We are celebrating the wrong leaders; the best are the most boring people in the room
We love reading or hearing stories about people who have set their sights on conquering something seemingly impossible. They embark on an expedition, experience multiple highs and lows with a team behind them, but ultimately emerge victorious in the end.
These individuals would often return to a hero’s welcome, where they would be celebrated for overcoming insurmountable odds despite the high cost. But what if I told you that this person only achieved their goal at the expense of their teammates’ lives and that their deaths could have been avoided?
Does that still make them a good leader?
Chances are you will say no, but these leaders are the ones who we see getting bonuses, being promoted, and recognised, despite not being the most competent candidates. The worst part is that the people they are leading are bearing the consequences because of their oversights.
So if these people are the wrong leaders, then who should we celebrate? The answer is: the most boring person in the room. Here’s why.
The best leaders are the ones who consider everything and guide you without drama
Careful, prudent, judicious—these people are the ones we deem to be “safe” and seem to happen to focus on getting their work done in the subtlest of ways. As such, they often go unnoticed, and others who do not interact with them tend to classify them as “boring.”
But according to management historian Dr Martin Gutmann, these plain Janes are the best leaders in the pack. He described these people as obsessive planners who consider every single possible obstacle and solution before leading their teammates to reach a common goal.
In contrast, we often associate good leadership with someone vocal, confident, and tenacious. Their journey resembles that of a protagonist in adventure films: someone who navigates treacherous waters, often in a dramatic manner.
These individuals always carry a good story and are the ones who get recognised and promoted, but Dr Gutmann cautioned that these people are not the leaders we should idolise.
He explained that we often fall prey to the Action Fallacy: the mistaken belief that the best leaders are those who generate the most noise, action and sensational activity in the most dramatic of circumstances. Dr Gutmann also shared that the consequences these gung-ho leaders experience could mostly be avoided and occur due to a lack of foresight and preparation.
The real stinger here? They don’t bear the consequences the most, but rather their teammates who trusted them to lead them in the right direction, only to reach their breaking points.
“With the wrong leaders in charge, organisations are obviously not performing to their full potential and it creates a toxic culture in which those actually doing good work feel overlooked and demotivated,” explained Dr Gutmann. This scenario can be observed in many organisations across various industries, often leaving companies struggling to fill a gap in their skill sets for prolonged periods.
Companies are stuck in a self-perpetuating cycle, where celebrating these flawed action-oriented leaders would create even more of them. The good news is that this cycle can be stopped, and according to Dr Gutmann, that is by re-imagining what good leadership is.
The first thing is to remind ourselves not to get pulled in by the dramatic details of their tales, which often involve surviving multiple trials and tribulations caused by their own mismanagement. “It gives us a false sense of inspiration,” added Dr Gutmann. “False because there’s no substance there.”
Conversely, we should celebrate individuals who focus on doing their work despite the pressure to seek the approval of others and boast about their achievements excessively—those who let their work speak for itself.
So what if these people are “boring?” They are actually the ones who could bring you and your team to success in the smoothest way possible.
- Watch the full talk given by Dr Martin Gutmann here.
- Read more stories we’ve written on Singaporean businesses here.
Featured Image Credit: TEDxTalk
