Yuri Gadow

New leaders fail often; their first goal is to survive long enough to learn. Those with a support system, such as a leadership development program, a strong mentor, or a role-model, need only heart. Those crossing the ice without support find it thin; failure is costly when success comes only from integrity, character, and will. Leaders who make themselves without a support system have none they can use for new leaders they support. Nor are they familiar with balancing support and freedom to fail. We should remember our first shaky steps and use them as a guide when supporting new leaders, whether we began with or without support. This is especially important when promoting those not already leading. If they could survive without support, they probably would have begun trying already. The foundation of leadership is integrity, character, will, and the discipline to improve the foundation every day. Showing this to new or aspiring leaders is a good start. But, it is the least we can do since, failing that, we are not leaders – or teachers. We enhance teaching by example with coaching. Because leadership is talent for operating without support, the best coaching method, ostensibly, is to avoid coaching. For some this will work, for most it will not. A book focused on principle helps provide a beginning, such as Corps Business. One, like The Toyota Way, that covers advanced or technical practices will not. The choice of title is dependent on the character of the coach and coached; it must provide a moral framework for mutual understanding. When supporting a new leader, the details seem overwhelming and tangled. Focus on the foundation.