A Legacy of Service to Others

Leaders who let go of ambition are an organization’s wise men and women. Having become clearer about their own purpose in life, they are dedicated to the work itself rather than their own careers. As a result, they often receive tremendous respect from direct reports and other colleagues who know they’re not operating with personal agendas. People seek them out for advice and support.

Leaders who transcend ambition have the opportunity to become truly expert in their areas of interest. Free of career imperatives, they can devote themselves to what they do best. As a result, they become the organization’s experts in given areas, the way Malcolm was his company’s technology guru. Not only do they have more time and energy to gather information but they no longer worry about the political implications of pursuing projects that won’t further their careers. They are willing to risk failure in order to gain important knowledge.

Recently, we encountered a senior executive who had participated in an executive program several years before, and we were amazed at his personal transformation. He had lost weight, was exercising regularly and eating right, and seemed relaxed and happy. He was still employed as a senior leader in a large global company, so when we asked about the cause for his transformation, he said “retention agreement.” What he meant was that due to a merger, he had signed a contract promising to stay with his company for three years, after which time he would receive a significant bonus. Because of this agreement, his usual competitive nature was tamed. He now knew what he would be doing and where he would be working for the immediate future. Suddenly, he became more calm, focused, and relaxed. At this moment, he was focused on achievement in a healthier way, including taking better care of himself. He was less driven but more grounded as a leader, and probably more productive.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that leaders who have let go of ambition are usually a company’s best developers of talent. Developing other people is sometimes difficult for those who are working hard on their own careers. They may see their direct reports as competition for jobs to which they aspire. More commonly, they prefer devoting their time and energy to helping themselves succeed rather than helping others. Despite all the talk about the need to develop talent, leaders often feel that the rewards for doing so are less than achieving other goals.

A few years ago, Honeywell International instituted an award for the company’s best people developers, worldwide. Thousands of dollars and much recognition were given annually to about fifty winners who were nominated by peers at the local level. The winners were remarkable leaders who, as a group, represented another way to achieve success in a modern company. They left a remarkable legacy of people who had flourished under their leadership—something they will remember far longer than profitability, revenue, projects completed, or meetings attended.

When you let go of ambition, what you frequently gain is satisfaction from the success of others. You have reached a point where you want to pass on your wisdom to a future generation. Rather than guard your knowledge and use it to advance, you want other people to gain from your expertise. When you go through this passage successfully, you gain the patience and generosity required of a teacher. In the past, impatient with a direct report’s lack of experience, you may have been reluctant to demonstrate, teach, and listen because you had more important matters to attend to. Now demonstrating, teaching, and listening have more priority.

When an organization’s senior leadership team is composed only of people who are striving to get ahead, the culture reflects that competition at the top. Although competition drives capitalism and is important in business, so is the development of people, and many companies are fortunate to have wise men and women at the top who have let go of the ambition to move ahead; they embody the best of the culture. Someone has to develop the leaders of tomorrow. Someone has to focus on finding ways of doing the work more effectively. When you let go of your ambition, you add a valuable element to your company’s leadership mix.