The Hindu Business Line : Think of life as a jazz quartet

Work, home, community, and self. Are you succeeding in one of these aspects of life while underperforming in the rest? Or are you failing to capture value from one part of life and bringing it to bear in others, or living with too much conflict among your different roles?

If the answer is ‘yes,’ here is help from Stewart D. Friedman in ‘Total Leadership’, a soon-to-be-released Harvard Business Press book ( www.tatamcgrawhill.com). You can achieve ‘four-way wins,’ he assures, addressing his message not merely to the bosses but to just anyone who wants to integrate the seemingly disparate four domains.

Wait, are we talking about ‘work-life balance,’ that clichéd phrase? No, we are working at a richer life, says the author. An image of two scales in balance is the wrong metaphor, he reasons. “First, it suggests that we need equal amounts of competing elements to create a constant equilibrium.” Alas, for many people, equality in the importance of and attention to the different parts of life makes no sense, frets Friedman.

Another problem with the ‘balance’ idea is that it signifies trade-offs: gaining in one area at the expense of another. “Even though it is sometimes unavoidable, thinking about work and the rest of life as a series of trade-offs is fundamentally counterproductive. When the goal is work/life balance, you’re forced to play a zero-sum game.”

Forget the tarazu, therefore, and remember the jazz quartet, urges the author. Becoming a total leader is analogous to playing richly textured music with the sounds of life’s various instruments, he describes. “It is not about muting the trumpet so the saxophone can be heard.”

Leadership is not about being a middle manager or a top executive, it is all about ‘bringing the whole person in,’ defines Friedman. “Being a leader means inspiring committed action that engages people in taking intelligent steps, in a direction you have chosen, to achieve something that has significant meaning for all relevant parties – to win, in other words.” And this can happen in businesses, families, friendship networks, communities, and social associations, he affirms.

The most important aspect of ‘leader,’ according to Friedman, is ‘being the agent of your own life, influencing the things you care about most in the world to make it a richer life.’ But that demands three things from you: being real (authenticity), being whole (integrity), and being innovative (creativity).

“Acting with authenticity gives you the strength that comes from doing what you love, drawing on the resources of your whole life, knowing that you’re creating value for your self, your family, your business, your world.”

The second imperative, ‘be whole,’ implies acting with integrity; this “satisfies the craving for a sense of connection, for coherence in the disparate parts of life, and for the peace of mind that comes from adhering to a consistent code.” To get at wholeness, however, you must start looking at the central relationships in your life as an interdependent system, and see things through the eyes of the key stakeholders.

“This is often the most challenging part of the ‘total leadership programme’ and the most rewarding, as you gain new insight about what really matters to your most important people,” says Friedman.

Be innovative, counsels the third commandment. “Acting with creativity allows you to adapt to fit new circumstances, gives you confidence to try new ways of doing things, and keeps you vital.” Invitingly, this is usually ‘the most enjoyable part of the process,’ the author guarantees.

Pleasurable read.

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