The Unexpected Leader E-Book

Jacqueline M. Baker

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 284

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022

Beschreibung

Expand your leadership skill set by looking for it in unexpected places Effective leadership isn't confined to easily identifiable silos. It appears everywhere, and sometimes in the most unexpected of places. In The Unexpected Leader: Discovering the Leader Within You, veteran leadership trainer and consultant Jacqueline M. Baker delivers an incisive and actionable discussion of how to refine, define, and elevate leadership by absorbing lessons from other leaders and actualizing the leader within. You'll learn how to meet the demands of a rapidly changing workforce with a new approach to leadership development. In the book, you'll find: * Examples of how exemplary leadership can show up anywhere and in anyone * New strategies for implementing the latest leadership techniques in a demographically and culturally diverse workforce * Modern lessons on unique and authentic leadership from people unexpectedly thrust into positions where great leadership was essential An ideal resource for everyday leaders at all levels, executives and managers, The Unexpected Leader: Discovering the Leader Within You is an essential read for anyone who hopes to expand their concept of leadership beyond the traditional.

Leseprobe

Table of Contents

COVER

TITLE PAGE

COPYRIGHT

FOREWORD

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

INTRODUCTION

Surprise!

The Unexpected

I: What to Expect When You're Expecting Leadership

1 Making the Leadership Decision

The Declaration

Commitment to Growth

Finesse

2 The Nuances of Leadership

Leaders Don't Always Need to Be Out Front

Leaders Don't Always Need Followers

Leaders Must Evolve as the World Evolves

3 Discovering the Leader Within You

Giving Yourself Permission

4 Creating Your Leadership Legacy

Your Life Thesis

5 Leadership Styles

The Nine Leadership Styles

Finding Your Leadership Style

The Leadership Wheel

II: Leadership Elevation

6 Finding the Time to Refine

Recognizing the Risks of Autopilot

Five Tools to Refine Your Inner Leader

7 Your Leadership Blueprint

Understanding the Leadership Pyramid

Why the Blueprint Matters

The Elements of the Leadership Blueprint

8 Finessing Your Style

Identifying Your Style

Pinpointing Your Mannerisms

Learning from You

Learning from Others

The Styles of Other Successful Leaders

Adjusting Your Style and Approach

9 Using Your Voice

Part 1: The Inner Work

Part 2: The Outer Work

10   Everyday Ways to Lead

Self-Awareness

Personality Traits

Communication

Agility and Adaptability

Delegation

Innovation and Change Maker

11 Finding New Opportunities

Let It Be Known

Make It Less About You

Get Uncomfortable

Run Your Own Leadership Race

12 Building Your Tribe

Pick People Who Aren't Just Like You

Be Consistent with Your Meetings

Pick People Who Aren't Afraid to Disagree with You

Pick Consistent, Reliable People

Deposits and Withdrawals

III: The Pitfalls

13 Self-Sabotage

Using Derailing Phrases

Avoiding the Spotlight

Prioritizing Everything Except Your Leadership Development

Believing That Someone Else Is Responsible for Your Leadership Journey

Diminishing Your Experience

14 The Leadership Traps

Understanding and Escaping the Different Types of Traps

Being Mindful of Leadership Traps

15 Leading versus Following

My Leading versus Following Adventure

CONCLUSION

Expect Leadership

It's for You!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

INDEX

END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT

List of Illustrations

Introduction

Figure I.1 Leadership levels.

Chapter 1

Figure 1.1 The leadership equation.

Chapter 2

Figure 2.1 Levels of leadership.

Chapter 4

Figure 4.1 Life Thesis.

Chapter 5

Figure 5.1 The Leadership Wheel.

Chapter 7

Figure 7.1 The Leadership Pyramid.

Figure 7.2 Skinphorea Facial Bar blueprint.

Figure 7.3 The Leadership Blueprint.

Guide

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Foreword

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Table of Contents

Begin Reading

Conclusion

About the Author

Index

End User License Agreement

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Praise for The Unexpected Leader

“For seasoned, aspiring, and even the most reluctant leaders, The Unexpected Leader is the timely and relevant leadership guide you didn't know you needed. Redefining what – and where – it means to be a leader, Jacqueline shares candid, practical insights to identify, sharpen, and elevate the leader inside of you. Whether leading within an organization, your family, social circle, or community, The Unexpected Leader is your definitive, actionable blueprint to embracing and cultivating the leader within and empowering others to do the same.”

