Book launched today: ‘Egoless: The Final Frontier in Leadership’

Posted on February 1, 2012 by sarahmorrisadmin

Today sees the launch of Egoless: the Final Frontier in Leadership, a pioneering new book by the Parallax Partnership’s Dr Sarah Morris. In it Sarah sets out the case for a step change in our thinking about what constitutes true leadership and for taking ego out office entirely.

Having spent the past ten years working with leaders and observing the differences between competent and truly transformational leaders who bring about real and lasting improvements in performance, Sarah sees ego as the key factor inhibiting leadership potential today.

Ego keeps us rooted in predominantly negative behaviours that focus almost entirely on self-survival and is hugely detrimental to corporate as well as individual performance. When ego is taken out of the equation you lay the foundations for clarity, cohesion, resilience and trust, all qualities that are often sadly lacking in the modern workplace. When ego is absent from leadership, vision is conveyed more accurately and better understood and teams and individuals are able to attain completely new levels of achievement.

In her book, Sarah sets out a simple four step model for egoless leadership – the Conscious Leadership Model – and shows readers a practical route towards a more fulfilling and sustainable way of leading. Powerful and persuasive argument is supported by practical exercises and case histories.

Sarah is clear that traditional models of leadership are failing and that we must totally rethink our approach. It may well be that leaders think they are communicating vision and building trust, but this simply is not the experience of employees. It may be hard to face, but the fact is the relationship between employer and employee is currently often stretched to breaking point.

Conscious Leadership lays the foundations for repairing this relationship and achieving higher levels of performance than ever before. The moral case for adopting this new way of leading is clear, but there is also a strong economic imperative.

With more than half of business leaders estimating that ego costs them up to 15 per cent of annual revenue, and the majority claiming it has a negative impact on performance on an hourly or daily basis, it is not so much a case of whether we can afford to embrace Conscious Leadership but more a question of whether we can afford not to.

Egoless: the Final Frontier in Leadership is available through the Parallax Partnership at http://www.parallaxuk.com/?page=63, through Amazon or on Kindle.

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Leadership in 2011

Posted on January 31, 2012 by sarahmorrisadmin

Leadership, in one form or another, has been a strong theme in 2011. Political and economic twists and turns have brought leadership across Europe into the spotlight. At home, politicians from all parties are looking for ways to rise to the challenges presented by the bleak economic outlook and have questioned the values underpinning the prevailing culture.

It is not just in the world of politics that the quality of leadership, and the values and behaviours displayed by those who would call themselves leaders, has been called into question. The sporting world has been rocked by examples of poor leadership and nowhere more so than in the high profile fields of rugby and football. The leadership, culture and values driving parts of the tabloid press have been exposed publicly and caused widespread revulsion and alarm. The list goes on.

Furthermore, despite the apparent lessons of recent years, major companies still in find themselves the spotlight for poor behaviour, poor performance and apparently excessive pay and bonus packages for senior management and, the stark and ever growing, pay gap between CEOs and workers.

An increasing body of opinion is challenging the ‘old order’ and demanding an end to the ‘fast buck’ mentality. High profile challenges to the status quo have come in the form of Occupy Wall Street and the St Paul’s protest in London, and a far wider body of opinion is beginning to demand political and corporate polices focusing on the wellbeing of the many rather than the few.

The need for change has never been more apparent and the big question, as the new year gets well underway, surely has to be: where do go from here? For me, and a growing band of leaders worldwide, the answer is clear. We accept that traditional models of leadership are failing and we build a new framework for leading, inspiring and empowering others, based on firmer and more sustainable foundations, and we do this by taking ego out of the boardroom and out off the office.

Traditional models of leadership created the state we are in, with trust in short supply and the relationship between organisation and employee more fragile than ever. They have left too many employees marginalised, disengaged, and unwilling or unable to fully commit to the organisation of which they are part. Perhaps not unsurprisingly, leaders are not rated highly by the organisations that employ them. A recent CIPD survey of Human Resources professionals revealed the rather bleak fact that only 18 per cent considered the leadership of their organisation to be high quality.

We must act now, and act quickly, to restore trust and create a culture which fosters talent and inspires and individuals, teams and organisations. Ego-less models of leadership provide our best, and most probably only, chance of achieving this because, unlike senior managers subscribing to traditional models, ego-less leaders look beyond the self to create balanced, sustainable and high-performing environments. In moving beyond the ‘me’ and embracing the ‘we’ they create environments in which employees and organisations flourish.

