Courage is not a trait that is found in most performance appraisal forms or taught in executive development programs. I’ve found that courage is, however, a key ingredient in what it takes for leaders to make a difference, turn around downsized organizations, and re-recruit layoff survivors. There seem to be two types of courage that are key,
The first type of courage is the courage to resist cynicism. It’s easy to get down and, sometimes fun, to engage in dark humor or slam the organization. What leaders don’t realize is that no one likes a cynical boss and, although they may laugh at leaders’ cynical jokes and comments, followers don’t respect cynical bosses.
The second type of courage is the courage to engage. Again, it is easy to drop out, go through the motions, and not fully engage your human spirit and energy. The most effective leaders I know have the courage to get up in the morning, realistically assess the challenges in front of them, feel the pain, and move beyond it and try to make a difference.
In order to heal the wounds of layoffs and revitalize downsized organizations leaders need to find a way to muster up the courage to resist cynicism and truly engage the issues in the workplace. If they don’t they will just be going through the motions and not be of value to themselves or their organizations.
