The Leadership Tightrope

What do Maria Spelterini, Jean Francois Gravelot, William Leonard Hunt, and Stephen Peer, all have in common. Who?..... OK, these are not the most easily recognizable names, but they have all accomplished an activity with which we can all identify – they all tightrope walked across Niagara Falls. Maria, the first woman (and only) to cross the falls. She made five successful walks on July 8, 12, 19, 22, 26, 1876. Jean Francois Gravelot, better known as The Great Blondin, made nine crossings in 1859. His most difficult crossing, August 14, 1859, occurred when he carried his manager (Harry Colcord) on his back. William Leonard Hunt (aka, The Great Farini) crossed on August 15, 1860; and Stephen Peer made the death defying stroll on June 22, 1887 .

I don't know if you noticed or not, but the tightrope walk across the Niagara is in the news this month. Nik Wallenda (33 years old), a seventh generation member of the legendary Flying Wallendas circus family, is planning on walking over the falls on June 15, 2012. Nik plans to walk across the 160-foot gorge on a 2-inch wire some 60-70 feet above the water.

I can only imagine the experience, the preparation, the practice, and the anxiety of making such an attempt. However, in some ways leadership is very much like walking a tightrope. Balance is critical and the temporary loss of equilibrium can cause disaster to the walker. We have a Wii game that involves a tightrope walker. The player stands on a balance board and walks in place. As you walk the Wii character moves from one building to another on a tightrope. If you fail to maintain your balance, the Wii character falls off the rope.

As I thought about the tightrope of leadership, six areas of balance came to my mind. I am sure that there are a lot more examples that could fit this model, but let's consider these six for the sake of this blog posting.

One, the balance of People vs. Paper. This common tension is between tasks and individuals; the to-do list and the personnel needed to do the list; the paperwork on the desk versus the morale and inspiration of the employees. A proper balance between the two is essential to stay on the rope. Too much emphasis on the paper and the leader alienates his team. Too much emphasis on personal relationships and the critical tasks of the organization can be fumbled and corporate consequences can be crushing.

Two, the balance between Empowerment and Authority. A difficult decision for most leaders involves the use of power. With certain positions comes a degree of power – what the leader does with that power often defines his/her effectiveness. How much does the leader give away by empowering others to embrace higher levels of responsibility and how much does the leader maintain on his/her desk? Giving or keeping; sharing or restricting; letting out the rope or holding on to it.

Three, the balance between Trust and Accountability. Valuing the talents of others and trusting them to perform at the highest quality is a major building block to effective leadership. On the other hand, setting deadlines, requiring updates, and overseeing the vision is just as important. These two concepts are often two weights that must be balanced. Walking this tightrope is dangerous and tricky. Too much trust and not enough accountability can end in a incomplete job and disappointing results. Too much accountability and not enough trust smacks of micromanagement and sends messages that devalue the work of others.

Four, the balance of Collaboration and Independence. When does the leader make the decision and when does he consult others? When does a situation call for the leader to come to the plate and hit the ball himself and when does the situation call for the brainstorm of the leadership team? When does a committee just stir the pot of confusion and when does it serve as a sounding board for creative alternatives? A leader must walk this tightrope in the daily decision making that fills his/her agenda. Wisdom in this walk has the potential of providing vision while assuring buy-in from the stakeholders of the organization.

Five, the balance of Grace and Consequences. In order for a company to move forward, creativity must be encouraged, accepted, and rewarded. Creativity involves risk – risk will sometimes result in failure – failure must be embraced as a positive indicator of movement. In order to establish a culture of creativity, grace must abound and creative employees must not fear failure. On the other hand , failure due to incompetence or irresponsibility cannot be overlooked. Trying something new that ends in poor results should be different than maintaining the status quo that ends in poor results. Compassionate understanding, supportive encouragement, and praise for innovative ideation.... or disappointing criticism, plans for improvement, and concern for contract renewal.... this tightrope is not always easy to discern.

Six, the balance of Humor and Sobriety. I love to laugh. I have been in many situations over the years that I have turned to humor in order to cope with the tension of a particular situation. A mentor in my life told me 25 years ago, “Don't forget to laugh, otherwise life can get mighty grim.” The other side of the leadership coin is the need to communicate urgency, the ability to share with genuine sobriety, and coming to the bottom line with sincere reality. Too much humor and no one takes the leader seriously – get real! Too much sobriety and the leader comes across too serious – lighten up! This tightrope is no laughing matter and balance must be maintained for effectiveness.

As you face some of the tightropes described above or encounter some of your own, consider these three pieces of advice. One, try to stay calm. The fear of falling often causes an individual to fall. Two, remember the idea of balance. Neither the right or the left is necessarily bad, but when one side pulls you out of balance, your entire effectiveness can tumble. Three, tightrope walking takes lots of practice – don't start with the rope 50 feet in the air – try some walks from the height of about 6 inches. The fall does not hurt nearly as bad.