Ego-less leaders foster trust and bring clarity, empathy and authenticity to the workplace. They are sensitive, aware and capable of conveying vision and engaging followers, and they show equanimity in even the most trying circumstances. Concentrating on allowing others to achieve their full potential rather than their own advancement, these leaders have a profound impact on those around them. If you have ever met someone who leads from an ego-less perspective, it is very unlikely that you have forgotten them.

The fact is traditional models of leadership have proved themselves short-term, self-rewarding and unproductive and have had their day. A radical new alternative is needed; one which delivers excellent results for individuals as well organisations and that is focused on truly engaging employees, nurturing talent and on sustainable outcomes. Ego-less, or Conscious Leadership is that alternative. I believe the question then becomes, ‘Is your ego holding your leadership potential hostage?’ If so, I can guarantee that developing a more ego-less style will unlock a whole new level of professional success and personal satisfaction.

New book, ‘Egoless: The Final Frontier in Leadership’ is released tomorrow.

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Announcement: New book launch on Conscious Leadership

Posted on January 26, 2012 by sarahmorrisadmin

This is a pre-launch announcement letting all our readers know that on 1st February, The Parallax Partnership will be launching the new book by Dr. Sarah A. Morris entitled, ‘Egoless: The Final Frontier in Leadership’. This book details an original and simple four-step model called the Conscous Leadership Model which sets out a practical route toward a more fulfilling way of leading; one which benefits not only the leaders themselves but also those they lead by gently healing then setting the ego aside.
It also defines the case for how the movement from a predominantly ego-full, toward an evermore ego-less way of leading creates more balanced, sustainable and high performing environments that deliver exceptional results.

The book will be available shortly via our website, Amazon.com, noblebarnes.com and on Kindle. An audioversion will also be following soon.

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The roots of our current leadership issues run deep

Posted on November 7, 2011 by Sarah Morris

How well defended is your perspective?

Yesterday saw Ed Miliband, the leader of the UK Labour Party, launch another attack on Britain’s richest and most powerful 1%, who he said were, “badly out of touch with the reality facing the other 99%”. At the same time, the UK Prime Minister, David Cameron, seems also to be exorcised with the same conundrum, suggesting during this week’s Prime Minister’s Questions that having more women on the boardroom would lead to more restraint around high pay.

Perhaps it is thanks to the protests of ‘Occupy’ that we are certainly seeing so much political interest in themes which touch upon the way we lead and the way in which organisations do business. Whatever the catalyst, I welcome it wholeheartedly for it gives us the opportunity to explore the real issues behind the headlines made by our politicians. However, do I think that we should ‘attack’ the most powerful 1% and that it is such an attack which will really make the difference? No, I don’t. Do I really think that more women executives would curb high pay? Perhaps, although in truth, I don’t really know, nor it seems does anyone else for evidence for the hypothesis seems scant on the ground.

So, in reflecting on all this, I am reminded of Einstein’s famous quote, “You cannot solve a problem from the same level of thinking, or consciousness, that created it”. It seems to me that both these lines of thinking do not break free from the same type of thinking logic that brought us to where we are now.

It is conventional thinking, deeply rooted in ego and fear which has created this paradigm and to release ourselves from it, it seems to me that we could use some post-conventional thinking; thinking which is perhaps is not so dualistic in its approach. So how do we even go about that? I don’t try and pretend it is an easy task but my sense is that first, we need to dig much deeper to understand the root cause of the behaviours which we are trying to change. We need to reflect with openness, courage and curiosity upon our fears; fears which compel each and every one of us to make the choices we make. Perhaps in doing so, we could begin to see the limitations of our habitual patterns. Perhaps we could truly take our first cautious steps into another world and begin to broaden our own horizons, our own thinking, and thus our own behaviours by seeing the world in which we operate from multiple different perspectives – rather than defending our usual point of view.

This would represent a true evolution in thinking and an expansion of awareness toward Conscious Leadership.  It would begin to get us above the type of thinking which created the current status quo; it would offer the space for greater creativity and diversity in creating an alternative path. The ground is being tilled as people begin to ask questions about the wisdom of our currently accepted leadership behaviours. Now is the time to take personal responsibility for self enquiry so that we become part of the solution.

To finish: a personal note of thanks to all those who are taking the time and courage to say ‘no more’ to this way of leading; also, my eternal awe and gratitude to those people who, on a daily basis, are fearlessly, diligently and with great perseverance climbing the mountain in order to show others an alternative way of being.

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A Conscious Leadership Paradox: Companies Need to Slow Down to Speed Up

Posted on October 17, 2011 by Sarah Morris

What is the role of stillness in leadership?

