by Kerr, James
This also aligns with the work of psychotherapist Victor Frankl, who, in Man’s Search for Meaning, cites research from Johns Hopkins University:
—— Asked what they considered ‘very important’ to them now, 16% checked ‘making a lot of money’; 78% said their first goal was ‘finding a meaning and purpose to my life.’
‘What man actually needs,’ argues Frankl, ‘is not a tensionless state but rather the striving and struggling for a worthwhile goal, a freely chosen task.’
‘Being human always points, and is directed, to something, or someone, other than oneself,’ he writes. ‘The more one forgets himself – by giving himself to a cause to serve or another person to love – the more human he is, and the more he actualizes himself.’
‘Self-actualization,’ he concludes, ‘is possible only as a side-effect of self-transcendence.’
Of ‘getting over yourself’.
Of sweeping the sheds.
And it begins with the question ‘Why?’
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According to Walter Isaacson in his book, Steve Jobs, the Apple founder once told his team: ‘the work fifty people are doing here is going to send a ripple right through the universe.’ He later said, ‘The goal was never to beat the competition or to make a lot of money. It was to do the greatest thing possible, or even a little greater.’ It was the purpose, the passion and the products that mattered and made ripples – while the profits followed in great waves. ‘You should never start a company with the goal of getting rich,’ Mike Markkula, Apple’s ‘Employee Number 3’, had told Jobs. ‘Your goal should be making something you believe in and making a company that will last.’
In another example, Howard Schultz of Starbucks began his company with a singular, some might say altruistic, purpose: to create a company where health cover for employees was standard. Fuelled by memories of his father struggling through a succession of low-paid jobs with no health care, this was his purpose above and beyond selling coffee. He sees this as the fundamental cause of his success. ‘People want to be part of something larger than themselves. They want to be part of something they’re really proud of, that they’ll fight for, sacrifice for, that they trust.’
Saatchi & Saatchi wants ‘to make the world a better place for everyone’. Ford wants to ‘democratize the automobile’. Disney brings ‘smiles to the faces of children’. Nike ‘empowers the individual’. P&G are on a ‘relentless quest to be the best’, while for Toyota, ‘there is always a better way’.
Barcelona FC, meanwhile, is driven by perhaps the most motivating purpose of them all: they play for Catalonia; they ‘play for freedom’.
Jim Collins, in Good to Great, describes this as the ‘extra dimension’ – a guiding philosophy that consists of core values and a core purpose beyond just making money. He believes that, when authentic and rigorously adhered to, a dramatic, compelling purpose is a fundamental driver of the companies that go from good to great.
‘Reason leads to conclusions,’ Canadian neurologist Donald Calne says, ‘Emotion leads to action.’ If you want higher performance, begin with a higher purpose.
Begin with asking, ‘Why?’
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As well as Graham Henry, there is another TED, the famous series of annual seminars and video presentations described on its internet site as ‘Ideas Worth Sharing’.
One of the most watched videos on the TED site is a presentation by Simon Sinek, author of Start With Why, who expresses what most of us innately know: ‘people don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it’. He argues that, because of the limbic – a nerve centre buried deep within the pre-linguistic core of our brain – the way we feel about something is more important than what we think about it. That, when given a choice, we follow our gut.
Sinek told an audience at the United States Air Force Weapons School, ‘What I’m interested in is what gets people up every single day to do something, maybe pay a premium, maybe suffer inconvenience, maybe sacrifice because they’re driven by something else. What is that thing? What I’ve learned is it’s that question, why. It has a biological imperative, it drives us, it inspires us.’
He argues that inspired leaders and organizations, regardless of their size and industry, all think, act and communicate from the ‘inside out.’ After all, he says in his TED speech, Martin Luther King ‘gave the “I have a dream” speech, not the “I have a plan” speech . . . If you hire people who believe what you believe, they’ll work for you with blood, sweat and tears.’
Inspired leaders, organizations and teams find their deepest purpose – their ‘why?’ – and attract followers through shared values, vision and beliefs.
As Nietzsche said: ‘He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how.’
It’s at the core of the vision and value-based mindset.
