My favorite interview question was a little mean.
No, that’s not true, but it challenged people more than I thought it would, so it seemed a tad mean to keep throwing it out to applicants.
“What are your Leadership Principles?” or, “Describe some of your Leadership Principles.”
Pause your reading for a moment, imagine yourself in the applicant’s chair, and think of how you would answer that question.
𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘄𝗲 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗽𝗵𝗼𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗮𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀, 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀. (If you’re not a construction expert, those are the biggest, strongest base that everything else builds on top of.)
It’s possible to find websites that will tell you the 10-12 Leadership Principles that are most important. But in reality, 3-6 personalized phrases that you’re committed to acting on will take you further than a stock list of well-researched values.
The point is to really know what you’re about and how you will routinely lead through the infinite number of situations that you’ll encounter.
𝗗𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗷𝗼𝗯 𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗲𝗿.
That’s a big claim, but here’s a few example of how they can help you get the right things done, while building trust and a culture that makes everything smoother.
• Basic time management. You have lots of pressing issues, which ones are most aligned with your principles?
• Decision making. Choosing between multiple good options is tough. Bounce them off the Foundation that you’re committed to, and some will rise to the surface while others fade into the background.
• Hard conversations. You’ll be less likely to avoid them, know why you’re having them, and use healthier communication when you’re in a difficult environment.
• Workplace politics and office drama (which usually gets a more business-like label in the tidy LinkedIn-iverse).
• Even budgeting and a willingness to fight for budget requests feels better when you know it reflects your Leadership Principles.
Plus, their benefits build over time. As you realize you’re intentionally making choices based on sound core beliefs, you’ll start using them as a tool more and more.
→ Your direction becomes more consistent.
→ People notice and trust builds.
→ And though the problems don’t go away everyone is in a better place to deal with them and move forward.
This is part one of a five-part Foundation: Leadership Principles that give you direction and stability.