Conscious Leadership can often seem full of confusing paradoxes that seem counter-intuitive; the relationship between slowing down and increasing productivity is one of them.

Have you ever been to a fairground and seen one of those machines that has loads of coloured balls flying this way and that under turbulence from a high pressured stream of air being fed into a closed, transparent box? It occurs to me that this, sadly, is a fairly accurate metaphor for far too many companies in this day and age.

I see the manifestations of this almost every day in my coaching suite; senior executives placed under a relentless and high pressured barrage of often changing priorities and pressing issues. These executives are successful people who do not shy away from hard work, but it seems to me that the sheer tsunami of work which seems ever more the norm, threatens to drown even the most competent of leaders.

Increasingly of late, I wonder if we are heading toward a crisis of corporate burnout and certainly, it is not uncommon for me to see executives who finally reach breaking point and leave these toxic environments behind. This is, of course, a huge loss to an organisation; yet competent, well-trained, senior executives are increasingly refusing to accept this as the status quo.

Of course, it does not have to be this way. Very often I find that such toxic environments stem from cultures rooted in fear. In turn, further exploration often unearths a chief executive, board or senior management team hampered by traditional, ego-full attitudes toward leadership.

Thankfully, a new, more compelling option is emerging; that of Conscious Leadership. Conscious Leadership is rooted in the antithesis of fear; love. It is a mature, cutting-edge approach to leadership which teaches us that we can be even more successful, even more profitable and even more sustainable when we learn how to set aside our ego and genuinely serve our followers.

The idea is simple, although the practice is less easy. However, for organisations running harder and harder just to keep up as economic ‘permafrost’ sets in, leaders need to create calm out of chaos and clarity from confusion. Surprisingly, the antidote to the problem seems paradoxical; in order to regain our footing on the right side of the productivity curve, we need to slow down. I believe that a crucial practice for any Conscious Leader in these difficult times is to create a discipline of stillness. A formal meditation practice is not necessary (although extremely beneficial) but taking 15 to 20 min out of each day to just be still and present assists us in grounding ourselves and developing personal resilience.

In the challenging times ahead, it seems that these capacities will no longer be a ‘nice to have’ but become increasingly essential to maintaining competitive edge. What are your experiences of the impact of stillness (or lack of it) in leadership and organisations?

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How Do We Create Conscious Leaders?

Posted on October 10, 2011 by sarahmorrisadmin

So how do we help leaders break free?

Whether it be politicians, business leaders, consultants or coaches, the piece that is always missing for me in the discussion around transforming leadership to create more long-term, sustainable businesses is an understanding of how do we actually get there. It is all very well painting a magnificent picture of an idealised future if we cannot spell out a thoughtful and accessible way of reaching it.

It is an issue that I have been reflecting on for a few years now. It first came into focus for me during the course of some client work. The client in question had begun to transform many of his beliefs and attitudes about what made for effective leadership. I have witnessed time and time again how the healing of what I call a ‘dysfunctional ego’ allows an individual leader to begin to let go of many of their long-term, fear-based patterns of leading. This is what had happened for this particular client. He had reached the critical tipping point.

One day, he summarise the problem succinctly; “Sarah, I used to think that leadership was all about me and how I could get people do what I needed them to do, but that’s not it, is it? It’s actually all about them”. It was a magical moment of insight. However, what followed was another very pertinent but penetrating question. “So if that is the case, how do I lead in a different way? How do I make that transformation?”

It also turned out to be a turning point for me in my understanding of the critical milestones required in the development of a Conscious Leader. I now think along the lines of a four step model that at its heart moves a leader from an ‘ego full’ toward an ever more ‘ego less’ way of being in leadership. Essentially, this requires that we pay attention to any dysfunctional ego-based behaviours which are driving our performance. These may evolve around themes such as; procrastination, playing the victim, seeking to control, manipulation, bullying or avoidance.

To heal the ego – which is our first priority – we need to pay attention to the ‘Three Pillars of Confidence’; self-worth self trust and self acceptance. The work begins by building these foundations. As we do, a more healthy and balanced ego emerges and with it, the willingness to begin to embrace one’s weaknesses as well as one’s strengths. With a continued focus and attention on building the strength of these Three Pillars – which form the foundation of Conscious Leadership – we are eventually and spontaneously more able to let go of our fear-based behaviours; we fundamentally begin to feel at home in our own skin and prepared to show a vulnerability which far from being a weakness, becomes our strength.

