Act Like a Leader, Think Like a Leader

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For our general counsel interviewees, the story-telling aspect and drawing on their personal narrative resonated very strongly as something that enhanced their leadership styles. She is currently ranked number eight in the Thinkers 50 list of the most influential business thinkers in the world. I thought to myself that surely people are successful and promoted based on their experience and skills, not for something as superficial as their clothing choices!

Stating a case can obviously draw very strongly on the skills of telling a well-constructed narrative. Certainly old views such as deeply reflecting on one’s strengths and weaknesses are thrown to the wayside, as the author notes: “Most traditional leadership training or coaching aims to change the way you think, asking you to reflect on who you are and who you'd like to become. This is more key the more senior you become, and the more widespread your responsibilities and purview. A native of Cuba, Herminia received her MA and PhD from Yale University, where she was a National Science Fellow. Not that these are not important, but often as you transition, develop and evolve as a person or in your management style, your set of vision or priorities may require course correction.On the one hand, many lawyer’s fetishisation of their professionalism can potentially allow them to lose sight of the individual beneath the legalese. This book is written in a practical ‘how to’ style with sidebars containing useful models, worksheets and engaging examples and with helpful summaries at the end of each chapter.

Ultimately, this was a book from an academic with experience studying, not living, business scenarios meant for the middle to aspiring upper manager for a very large organization. In a future where change and acceleration are seemingly the sole constant, how GCs adapt and lead will be essential to the success of the in-house legal function.Leaders envision change and need to bridge diverse groups to solicit/engage people to make the changes.

It also provided many examples and exercises that you can do right away to begin your own leadership development journey. Ibarra argues that if we want to become leaders, then we must drive change with an outside in approach, with what Ibarra refers to as the outsight principle. Highly recommended for seasoned and young leaders, as well as for those at the beginning of their career. The goods do not need to be in their original packaging however in a sellable condition, and at your own cost and risk. Outsight - is gaining the new experiences that stretch us because too much introspection focuses on the past.Broaden the scope of your job: Get involved in projects outside your area, participate in extracurricular activities, communicate your personal "why," and create slack in your schedule. She says while most new behaviours might feel unnatural in the beginning, trying them out can help to figure out what works and what doesn’t – and a more light-hearted approach allows new leaders to take the time to refine an evolving version of themselves until it feels effective and authentic.

In times of transition and uncertainty, thinking and introspection should follow action and experimentation—not vice versa. Yet the author is not so impressed, adding: “If you've tried these sorts of methods, then you know just how limited they are. While Ibarra realises that for busy people, the idea of doing more outside core competencies may seem counterproductive, she cautions that doing more of the same doesn’t develop us in the same way that working across business lines will do. With the economy in a state of flux and political reform firmly on the agenda, GC speaks with members of The Legal 500’s GC Powerlist: Italy, for their take on what’s on the horizon for Lo Stivale.Chalmers takes her definition of good leadership from a former boss who was the CEO of a business unit and one of her role models. I suppose for this book, it was the categorization of the different types of networks that I thought was interesting, if not necessarily destined to help me up my leadership game. I’ll surely be sharing the book with her to see if she remembers the advice given to me, now so many years ago. While many academics can talk a good game, Professor Ibarra definitely 'practices what she preaches' when it comes to redefining your network.