The following is a synthesis research project for Trevecca Nazarene University and has some critical steps about the things I have learned as a leader and how to be more effective to those around me.
I hope you'll take something from it, too, and thanks for reading.
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Everything Rises and Falls on Communication (and my complete ability to screw it up!)
by Kris Freeman
Leadership is word used often in an individual context. A person of certain esteem, emerging and arising for the purpose of influencing and developing others. However, a study of leadership breaks this stereotype and reminds us of the power of leadership within the context of group and organizational behavior. The greatest leaders are those which influence, serve, listen and develop the groups of individuals entrusted to them. This is the goal of group behavior.
In the book A Systems Approach to Small Group Interaction, author Stewart L. Tubbs analyzes the complex approach of collaboration and cooperation in a systems context to work toward a common goal of group behavior and interaction. This, in turn, is incredible leadership development. Systems teach us to utilize the resources around us and within us to enhance how we interact with others and work toward a common goal. As leaders develop others, group interaction fosters development within the leader, too.
Having had the privilege of serving in a leadership capacity in several avenues (sports, business, church, commerce), the last six weeks has provided a greater understanding of the power of “each other” in a two-fold purpose. My development is critical to my leadership, and my leadership is critical to the development of others. These two concepts work hand-in-hand and are best exhibited in group interaction.
Tubbs states “small group interaction is the process by which three or more members of a group exchange verbal and non-verbal messages in an attempt to influence one another” (7). So be definition, group interaction has as its goal the same goal as leadership: to influence others. Serving in leadership roles has taught me both the energy and success derived from leading others, but more importantly the personal development experienced as many influence me.
Therefore, this analysis will center on three concepts which group interaction has produced better learning within me, all of each are explained in detail by Tubbs. The most important parts of group interaction, personally to me, are: understanding verbal and non-verbal communication (chapter two), revenant background factors and diversity (chapter three) and leadership and social influence (chapter five). Using the techniques outlined in the book and applying the same to real-life experiences, I feel I have become a better manager, teammate, coach, pastor, father and classmate by learning and listening to the experiences and wisdom of those in my circles.
Author and speaker John C. Maxwell is famously quoted as saying “everything rises and falls on leadership.” This may, indeed, be true. However, the more interactive a small group becomes, it’s evident leadership rises and falls on communication. Groups, and the individuals within them, must learn to communicate with each other to cultivate leadership.
Tubbs relates the lack of a good communication process as a contributing factor to judgment and trust. This is a critical flaw of poorly functioning groups, and improper function damages group health and produces little personal growth. This is exemplified by Princeton University research which found “people make very quick judgments about a person’s trustworthiness, competence, aggressiveness, and even likability within a fraction of a second. And people don’t usually change their perceptions” (Tubbs, 51).
A big growth step in leadership is learning the elements of verbal and non-verbal communication, and I feel this is an area of personal growth for me individually as a leader. My respect and trust for a person mirrors the Princeton study; I am much more apt to offer my attention to a person whom I have deemed to be worthy of a listen. What if, however, a personality quirk and non-verbal cues cause their voice to shadowed by my judgment? Three practices I have learned in my classes at Trevecca Nazarene University have enhanced my communication experience and how I see the input of others.
Pay close to attention to non-verbal cues and the deeper meaning, both those received and those exhibited within self. A non-verbal cue is a signal or symbol of a deeper meaning. Often, this describes personality traits and interactive skills of others. By paying attention to non-verbal cues, I better develop group interaction skills and become more aware of what is being said before what is actually being said. This leads to the next opportunity for growth in communication, which involves better listening skills.
As an announcer, coach and pastor, my experiences are exhibited by speaking. I need to be - and have become - a better listener. I do not need to dominate the room, nor the conversation, to be a leader. Instead, I can lead by listening, and I grow through wisdom of the contributions of others.
Finally, I am a better communicator as I learn to trust and listen by sharing in collaboration. Others have input which is important, even if the direction of their comments are misguided. Collaboration teaches us to value communication as an idea development and explore a teamwork approach to a solution. Collaboration allows each person to contribute to the result, even if there is a spokesman who takes the lead verbally in presentation. I am a better leader because of the verbal and non-verbal cues I have learned to respect and honor in others.
In chapter three, Tubbs explores relevant background factors in effective group interaction. No leader of any merit with an eye on the future can ignore this principle. We are now conducting business and personal interaction in the most globally-connected marketplace in the history of the world. Diversity, culture and background is so critical in understanding each other.
