If you could vote for your leader, would you vote for your boss?
This week it’s Super Tuesday in America – the day where the greatest number of US states hold primary elections and caucuses. It’s the day when, if you’ve engaged your party, you can secure the presidential nomination. So it’s a big deal and the feedback is instant and sometimes brutal.
This doesn’t happen in business. We don’t get to choose our leaders based on what they stand for and their promises of what they can deliver. But what if we did, would you have voted for your current leader?
Now I know this is different – we don’t run business as a democracy – but thinking about the idea of voting might provoke you into thinking about what you want from your leaders. For example you might look for certain characteristics and consistency from them. And you might want them to speak about those initiatives that they believe will underpin success, happiness and prosperity. Just imagine what it’s like when you have a leader who inspires people with vision and purpose, who stands up for values and who gives people real opportunities to grow. Imagine them pointing to the tough choices they need to make as a leader and the help they need from you. Might that get your vote?
Hopefully most of us will have had an experience of being led by someone we’d happily campaign for in a leadership election. Most of us have probably worked for people we’d actively campaign against. But what about now? If your boss stood for election today would you give them another term or would you boot them out?
Here are a few areas you might look at when thinking about whether they deserve your vote …
What do they stand for? What values and beliefs do they display and what matters most to them?
What qualities do you like about them? Consider their resilience, courage, humility, humour, trustworthiness, clarity and ability to motivate others.
What’s their track record? Do they actually make an impact and use their leadership to make a difference or do they make no difference at all?
It might have been good fun to think about your boss and whether you’d have voted for them based on their current performance – everyone always has an opinion. But now try applying the same to yourself.
If there was a snap election at work tomorrow, would you win your people’s vote or would you be clearing your desk?