Warren Bennis - Twenty Years Later
Warren Bennis' latest advice to folks who want to be CEOs (Brady, 22):
The first thing I would say is forget about balance of work and family. It's more that a full-time job. Abandon your ego. You can't solve everything yourself, so you've got to learn to build and work with a top team. If you don't have that, forget it. And you have to connect with as diverse a group as possible. You have to be as realistic as hell about the sacrifices to become a leader. But if you pull it off, you can make life better for so many people. What could be sweeter?
Now let's go back twenty-five years and see if that squares with his original thoughts (Bennis, 26-27):
- Strategy I: attention through vision
- Strategy II: meaning through communication
- Strategy III: trust through positioning
- Strategy IV: the deployment of self through (1) positive self-regard and (2) the Wallenda factor (it's not about failing).
My bet is that Bennis would make a couple changes if he could edit Brady's article. His mention of balance early in the discussion is polarizing, certainly, and, ultimately, problematic.
References
Bennis, Warren and Burt Nanus. Leadership. The Strategies For Taking Charge. Perennial Library. 1985.
Brady, Diane. Speed Dial. Warren Bennis. Bloomberg BusinessWeek. 27 September - 3 October, 2010. 22.