In a classroom presentation, I was glad to be able to discuss learning conflict management in virtual groups from chapter seven (339). Having been in four countries, three continents and serving alongside missionaries from at least 24 areas around the globe, I become a better leader by understanding the relevant background factors of my peers.
Those factors include gender, race and ethnicity, socio-economic demographics, culture, style, political science and religion. We are all more effective as leaders when due respect and equality of thought and opportunity is presented to those in which we interact, no matter the background factors which influence them.
I recently completed the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator assessment and scored as a high-functioning extroverted, moderate intuitive, moderate thinking and high-functioning judgmental decision maker (ENTJ). The Myers-Briggs type exhibited by my assessment is very common among leaders of an organization. With this understanding, however, comes a challenge to see those differently from me as teammates and contributors and not lesser peers.
In a classroom of 16 people at Trevecca Nazarene University, there are only two others adult students which share the same Myers-Briggs type. Culturally, there are less than three people in the class with a similar cultural background. These are good things. It forces an understanding of diversity, and my fellow classmates. I have watched during class presentations how each of them use relevant background factors to present information and debate in a way which would never be present to my experiences,.
I have enjoyed celebrating diversity to work for a common cause, and watching a higher level of respect for me develop within the group as I learn and value each of them individually. In our previous class, a team of eight presented a chapter on conflict management and our group was a picture of global diversity in both gender and ethnicity. Even communication skills differed and we learned to be flexible as generational differences were exhibited in whether we call, text, email or prefer face-to-face interaction. The presentation was successful because we celebrated relevant background factors, and so will every group be the same.
My attitude toward the background factors of others will determine my aptitude and altitude of potential growth.
Over 70 years ago, Gorden Allport defined an attitude as a mental and a neural state of readiness, organized through experience, exerting a directive or dynamic influence upon the individual’s response to all objects and situations with which it is related. According to Frymier and Nadler, attitudes have three components: a cognitive component, which refers to an idea or concept; an affective component, or the emotion related to the idea; and a behavioral component, which is the readiness to act (Tubbs, 139).
To understand how my attitude determines success, it is required of me to utilize relevant background factors of my group peers to the cognitive, affective and behavioral approach to attitudes and how they affect the group’s success. Where we originate, how we look and what demographic we reside is not the single most important determination in who we are. Who we are, rather, is defined by our attitude on those concepts and how it relates to others, and how we use those background factors to cultivate success.
Relevant background factors play a key role in leadership styles, which is outlined by Tubbs in the leadership and social influences of chapter five. Business School Dean Thomas S. Robertson of the University of Pennsylvania states: “What’s important as a new graduate, the set of technical skills that gets them the job, becomes less important as they get into middle and senior management:” (Tubbs, 239). This causes Tubbs - and personally within me - to ask the question, “which type of leadership is best?”
The author uses three styles of leadership to exhibit traits: authoritarian, laissez-faire and democratic. Democratic leadership evolves into team leadership in effective groups. However, the most successful groups are moderated and facilitated by super leaders, a term used to describe “a person who gets a lot of people involved is said to develop super teams” (Tubbs, 242). I believe in team leadership, and though a positional leader may be given the title to take charge in decision-making and accountability, the best groups learn to value every team member.
Bill George is the founder and CEO of Medtronic Inc., a medical supply company which grew from $1.1 billion in market cap to $60 billion under his leadership (Harvard Business School). In writing the books Authentic Leadership and True-North: Discover Your Authentic Leadership, George centers his philosophy of development around this principle: “you are only as good as those you surround yourself with” (Huffington Post, 2011).
Bill George is a “super leader.” He valued his team, and used the group interaction to explode the growth of a billionaire company which now leads the world in production of insulin pumps. In 2017, Medtronic released the first-ever artificial pancreas external pump, the Medtronic MiniMed 670G, which interactively reacts to the body’s systems to deliver insulin and measure glucose levels free of manual entry by the patient.
His leadership of his team is critical to me as a leader in two ways. His team leadership models are very successful and worthy of modeling in business, and as an individual, I have recently been prescribed the 670G pump and a team of Medtronic employees and researchers worked for three years to get approval for the device by the United States Food and Drug Administration.
I am a better leader because of those around me. I am a better person because of the influences and wisdom of others. I am a healthier individual due to the contribution of teams working together for success. This is a great model of leadership, and this is what effective systems for small group interaction can teach all of us.
