When passion is destructive

Get the passion right and the rest will follow - Churchill

No-one has ever followed a leader that didn't have passion. Passion for who they are, what they believe in and the direction that they want to go. Even quiet leaders have passion, they may not have the oratory skills of JFK or Martin Luther King, but they have, nevertheless, the ability to stir their followers to a cause - a vision to strive for.

So passion is a good thing ... it helps us keep going when times are hard, rallies others to a cause, it builds global brands and companies ... without passion a leader has no followers.

When passion is applied without good intent it can rapidly become destructive. Mavericks are generally very passionate people and can become very focused on singular activities. They have vision, strength of purpose, drive and direction - to the goals that they want to achieve. If their goals are not aligned to the organisation, then real sparks can ensue. Troublesome talent, the mavericks, will do what they want to do, when they want to do it ...

So how does the organisation stop their passion from becoming destructive - after all, often the maverick cannot see the destructive nature of their activities.

 

Give them a compelling reason to change their behaviour. Mavericks only change when there is an overriding imperative to do so. In fact this is perhaps the most important thing that an organisation can do if ...

... they are socially intelligent when they do so. In particular they understand the needs of their maverick. Questions to ask themselves are: what situation is the maverick in, what's their perception of reality? How are they coming across - is the organisation using flexible leadership styles with their troublesome talent or does one size fit all? With inspired leadership it will be easier to reach the maverick and harness their talent.

Troublesome talent also need to see the cost of their behaviour both financial and human. Give the problem that they cause a human face. Let them reach their own conclusion of the consequences of their actions and then ask them, how does the result that they see, achieve their end goal.

Passion is a good thing, except when it becomes destructive. Leadership is finding a way to harness the ability of others to achieve their aims and your own.

Click here to see what Ecadamists think.

Comments

Hi Antman

Thank you for your great comment. I agree with much of what you have said. The world is changing and requires the talent of the maverick to enable companies to achieve their goals and to survive in a shifting world.

I do believe passionately that mavericks are good for business especially if the right environment is created for them and the maverick is aware of their responsibilities within it. Both the company and the maverick need to work together if both parties are to survive and grow together.

Based on your comment you may like my short 4 minute video where I talk about the need for mavericks in business and how they can indeed be the company's greatest leaders. Please navigate here to watch: http://www.ivc4.com/judithgermain/managingmavericks.html

I also posted this on Ecademy and responded to comments there: http://www.ecademy.com/node.php?id=73896

Thank you for your comment.

Take care

Judith Germain

[Antman]

Good post, I too am passionate about leadership. I will challenge you on your assertion of the Maverick talent. Your post has merit, however your contention that mavericks are destructive is limited. I do agree with the statement that w/o good intent is not a good thing. However, intent is a subjective statement. Your post assumes that the organizations goals and objectives are sound and valid. However, in many cases it is the leadership of the maverick that saves an organization from complacency. It is the maverick that identifies problems, opportunities, hindrances that general the populace refuses to see. It is the maverick who has the ability to lead in difficult and challenging times that saves the day. It is easy to lead when leading through the norm. Leadership through change, or leadership for change is a far more impressive and difficult challenge. The most powerful leaders were disruptive. Their ability to lead through disruption is why they were great. MLK, was not a considered a leader by the establishment at the time. Cassius Clay was not perceived as a leader by many, when he chose to avoid the draft. MLK and CC were disrupter's. Don't be so quick to chalk up the mavericks as destructive. You may be ridding your organization of exactly what it needs, disruption.