—Reneé Fluker,Founder and President, The Midnight Golf Program

“The Unexpected Leader provides a unique perspective on what it means to be a leader, whether at work, at home, or in the community, and provides a compelling case for why we are all everyday leaders in life. Jacqueline M. Baker masterfully outlines how each of us can strengthen our leadership skills through tools, frameworks, and real-life examples. In an increasingly complex world, The Unexpected Leader is what we need now more than ever.”

—Andy Miller,Senior Vice President, AARP Innovation Labs

“‘For our own success to be real, it must contribute to the success of others.’ This quote by Eleanor Roosevelt shares Jacqueline M. Baker's passion in her book The Unexpected Leader: Discovering the Leader Within You. Her book inspires leadership development at all levels and helps us understand our own personal role in our leadership journey. From what to expect when making a leadership decision to knowing the pitfalls of self-sabotage, you will enjoy learning from Jacqueline's shared experiences and approach to leadership success.”

—Pamela Eyring,President, The Protocol School of Washington

“Jacqueline Baker does it again in her new book, The Unexpected Leader, by challenging readers in their thinking about leadership. She has you pondering on your own leadership journey and tells her readers that you must take responsibility for elevating your own leadership journey. She provides helpful tips for success (i.e., make sure you make time to invest in your leadership) and pitfalls to avoid that could derail your success (i.e., don't self-sabotage). It's a fascinating read and will inspire you to level up your own leadership.”

—Tonya Berry,Senior Vice President of Transformation & Engineering, Consumers Energy

“There are countless books that celebrate leadership in the business world. What I love about The Unexpected Leader is that it is designed to empower leaders at work and in our communities, who make the world a better place without fanfare. The Unexpected Leader uplifts those leaders, gives them permission to own their leadership, and provides tangible tools and frameworks to help strengthen their skills. As the boundaries blur between our work and home lives, we need guidance on how to be our very best selves no matter the context. The Unexpected Leader is that guide.”

—Dr. Marlo Rencher,Founder, Tech Founder Academy; Co-founder, Commune Angels

“At a time when professionals are leaving the workforce in record numbers, people are desperately searching for real meaning and motivation in their lives. The Unexpected Leader is a true roadmap to powerful self-exploration, both personally and professionally.

Whether it's finding your voice, leveraging your tribe, or avoiding pitfalls we all make, Jacqueline Baker offers realistic, tangible advice and examples that tap into the leadership potential we all possess.”

—Jocelyn K. Coley,Co-founder and CEO, The Allen Lewis Agency

the unexpected leader

DISCOVERING THE LEADER WITHIN YOU

jacqueline m. baker

FOREWORD BY JACQUELINE M. BAKER

EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, THE NEW YORK TIMES

Copyright © 2022 by John Wiley & Sons. All rights reserved.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.

Published simultaneously in Canada.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Baker, Jacqueline M., author.

Title: The Unexpected Leader : Discovering the Leader Within You / Jacqueline M. Baker.

Description: Hoboken, New Jersey : John Wiley & Sons, 2022. | Includes index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2022019984 (print) | LCCN 2022019985 (ebook) | ISBN 9781119877677 (cloth) | ISBN 9781119877691 (adobe pdf) | ISBN 9781119877684 (epub)

Subjects: LCSH: Leadership. | Women executives.

Classification: LCC HD57.7 .B345 2022 (print) | LCC HD57.7 (ebook) | DDC 658.4/092—dc23/eng/20220603

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022019984

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022019985

Cover Design: Paul McCarthy

Just Start™️

FOREWORD

I Googled “leadership books,” and got back 3,070,000,000 hits. This, in a word, is dizzying. Nevertheless, I stuck with the search to gain insight on this extensively covered yet hard to define topic. Some of the books purport to define leadership definitively. Others provide very specific formulas that—so the promise goes—if we faithfully employ them will turn us all into world-class leaders. All are written well enough to be in print and, I am happy to believe, all were written in good faith. In my scan, few if any even remotely attempt to address leadership in the way that Jacqueline M. Baker does in The Unexpected Leader.