At this point, I have noticed the natural inclination for emergent Conscious Leaders to focus their attention ever more acutely on meeting the needs of their followers rather than their own ego-based needs. Very often at this stage, we see the emergence of two key characteristic traits; leadership based in service and the emergence of humility. Humility has already been characterised by the likes of Jim Collins (of ‘Good to Great’ fame) as being a key factor in great leadership. Yet humility cannot be manufactured; it arises in the absence of ego. Thus, it is not something that we can strive for, but something that others will see as we flourish in our leadership capability.

I believe that as a shift in thinking continues to occur – as exemplified by the recent and emergent political agenda here in the UK – we will need to be able to define how we take those leaders who are willing to embrace a different way of leading on their development journey. Just painting the picture will no longer cut the mustard.

If you wish to find out more about The Parallax Partnership’s four step model of Conscious Leadership a new book, “Egoless: The Final Frontier in Leadership” will be published towards the end of this year. Please subscribe to this blog to remain informed of publishing dates.

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Ed Miliband speaks up for a ‘something-for-something’ culture: are we in danger of seeing the light?

Posted on September 29, 2011 by sarahmorrisadmin
Are politicans finally seeing the light?

Are politicans finally seeing the light?

This is no longer a matter of politics for me; the problems are global and transcend political parties. It has become increasingly evident that we live in a self-serving, self-centred and materialistic society. In short, I believe, that we now live in a, ‘me’ rather than a, ‘we’ culture. There is a price to pay for this. We have all too painfully witnessed its impact in the likes of the housing and banking crises which triggered the downturn in the global economy and the social discord seen in the UK riots this summer. We have become dominated by the ego’s need for wealth, greed, fame and power. Unfortunately, similar patterns are evident in the leadership of our businesses and governments.

I remember once picking up a letter that I had received from a Tibetan orphanage. The context is irrelevant but I found myself mesmerised by the letterhead which included a statement of the schools values: ‘Others First, Self Second’. At the time, I remember thinking I would never see such a statement in the Western world – sadly. Yet it is exactly this, ‘me’ to ‘we’ thinking which will allow us to transcend our current difficulties. I believe this is the essence which politicians such as Ed Miliband are struggling to articulate. However, it is encouraging to see the beginnings of such thinking and if this is more than soundbites, there may finally be some light at the end of the tunnel.

Yet achieving the types of outcomes expressed by Mr Miliband at the Labour Party conference yesterday will be no easy task. Of course, government seeks to encourage such thinking through incentives. However, it seems to me that the deeper and more fundamental change will come from a genuine shift in consciousness within our society. Businesses and leadership must also embrace a new way of being in which leaders are prepared to set aside their ego and eschew the limelight to serve the needs of those that follow them and to reach shared, long-term, sustainable business objectives. At Parallax, we call this way of being Conscious Leadership.

Conscious Leaders are rare beings in today’s leadership culture. You may not have encountered one yet, but if you have, they will have had a profound impact. They are truly ego-less, and their path is one of genuine service where they put the good of the whole before self aggrandizement. They embody in all they do the ethos of ‘we’ rather than ‘me’. Conscious Leaders:
• Display exceptionally high levels of equanimity in trying circumstances
• Rarely seek the limelight; they are instead happy to place the glory at the feet of others
• Have a deep and profound understanding that much of what is attained comes through and not from them
• See relationships are central to success and show an all pervasive sense of the deepest respect for the humanity of those that they work with
• Always put the good of the whole before their own personal agenda
• Are always willing to recognise their vulnerabilities and weaknesses openly and are not perturbed by loss of status or power if this is what is required to serve a higher purpose and meet the broader goals

This is all very well but how does a leader achieve this state of being? This is the million dollar question that so rarely gets addressed. I’ll cover my thinking around this in the next post so stay tuned…

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When the ego wins – you lose.

Posted on March 25, 2011 by Sarah Morris

Does your ego sabotage your potential?

The ego is a rather brittle and inflexible character. When we are in its grip our actions are rooted subconsciously in fear. At all costs, we try to defend our rather vulnerable and fragile self concept. Above all else, the ego fears its disintegration and therefore works tirelessly to build strong defences which maintain its integrity in the face of ‘the other’. ‘The other’, of course, is any other person or external event which presents a threat to its stability. As we have touched on before in this blog, ego-full behaviours abound in the workplace including: manipulation, blaming, procrastination, bullying and control-freakery. At some point in life, these behaviours developed because they apparently ‘worked’ and kept us safe in hostile conditions. As we grow into adulthood, these very same behaviours can also appear to bring us short-term gain. However, in my experience, if you are a leader, they will also certainly create conditions for long-term pain.

