5 Leadership - Theory X, Theory Y

"Know thyself" - Plato

According to the American Society for Training and Development study, job knowledge is the only thing that ranks higher than that of communication in determining good leadership. One of the most important leader tells the group his is by example and attitude, and attitude usually determines behavior.

What is your general attitude towards your colleagues? Are you a leader or a Theory X Theory Y leader? Theory X and Theory Y are well-studied principles of leadership. In one, a few words, Theory X states that people inherently dislike their work, they see them as a necessary evil, are unmotivated, and must be controlled from the outside throughout the day by coercion, direction, or threatens to punishment. Theory Y, on the other hand, states that the work is natural and can express themselves physically and creatively (ie, the work is satisfactory-ego). Most managers have a mindset that combines both of these theories, but without a sophisticated psychological instrument, it may be difficult to determine the proportions of each. When motivating subordinates and leading by example, however, a degree of introspection and self-assessment is useful if we want to work smarter and more efficiently. Evaluation can get tricky because you can have a Theory Y person trapped in the body of a Theory X company. This is known as the "press of business culture" (which opens the corporate culture can of worms, more on that in another post).

Let's consider our attitudes toward Theory X and Theory Y management style:

1. In your leadership role, you feel more like a cop or a teacher?

2. Find some degree of meaning and value to your work? If so, how?

3. Do you think your team members or employees find meaning in their work? If so, how?

Scenario One: You feel that you are more of a teacher / mentor who works with people who are intrinsically motivated value and meaning in their work.

Scenario two: You're stuck in a job without a sense of little value and act as a policeman all day to a group of employees X Theory. ("I'm telling ya doc, it's them, not me!")

Okay if you answered that feels like a cop in a job without value, which, now that you mention it, is pretty meaningless. Is it okay because you know where you are. And knowledge is a good thing. However, if this is the case and you are not only experiencing a temporary attack of clinical depression, you're going to come out as all inconsistent, even hypocritical, when you give your next pep talk or motivational speech. Incongruence is the opposite of true. You, of course, still leading by example, but I fear it may not be the example you want to set. Authenticity is a good thing, inconsistency is not a good thing. You do not want your colleagues saying: "This is as responsible, soooo totally incongruent!" Though incongruent is the technical term, I felt the condition in more colorful language.

Now the game's objective is to try to move the peg from Scenario Two to Scenario One. The reason for this, in the case in which many have not already invaded the neural pathways, is that the search is evident that Scenario A is ... Well, their best, as confirmed by a long list of payoffs such as health, happiness, progress, and success.

Step 1: Try (very hard if you must) to find a small, perhaps even minuscule, sense of meaning or fulfillment in some aspect of your work. Most jobs are varied, so it might not be so hard to find one or two significant aspects. Write down, in concrete terms, what exactly makes this significant aspect.

Step 2: Observe (or shall I say, is actively seeking to achieve) a sense of creative motivation in your team member. Catch them doing something good and tell them you saw it, because this is a great feedback and positive reinforcement. Do not make the same mistake I did on several occasions to think that a person can not find a particular meaning in their work. I was surprised, amazed, as they do to discover the meaning and value of the person sitting across from me on their work place.

Perceptions and changes my be small at first, but gradually, you will be moving in the right direction. More importantly, you will be an advantage as more genuine. Way to go, dude! ......