Ms. Baker brings to the topic of leadership a broad base of experience, including instructional design, business development inside of corporations and nonprofits, entrepreneurship, and for-profit board service. While growing as a leader herself, she has simultaneously witnessed leadership as demonstrated by many others. This book is a thoughtfully curated composite of those experiences. We are given great examples and strong warnings with direct and immediate application. Best of all, as you read The Unexpected Leader, you feel Ms. Baker's personal relish for the topic and her genuine desire to help you elevate your own leadership skills in every area of your life.

I am a human resource professional. People are my “business.” I make this characterization of Ms. Baker's work based on three decades (and counting) of watching the best and worst of leadership on display in domestic and international enterprises behemoth and small, across industries and geographies and as lived out by people of every imaginable composite sketch and demographic profile. Beyond my day job I've seen all manner of attempts at leadership as an athlete, as a nonprofit volunteer, and as a PTA mom. I've made my own attempts at being a leader across many aspects of my own life.

Based on my own lived experiences and visibility to that of countless others, here are a couple of things Ms. Baker does differently in her must-read book:

She employs an anthropological approach to finding examples of leadership in everyday life—at work, at home, and during leisure. By so elegantly opening the aperture of where we might find leadership, she subtly gives each of us a way to see ourselves as leaders. With that inhibition taken down, we read the book with a spirit of curiosity—how is this applicable to my life?

She takes into account the many ways in which the world is in a constant state of change. As one example, in the workplace we are shifting our focus away from traditional degrees and more onto skills, increasing the likelihood that we have staff and teams with high technical and functional skills but thinner relational skills. At home, the definition of family continues to broaden to include multigenerational households and gender fluidity. Who leads in the home could be younger, older, or gender unspecified.

This book challenges the idea that we rise to occasion and replaces it with the reality that we rise to our level of training. Throughout the book, Ms. Baker provides a plethora of concrete examples of leadership in action in both conventional and unconventional settings, cementing that leadership is on display even in the most unlikely of places and through sometimes the least suspecting people. Leadership then is not a place on an organizational chart, but rather a state of being, a way of showing up in the world ready to contribute, to serve, to impact what happens and how it happens.

The Unexpected Leader is a good read. It is an important read. And it is a read for everyone and anyone who wants to define and elevate a style of leadership specific to them and their ambitions.

Jacqueline M. Welch

Executive Vice President, Chief Human Resources Officer

New York Times

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I understand the power of community and I accept the responsibility of both receiving and giving.

And because of that, I must give thanks and acknowledgment to these wonderful people who are a bright light, amazing humans, leaders in their own lane and responsible for helping this book come to life.

First, I need to say thanks to every friend, family member, and silent supporter who has sent well wishes and kind words, and provided input throughout the process of writing this book. There isn't enough ink and paper to thank you all. I take great pride in expressing my gratitude to you directly every chance that I get.

Marc Baker: What an amazing way to spend this life—with you. The world needs more humans like you, buddy.

Andrea Williams: For your brilliant design mind and contribution of the images throughout this book and for being a great friend.

Amber Cabral: For opening doors, opening minds, and being a warm, bright yellow light that the world needs more of.

Jacqueline M. Welch: For challenging norms, challenging me, and being human, although we all know you're full of superpowers.

Jessica Hayes: For being a leader in your own lane and a role model for entrepreneurial leaders, and for your contributions to this book.

Julie Kerr: For your way with words and your editorial accountability.

Derrick and Rajoielle Register: For being the quiet but impactful supporters you always are.

Tyneshia E. McCray: For keeping all of the trains, planes and automobiles of our leadership journey on track.

INTRODUCTION

Surprise!

Think about the last time that you were legitimately surprised, in a good way. Reflect on where you were, who you were with, and—most important—how it made you feel.

Those eight little letters, s-u-r-p-r-i-s-e, have the ability to delight, amaze, astonish, and positively shock you.

If I reflect on my own good surprise from the past, my mind immediately wanders back to a surprise birthday party that was thrown for me, which was actually a double surprise because my husband proposed to me that evening as well. It was surely a magical night that will never be forgotten.

