famous for failing

Well what a show.  Of course I’m referring to the complete and utter chaos within central government over the past few weeks.  It will certainly provide plenty of ammunition for the writers and researchers around culture, leadership, decision taking …  I’ll wait for the flood of items in the academic press.

What I want to raise though, in this era where mental health is now being talked about more openly, is the impact this must have on Liz Truss over the coming weeks and months.

Truss did everything right
She had done everything right in her leadership campaign.  She’d spent time making the human, the social connection with her stakeholders.  She had a plan, a vision which she could articulate with conviction and genuine belief.  In public her oratory was frequently wooden but in the privacy of the hustings I’m sure she relaxed, as she was with her tribe, she knew the culture and they were ready to listen.  She had a task to accomplish and a strategy. These are all things that leaders are told to do to be successful.  And she was.  Her self-image was strong and had been confirmed by the ‘selectorate’.

...and then she didn't
She constructed a team that would support her vision.  She delegated tasks to them and then… then it all fell apart.  As in the majority of projects that fail, communication, or the lack of it, meant that the vision was not explained to the external stakeholders that needed to be kept informed.  The person delegated to deal with the finances was, in my opinion, arrogant in his approach.  He failed to bring those in positions of power along with him.  The grand vision fell apart and Truss did not have the inner resources and the leadership skills required in times of crisis to pull the situation back.

Falling off the cliff
So what must that do to her self-image?  What does that do to her mental health?  After the euphoria of gaining the highest position a national politician can achieve, she has hit the bottom knowing that she is going to be the answer to a pub quiz for the next 200 years.  Instead of being remembered for success, she will be remembered for failure.  I fear that she will face a period of depression that she has never known.

How can we use this tale in our own leadership positions? 

Harmony internally allows for clarity of thought
First I think it is about our internal communication, listening to our own minds and bodies.  Touching base with our own vision and realities, or perception of reality.  Are we completely congruent with what we are doing?  Have we really challenged our assumptions about our skills and abilities?  Are we secure in what we are doing and thought through the consequences of failure?  How we would cope with that?  Are we present?  By being present we stay grounded and can calmly think through the risks and opportunities.  Harmony internally allows for clarity of thought.

Secondly it is about checking within our workforce that there are support mechanisms in place for others.  Do we have realistic assessments of the skills and capabilities of those we lead?  Are we asking too much?  If we are stretching them do we have the time and space ready to support that?  Is there a buddy system in place so that staff have people they can turn to informally who can help them think through what they are doing and challenge assumptions?  Do we have a culture where people can talk about their mental health and easily access the correct level of support?  Does the culture say, "we are here for you."?

A compassionate culture that says 'We are here'
​So let's not have Truss's legacy being just famous for failing.  Let's take the lessons into our leadership.  Let's turn the legacy into a positive one by upskilling ourselves and our workforce.  Let's use it to talk about mental health.  It is through Time to Think and the Thinking Environment that we can start putting these steps in place.  The promise to listen, to pay attention, to not interrupt allows for the deep, profound thinking required in our leaders.  It builds the culture where there is true equality in thinking, where views are shared without fear of negative criticism.  Time to Think builds compassion.  Time to Think builds appreciation.  It becomes the culture that says 'We are here'.  Had it been used in this case I suspect a lot of the beartraps would have been identified and Truss might still be PM.