The courage to challenge

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The courage to challenge

• Should be willing to challenge a leaders
  behavior and policies behavior is the most
  difficult
• Leaders and followers are BOTH guardians of the
  purpose. Part of the courageous followers role
  is to help the leader honor the contract. If we
  do not challenge a leader about dysfunctional
  behavior, the contract is slowly voided.

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• Appropriate behavior skillful questioning
• Preparing a leader for feedback
• Defuse defensiveness convey respect and remind
  the leader of the value of honesty
• Link to valued outcomes
• Create empathy I understand what you are up
  against.
• Giving feedback
• Focus negative on behavior avoid being personal
• Use I statements

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Assertive Communication

• The ability to communicate clearly and directly
  what you need or want from another person in a
  way that does not deny or infringe upon the
  others rights.
• Use I-statements rather than you-statements
  produce dialogue rather than defensiveness.

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Assertive vs. Aggressive
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I-statements Three components

• A specific and nonblaming description of the
  behavior exhibited by the other person
• The concrete effects of that behavior
• The speakers feelings about the behavior

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I-statement examples
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Assertive communication

• In addition to using I-statements
• Empathize with the other persons position in the
  situation
• Specify what changes you would like to see in the
  situation or in anothers behavior, and offer to
  negotiate those changes with the other person
• Indicate, in a nonthreatening way, the possible
  consequences that will follow if change does not
  occur.

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Assertive Communication An example

• When you are late to meetings, I get angry
  because I think it is wasting the time of all the
  other team members and we are never able to get
  through our agenda items. I would like you to
  consider finding some way of planning your
  schedule that lets you get to these meetings on
  time. That way, we can be more productive at the
  meetings and we can all keep to our tight
  schedules.

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• Giving a leader input
• Feedback is given in response to actions taken
  input advises on actions being contemplated.
• Principle should be to include all key players,
  not a bilateral agreement.
• Challenging indirectly
• Find ways to engage rather than alarm the leader.
• Questions to shift perspective Is there another
  way we can look at this situation?
• Anticipating questions others might ask of the
  leader about her policy How would we respond to
  the concern that.

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• Avoiding knee-jerk rejection
• Dont ask for and dont expect an immediate
  action or decision allow time for the leader to
  think about it
• Keep the door open for the leader to reflect
• Overcoming groupthink
• Group self-image of infallibility and superiority
• The duty to obey
• If we choose to continue being a follower of this
  leader and if the policies are not morally
  repugnant to us, we have the responsibility to
  implement the policies.
• We have the right to challenge policies, but do
  not have the right to sabotage implementation.

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• Challenging the use of language
• Arrogance leaders believe they are
  qualitatively different from their followers
• Leaders who scream
• Personal issues (e.g. infidelities, sexual
  harassment, substance abuse)
• Newly elevated leaders
• Leaders who have other agendas
• Leaders who wont challenge their leaders
• Challenge thyself, too BEFORE challenging the
  leader.