Now, as someone who spent a significant number of years as a wedding and event producer, I know that surprises can be both awesome and slightly cringeworthy. Because I am a detail-oriented kind of person, I get deeply immersed in the particulars, and when I don't know what's going on, it sends me into a wormhole of “what-ifs.”

And while, over the years, I have escaped some of that “always need to know” and be involved in all of the details, the truth is that many surprises have the potential of being less of a surprise and creep more into the realm of the unexpected.

The Unexpected

Although the words “surprise” and “unexpected” live in the same realm, they have some differences.

The unexpected can surface discomfort, confusion, and frustration—and understandably so. Dealing with the unexpected can send you in a tailspin of emotion that can be, well, unexpected.

The following phrases probably evoke some level of discomfort for you, in this very moment:

“I just didn't see that coming.”

“It was so unexpected.”

“That caught me off guard.”

“If I had expected that, then …”

“If someone had just set some expectations, then …”

But, so many words, including the word “unexpected,” can evoke both negative and positive feelings, just like the word “surprise.”

Think about the last time that you:

Found warm folded money as you unloaded your dryer

Made a purchase that was significantly less than what you anticipated

Stepped on the scale and saw a number far beneath what you expected

Watched a movie that ended up being good rather than another wasted 156 minutes of your life

Completed yet another video call that was 25 minutes instead of the allotted 60 minutes

These unexpected outcomes were likely very much appreciated. So, while setting expectations is an option and is welcomed in our lives, embracing the unexpected can have an equal (or even stronger) positive impact as well.

So, what else? What are the areas in our lives where embracing the unexpected can deliver value and impact?

How about leadership?

Leadership can often be categorized as an elusive concept that is impenetrable and unreachable. It often has this coveted air about it that seems almost mystical. While some of this cloak-and-daggering that happens when we talk about leadership has begun to unravel as the world embraces more leaders of different backgrounds and experiences, there is still much more work to be done in this area.

With the various benefits of embracing leadership that exist, there are still billions of people across the world who do not see themselves as leaders. They are unaware that at any level—regardless of whether they have acquired a top-tier salary, a corner office, a fancy car, the finest tailored suits, an army of direct reports, or an Ivy League or HBCU degree—they too have the ability to welcome the benefits and opportunities that come along with embracing the title of leadership.

Let me take a moment and address the very real elephant in the room for a moment.

Yes, there are people who probably have had the banner of leader over their heads since the moment that they took their first steps, ascended to varsity volleyball as a freshman, made the honor roll every year since preschool, served as debate team captain from undergraduate through graduate school, became the youngest person to make partner at their firm, won a marathon before the age of 20, and a host of other accomplishments. And, while these are not minor accomplishments, this is not the path of so many people navigating their way through their personal and professional lives.

So does this mean that only the very visible, super-accomplished, scholarly people of the world can be designated as leaders? Does this mean if you've chosen or organically happen to be a “quiet storm” or have broken out of your shell later in life, that, unbeknownst to you, you've signed up for a life without the leader title, forever?

Well, that just can't be….

If we think about some of the most groundbreaking accomplishments and innovations, they've been pioneered by individuals who've led a life less out front and visible. This abbreviated list of individuals should help paint the picture for you:

Larry Page

was the co-founder of Google and CEO of Alphabet. His appointment to the position was seen as odd because he is highly reserved, and even referred to as “geeky.” The reality is that his quiet, intellectual nature allowed him to create an innovative new product and cultivate a unique brand that is a part of many people's everyday lives.

Albert Einstein

, who most of us know as one of the most famous scientists in history, had another not so well-known trait. He was an introvert. He believed that his creativity and success came from keeping to himself and that monotony and the solitude of a quiet life stimulates the creative mind.

Marissa Mayer

, former CEO at Yahoo, co-founded tech incubator Lumi Labs. She doesn't much care for crowds or parties either. She admits to being a proud introvert.

Theodor Geisel

, better known as Dr. Seuss, was a quiet man who rarely ventured from his seaside home in La Jolla, California.

