider and calculate" while "invest[ing] their political capital wisely" (90).

Badaracco does not, in his own words, "elaborate a theory, test hypotheses, or offer conclusive proofs." Rather, he "raises questions, prompts reflection, and sketch[es] alternatives to familiar views about leadership and doing the right thing . . . [by]. . . offer[ing] practical advice in the forms of guidelines of action" (181).

Badaracco's ideas have been shaped by Tolstoy, too, including War and Peace . About leadership, Badarraco agrees with Tolstoy that "so-called great leaders were largely creatures of larger historical forces which they neither understood nor influenced, while ordinary individuals, going about their mundane affairs, cumulatively shape the world." (185)

While this ending note might sound a note of passive inactivity - the text asserts quite otherwise. Active, engaged, thoughtful, patient, discerning leaders emerge from years of investing wisely, buying time, bending the rules, nudging, testing, crafting compromise, while restraining, being modest, and having tenacity.

A thoroughly enjoyable read - and one with great questions on pages 186 and 187 that I will use with future learners in Ethics courses that I teach, including thinking about the ethics of Rescuers in the contexts of situations of genocide.