Do you lead like Abraham Lincoln? This is the first of a three-part conversation about the Top 10 Leadership Qualities of Abraham Lincoln. Reflections on the book Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin
Podcast Transcript
Joshua MacLeod:
If you are a genuine leader, your rivals will eventually become your champions. When they see that you’re not just blowing smoke and that you’re the real deal, it’s safe to invite people who are your challengers and who have a difference of opinion than you. Appoint leaders based on strengths, not friendships. Your rivals will become your champions and those who are only seeking power will be exposed and diminished.
Podcast Announcer:
Welcome to the Growability podcast, teaching business and nonprofit leaders a more excellent way to run a business. Visit growability.com for your leadership, coaching consultation and business collaboration needs. What would happen to your business if you led more like Abraham Lincoln? This is the first episode in our new series, Sharing the Top 10 Leadership Qualities of Abraham Lincoln. Here are your hosts, Joshua MacLeod and Bernie Anderson.
Bernie Anderson:
The question I have for you today, Joshua, is how do you develop leaders? And more specifically, how does an organization develop leaders who develops leaders who develop leaders?
Joshua MacLeod:
Yeah.
Bernie Anderson:
How do we do that? And how do organizations in particular do that well?
Joshua MacLeod:
One of the best ways for someone to become a leader who can make new leaders is to study great leaders. For me, one of the best leaders that I’ve been able to study is Abraham Lincoln. There are some incredible books out about Abraham Lincoln, but one of the best books about Abraham Lincoln that I read was called, Team of Rivals. This book is really about how Abraham Lincoln surrounded himself with people who were his rivals, people who were actually trying to get in the seat of the presidency, who were trying to actually really replace him and how instead of being threatened by that, he really just kept the main thing in mind, try to develop the country as best as he could. I’ve got a top 10 list when I read Team of Rivals that I think is a good start, maybe to start looking at leaders.
Bernie Anderson:
Abraham Lincoln, let’s talk. Summarize this thousand page, 67 hour book on Abraham Lincoln.
Joshua MacLeod:
The first thing that really stood out to me about Abraham Lincoln was the power of the pause. Abraham Lincoln was a professional “pauser.” When he would be confronted with disgruntled, often arrogant, rival in the political machine, coming to demand something of him, instead of just like whipping back and just ripping him a new one, he would just pause and take that in and wait a day and then he would send a letter and bring a response. Abraham Lincoln was always pausing. He would get advice from a trusted advisor before making a major decision. I think what a pause does is a pause allows you to look at the scenario strategically rather than just emotionally. The pause allows you to extract some of the emotion to give it some clear and rational thought and then make a strategic decision. So Abraham Lincoln was an absolute master of pausing.
Joshua MacLeod:
Now I’ve got to point out though, there’s a huge difference between a pause and a delay. If you pause, you’re just making sure that I’m not acting emotionally or irrationally or something like that. If you delay, you’re missing the opportunity. So many of the things that Abraham Lincoln had to make a decision about were things to do with war, things to do with policy, putting out fires. So you can wait a day, but you can’t wait two days, pause and then make a decision. Delay is different. Delay is not making a decision and just putting it off.