Steve Wozniak

, Apple co-founder, came up with a world- and life-changing idea that we've all grown to know and love, then he leveraged the very visible and extroverted nature of Steve Jobs to execute his idea and bring it to scale. Introverted leaders can sit alone in quiet rooms and change the landscape of technology as we know it.

Rosa Parks

's bold and courageous move was to refuse to give up her seat to a white passenger onboard a bus in Montgomery, Alabama, in the 1950s.

These people are certainly well-known, celebrated, and have either created or benefited from a legacy built for them well beyond their death in many cases. But they weren't part of an attention-seeking mainstream; they left an undeniable legacy without seeking out the spotlight that is often unnecessarily tied to the idea of leadership.

Furthermore, when we think about leadership, we have to advance past the notion that only the high achievers, massive goal setters, and members of the “winner's” circle are leaders. Let me ask you something for you to reflect on. Whether it was grade school, middle school, or high school, who were your class clowns? You know—the people who were mischievous, slightly (or very) naughty, or who just couldn't keep themselves out of the principal's office?

Or better yet, think of some of the most notorious and ruthless criminals and mob bosses of the last hundred years. While the activities these people engage in may not necessarily resonate with how we choose to live our lives, these people also possess leadership skills. They were influential, they were marching toward an individual or group goal, and they were also likely great delegators.

As for the class clowns, they too possess leadership qualities, because more often than not they had other people in your classes on board for their shenanigans, mischievous activities, and sometimes insubordinate behavior. And, let's also be honest, most of us remember who those class clowns were. They were memorable, which is also a leadership quality.

Now, I'm not encouraging you to use your leadership skills to indulge in bad behavior, but I want you to recognize that your ability to embrace and positively elevate your leadership skills is reasonable, within reach, and fully attainable.

Your leadership journey does not need to be a carbon copy of anyone else's. You don't have to win the highest honors or be the most popular person in any of the spaces that you show up in in order to be designated as a leader or—more importantly—to grow into a better leader.

When I reflect on my own personal journey, I immediately think of the word “invisible.” As I'll share with you throughout the book, I've had what has felt like a rocky, nonlinear path in my earlier life.

As I venture back to my early teenage years, I think about how invisible I felt from the very beginning. First of all, my aunt raised me from age 12 onward and I moved with her as I was transitioning from middle school to high school. While I am always quick to say that I am ultra-grateful to my aunt for taking care of me at a time where the feeling of abandonment from my own parents was at an ultimate high, I still couldn't ever shake this feeling of being an extra kid.

Looking back at those hugely impactful years, even with my internal abandonment feelings and any family challenges, I honestly wouldn't change a thing. The outcome of that experience is that I have what are really two bonus siblings, because my cousins Derrick and Samantha (my aunt's children) operated as my brother and sister. Overall, I felt, and still feel, incredibly loved and I have a level of resilience that has served me well in my adult years. And while my aunt took care of me with equal love, care, and regard as if I was her child, it truly was something within me that always felt…extra.

Isn't that something? How two things can be true? How on the one hand, can you feel loved and cared for, but at the same time, can the circumstances of your situation and how you arrived there make you feel a certain way and you have to spend years of work unraveling through the complexities of it all?

I shared that I joined my aunt in her home around the age of 12. This also happens to be that magical age when you advance from middle school to high school. So, in addition to these general feelings I was having, I now had to contend with a major transition to a new school. It would be a major miss if I did not share how I actually claimed my spot to attend high school. I'll take you down the full journey of that in Chapter 3, but know that unlike the thousands of other kids from across the state of Michigan who “rightfully” claimed their spot by passing a mandatory standardized test to get in, I did not.

So my introduction to high school wasn't met with even a remote feeling of fitting in or with confidence or with the glow of possibility. It was actually more rooted in feeling like the extra kid, just trying to fit in both at home and at a new school. And while most ninth graders aren't oozing with leadership skills or even thinking of themselves as being a leader (a practice that I'm personally on a mission to change), whatever little bit of confidence freshmen have that leads them to want to join sports or an extracurricular group, or even feel like they could dream about what's next, I can't say that I felt like I had that.

I recently ran across my school ID card from my freshman year and noticed that my name was spelled incorrectly and remained that way for most of my high school experience. My lack of confidence manifested actions that resulted in me not thinking at that time that I was important enough or that the spelling of my name was something essential enough to be corrected.

