The Consistency Factor

Lieutenant General John Sams confirms that there is no place for democracy in a military organization, but he notes that it is essential that the leader apply a consistent set of principles. "As a commander, you want to be the most predictable person in the squadron," he notes. "You do not want people to wonder how you are going to react in a given situation. You want them to know. That is how you earn respect." Bill Shaw of Marriott agrees: "You need to be behaviorally predictable, because it is very hard for people to get behind someone who isn't."

Interestingly, General Sams believes that the loss of respect due to arbitrary action is often the result of wanting to be liked too much. We often think of arbitrary action as the hallmark of a ruthless tyrant. Not true, according to General Sams. He has seen many would-be leaders lose the respect of their subordinates because they tried too hard to be liked. General Sams tells young officers that within three days of being given command of a squadron, a junior officer or sergeant will walk into your office with a young airman in tow and tell you that this airman failed to meet some element of values the U.S. Air Force holds dear. For example, it could be as simple as a failure to meet weight standards. The sergeant will ask that you exercise your discretion not to ground or reprimand the young airman. After all, the airman is a good troop! You want the new squadron members to like you, and you will be very tempted to let the transgression go, or give him a second chance. As soon as you do it, however, you have taken the first step toward losing the respect of your squadron. Why? "Because when this guy walks out of your office and you did not take the action required by the regulations, every other overweight person in the squadron is going to know that you did not take the required action. And so when the next guy walks in overweight and you decide to take action, he is going to ask why you took action against him. At that point, your credibility is shot. And if the second individual is a minority, are you now treating him differently because of that? You cannot now take any action because any action looks like discrimination." You have given up your moral authority to command.

"You should not make it your goal to be liked by everyone. It is much more important to be predictable and consistent. That earns respect, which is much more important than being liked," according to General Sams.

Invincible executives are not tyrants; they do not feel that they make the rules or that they can transcend them. By the same token, they are not democrats. They call the shots, and they do not worry about being liked. Rather they earn the respect of those who work for them by (1) getting input from many people before making significant decisions; (2) making clear, unambiguous decisions; (3) communicating the decisions in a manner that motivates people to achieve the desired results quickly; and (4) building trust and confidence through the predictable and consistent application of the rules that he or she lays down as the organization works toward the desired results.