I have witnessed the lengths that a dysfunctional ego can go to in order to preserve its self concept; even in the face of significant negative consequences for the individual, their colleagues and probably their organisation. I once watched a young, bright and successful executive lose her job in an organisation because of limiting ego-based patterns. When a disagreement arose as to how a strategic issue should be handled within the business, the individual was so ego-full that they were unable to give up the need to be right. In their inflexibility, the executive was unwilling to either take up another’s perspective, seek common ground or use their creativity to seek a possible solution. There was an escalation of hostility as one ego clashed head-on with another. Clearly, ultimately this situation became unsustainable.

However, if the executive had been able to set aside their sense of self, my experience is that they would have been able to enter into a much more productive and creative dialogue about the best way forward for the business. With the ego out of the way, we are able to see more clearly; bring calm to chaos, and infuse our conversations with a greater sense of humility. Our focus on the needs of the whole before our own, creates a more collaborative, creative and sustainable environment for problem-solving. This is the way of the Conscious Leader.

Setting the ego aside is no small task. Yet the demands of our emerging workforce call for exactly that. We are witnessing the desire for greater levels of engagement, empowerment and purpose in the workplace, alongside the need to rebuild trust and collaboration in our wider society. This means that a new way of leading is essential for the long-term well-being of individuals, businesses and the wider whole.

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Invulnerability over Trust?

Posted on March 24, 2011 by chrisrewadmin

Sprinting to the finish with the last of Patrick Lencioni’s temptations of a CEO follows on well to show just how powerful the role of the ego is in leadership and team development. No one likes to admit they are wrong, however those CEO’s who know who they are and are comfortable in their own skin do not spend their time worrying excessively about how clever they are or how they appear to others. The most authentic leaders tend not to have a “public” face, as they do not need one. They are who they are, and trust people will accept them for who they are. Equally they are happy to accept they do not have all the answers and can be wrong on occasions! The ultimate success needs to be the organisation’s and not their own. Interestingly the most successful CEO’s often instigate change and vision in an organisation that is sufficiently robust in the long term that there is no need for the leader to be chasing and hounding people to make it happen! If they are having to do that, are people really engaged?

The idea of vulnerability allows people to engage in the possibility of alternatives. It allows people to declare previously hidden concerns and be able to minimise or remove them. It invites people to take more accountability for the issues of the day, and be involved in the creation of more robust, long term solutions, rather than knee jerk responses which only have the benefit of one brain evaluating a solution, rather than a team!

It is painful for the ego to let go of the desire to be right, to be protected and approved of, however another word for invulnerable is inaccessible – which makes leading and engaging others with your vision rather difficult!
Some final questions to see if you are tempted? Do you have difficulty in admitting you are wrong?
Do you try to hide your greatest weaknesses from your reports?
Do you hate the idea of asking for help?

If these temptations have at all reasonated with you, or even if they have not, you could always ask your direct reports these questions and compare your answers with theirs! – it could be illuminating to see how your ego shows up.
I hope you have found these at least thought provoking!

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Choosing harmony over productive conflict

Posted on March 23, 2011 by chrisrewadmin

Following swiftly on with the fourth temptation of a CEO when leading a team is similarly driven from the ego’s desire for approval. there are numerous parallels across our lives where it is easier not to address something than it is to address an issue. People often complain to me that they wish their meetings were not just “talking shops” . They wonder why people seem to get bored and just nod their heads waiting for “their turn” to report back on their department issues. It is tempting for the CEO to “facilitate” conversations to maintain “peace in the boardroom”. unfortunately this also means that real issues are pushed under the carpet until a major event occurs! The role of productive conflict cannot be overemphasised in the production of a high performance team, but in order for that to happen their has to be a trusting relationship established between the “players” such that it is safe to explore, challenge and debate any issue without feeling exposed or in danger of personal retaliation!!. Those teams who create that safe environment and conduct powerful challenge and debate of the issues as they arise, are best placed to leave those meetings with all members feeling they have been listened too, and more importantly, all members able to agree a common communicable position – all the ramifications having been debated!
Some questions to ponder then: Do you prefer to keep your meetings quiet, safe and pleasant?
Does the business or you set your agenda?
Do you become uncomfortable when your reports argue in your meetings?
Do you consider how much your direct reports trust each other?
If the leadership team is not effectively challenging the issues of the day – how can the rest of the business respect the output of the board?

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