Truth be told, I only went to my high school because that older sibling/cousin of mine, Derrick, had gone and graduated from there, and I only pursued an admissions test to college because one day a university was doing onsite admissions and my friends were doing it, so I thought, well, I guess I'll do that too. At that point, and for quite some time into my late teens and even into my 20s, I felt far from being a leader, far from having a vision for my life, and far from taking control of what I wanted to do next. And, while I know that I went back far in my life to my teen years to start to unravel where my earliest recollection of this incongruence with leadership was, that's what was necessary.

Since this book is dedicated to discovering, defining, and refining the leader within you, it may be necessary for you to take a visit of your own, in order for you to move forward, to recollect where you started not to feel like a leader or when something happened in your life that made you feel like being a leader just wasn't attainable. I made this mental journey for myself many years ago. When I truly reflect on how I felt then, I accept, acknowledge, and honor it, but I also align it with what I've accomplished, what I did and still do for others on their leadership journey, and I stay open to learning and advancing along the way.

Have you done that for yourself yet? Have you explored your personal historical journey and relationship with leadership?

Furthermore, while we're on our own personal history lessons about ourselves, let's just dive into our relationship with the word “leadership.” According to the Macmillan Dictionary Blog, the word “leader” comes from the Old English word laedan, meaning “to go before as a guide.” It was first used in English in the 14th century to describe a person in charge, and then various other uses came about later.

Take a moment and think about the multitude of things in our lives that were created or defined for one purpose, then evolved into being applicable for our ever-changing world. We really don't need to explore any further afield than how many of us are currently transported from one place to another, through shared transportation companies like DiDi, Grab, Lyft, Ola Cabs, or Uber.

There was a time when none of us could have fathomed climbing into a complete stranger's car to get to work, school, home, happy hour, or the airport. Fundamentally, without proper protocols, rules, and security in place, it's actually a terrible idea. But now it's an essential part of our everyday lives and mostly “safe” to do, and feels like second nature to do so.

While there was a time in history (and even still now) where we needed direction, complete guidance, and permission, humankind has evolved. There are more resources, opportunities, industries, and people than what existed in the 14th century, when that leadership definition was manifested.

So our relationship with the word “leader” is rooted in this age-old definition that leadership only works and applies if you are being guided, told what to do, and directed. Our relationship is rooted in the idea that you can't just raise your hand and proclaim that you are a leader.

But why not?

Why can't you say, “Yes, I'm a leader,” and then utilize every day and every opportunity to refine those skills, understand our opportunities and commit to elevating? Why is it necessary to wait for permission to be a leader, especially when the very first opportunity to lead doesn't start with leading anyone else, but with you.

This declaration of leadership that you have the opportunity to make doesn't mean that you instantly get thrown into a pit of overwhelmingly leading other people from day one.

No one should be expected to be able to or even be remotely interested in leading a team of any number or group of individuals on day one of their leadership proclamation.

What if you're not quite ready to lead others, but you're still on a path to commit and declare yourself as a leader? Well, that's where leadership levels come into play.

Leadership opportunities conveniently come in levels, allowing you to declare yourself as one as you commit to continually refining your skills as you ascend to your next level.

Figure I.1 shows the four different levels that exist throughout our leadership elevation. While a visual of these four levels could be shown in a multitude of different ways, this image is depicted this way intentionally. Whether you decide to ascend beyond self-leadership to lead others, to lead communities, or even to lead movements, there will be one constant in these scenarios—and that is you. And, as you give yourself permission to lead in these areas, it'll be your continued responsibility to self-reflect, skill up, and prepare to be ready.

Also, I'd like for you to embrace the fact that the journey of leadership doesn't just exist within the walls of a corporate workplace. You don't see a diagram that is only valid if you're climbing a corporate ladder. Let me explain why.

Some of the greatest leaders are those we deeply admire who lead in social settings, who shine bright in our religious institutions, or who are even quietly spearheading a small committee at that volunteer human rights organization that most people have never heard of. And, quite frankly, there are more opportunities to lead socially and communitywide than what may be available at just your workplace. (I look forward to diving into that in Chapter 10