Leaders: Have You Ever Said “That’s An Order?”

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Leaders: Have You Ever Said “That’s An Order?”

“I never said that.”

In a recent interview with General Colin Powell, that was his answer to the traditional belief that a military leader had only to say, “That’s an order.” The interviewer seemed a little surprised. After all, wasn’t that how military leaders made things happen?

Sometimes leaders I talk to tell me that the military command and control type leadership doesn’t work in the corporate world and that leadership outside the military is, by necessity, different.

I don’t agree.

It is true that military leaders have a force of law behind them that does not exist outside the military. In spite of that, every bit of my leadership training and experience emphasized a collaborative style and no good military leader I know resorted to a strict “That’s an order” type of leadership.

Why?

There are two reasons. First, our military is extremely well trained. Each individual is trained to know his or her job and just as importantly, to work as a team. In fact, the military has only two modes of operation. They are either performing their mission, or they are training to perform their mission. Such an active approach ensures that each member of the organization knows what they are supposed to do and are constantly becoming better at doing it.

The second reason is just as important. The military takes leadership development very seriously. In fact, leadership development starts from the first days a recruit puts on the uniform and continues throughout their time in the service. Such constant training and development creates a leader who understands how to get the best out of their people without having to resort to a coercive leadership style.

Now I know there may be a few who say they experienced military leaders who did rely on legal authority and who were not very collaborative. Unfortunately, that’s true. But in my experience, the vast majority, and more importantly the most successful leaders are those who develop leadership skills that don’t require them to say, “That’s an order.”