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Lessons from military leadership – Extreme Negotiations and Creating Personal Links

We’re always interested in what lessons one sector can learn from others. In this case, we’re arguing that the non-military sector can learn some valuable lessons from military leaders. We’re concentrating on two aspects: extreme negotiations and creating personal links.

Check out our video link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6xMtqpVmIM&feature=feedu

Create personal links

“Meet the troops” takes on a literal meaning here. One important lesson from military leaders, according to Michael Useem, a US-based management and leadership professor, is the need for military leaders to develop close personal links with individual soldiers they are commanding – particularly in challenging times.

Donovan Campbell, a former US Army leader, illustrates the same point in Joker One, his book about his leadership experiences in Iraq. (It’s worth a read. You’ll get to know his individual soldiers: their strengths and how they reacted under fire.)

Useem argues that even a “handshake, a brief look in the eyes: those small actions make an indelible impression.” We agree, and not just for military leaders, but for all leaders.

Adopt extreme negotiations

How many leaders negotiate in a static, sterile and simple environment? None. Leaders negotiate continually in ever-changing and challenging situations – military and non-military.

How do successful military leaders negotiate? Weiss, Donigian and Hughes argue five factors are criticial.

1. Build Trust First

No surprises here. Treat people you’re negotiating with, with respect. If trust has broken

down, work on rebuilding it, rather than ploughing on with discussions about the topic at

hand.

2. Focus on Process

Talk about how you’re going to reach agreement. Consider your social presence: voice,

non-verbal communication, the emotional signals you’re sending. Have talks about talks,

before talks.

3. Get the Big Picture

This may well not stay the same during your negotiations. But keep it in mind all the

time. Be curious: Help me understand how you see the situation. Be humble (not a word

we associate with the military): What do I have wrong?

4. Collaborate

Get alongside people, rather than act as opponents. Focus on turning negotiating into

side-by-side problem solving. Ask: Why is this important to you?

5. Elicit Genuine Buy-In

You can’t do this without the other four. You can’t buy buy-in. Instead appeal to fairness

and use the collective pronoun: we. What should we do? Or: How can we explain what

we’ve agreed to our respective colleagues.

Some useful pointers here that we can all learn from.

Another word about strengths

If you’re into a strengths approach to managing yourself and your people, you’ll know Marcus Buckingham’s work on strengths-based management. So, you should also check out his ideas in Go Put Your Strengths to Work: 6 Powerful Steps to Achieve Outstanding Performance, New York, Free Press, 2007.

One useful step to identify your strengths is self-observation. Over a week, note down on cards every two hours what you are doing, why, with whom and where you’re doing it.

Use two lots of cards. For things you regard as strengths and feel invigorated about, note on green-edged cards. For tasks you felt were a weakness, note them on red-edged cards.

Analyse the cards at the end of the week.

What about weaknesses? Buckingham argues that we should focus on key weaknesses that derail your performance. He calls them your kryptonite, referring to the substance that sapped Superman’s strength. He suggests focusing on them and making small incremental changes to improve them. What about lesser weaknesses? Leave them alone. You’re better off spending your time working out how to use your strengths more.