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When Owen Eastwood began working with the Proteas, the South African cricket team, the side was languishing at number four in the world rankings. Psychologically they had ‘lost their way’. In a collaborative process, involving players, coaches, management and even a cross-section of the non-playing public, Eastwood helped the team ‘rediscover’ a word from the Bantu languages, Ubuntu. It has now become the central organizing thought for the team – its reason for being.
Its reason why.
Ubuntu is ‘the essence of being human,’ says Bishop Desmond Tutu. ‘Ubuntu speaks particularly about the fact that you can’t exist as a human being in isolation. It speaks about our interconnectedness.’ Ubuntu does not mean that people should not have self-interest, said Nelson Mandela in interview with journalist Tim Modesi. But ‘are you going to do so in order to enable the community around you to be able to improve? These are the important things in life.’
Ubuntu means we send out ripples from us into the wider community: our actions affect everyone, not just us. The Proteas embrace this ripple effect and the inspiration they have on the whole of South Africa. And it lifts them.
They play for something greater than themselves.
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Meanwhile, years after Smith and Enoka moved on, the Crusaders’ vision is still tangibly expressed in their strategy room. In The Real McCaw, author Greg McGee describes how one wall is dominated by a grey polystyrene archway of Corinthian columns, plinths, gables and foundation stones. It looks like a Walt Disney version of a Greek temple. At the base are foundation stones with words written on them. ‘Team-First’ is at the centre, surrounded by the Crusader’s other fundamental values: ‘Loyalty’, ‘Integrity’, ‘Respect’, ‘Work-Ethic’ and ‘Enjoyment’. Across the central plinth is one word, ‘Excellence’, the ultimate aim.
Connecting the foundation with the apex is a series of columns, each of which has a title: ‘Nutrition’, ‘Physical’, ‘Technical’, ‘Practical’, ‘Teamness’ and ‘Mental’. It is these six pillars upon which excellence – and success – is built.
‘It’s funny how often, if the team’s not going well,’ McCaw says, ‘you look at those foundation stones and find the reason in there somewhere.’
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It’s easy to be cynical but there is little doubt this stuff works. Just as the Crusaders under Smith went on to dominate Super Rugby, the Proteas found success through the self-discovery of a common purpose. On 28 August 2012, with ‘Ubuntu’ as their mantra, they became the first team to be world number one in all three formats of the game.
Similarly, Graham Henry’s All Blacks, after their inauspicious start, and by consistent application of storytelling techniques, a devolved leadership strategy, the creation of a learning environment and a focus on the mind game, completed his reign with a winning record of 86 per cent – and a Rugby World Cup.
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So, if the key strategic driver was ‘Better People Make Better All Blacks’, what is their fundamental purpose? What is the ‘why?’
Officially, according to the NZRU literature, it is to ‘unite and inspire New Zealand’. But it goes deeper than that. �
�We’re lucky in that we have a huge history which is motivational to the current team,’ says Graham Henry. ‘It’s hugely important to the current guys who carry the responsibility – because their job is to add to the legacy.’
To add to the legacy.
‘There’s a rich tradition of players who have had that stewardship,’ says Wayne Smith, ‘to enhance the jersey and pass it on in a better state than what it was when you got it.’ As former All Black Ali Williams puts it, ‘you have to leave the jersey in a better place’.
‘All I was doing,’ says legendary former All Blacks captain Sean Fitzpatrick, ‘was trying to make it a better team to pass on to the next generation. And in saying that,’ he continues, ‘the underlying word would be winning. We have to continue that legacy.’
They have to play a bigger game.
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Back in the small room in Wellington in 2004, the heroes of this story were still a long way from leaving either the jersey or the statistics in a better place.
According to Graham Henry, it wasn’t until the All Blacks played France in Paris at the end of that year’s European tour that the first glimmers of hope began to show.
On that day, the All Blacks scored five tries to none, demolishing the French 45-6. For the first time, this group of All Blacks showed what they were capable of achieving; what was inside them.
Upon his return from Europe, Bob Howitt records in Final Word, Henry wrote his report to the NZRU:
—— Contributing to the success was the implementation of a leadership group . . . The players gained a great understanding and respect for each other as they developed. They grew to understand they had similar challenges as international rugby players and these challenges were better handled collectively than individually. This brought togetherness – they were ‘one’. They . . . went to ‘war’ for each other.
‘My army won because they knew what they were fighting for,’ said Oliver Cromwell, ‘and loved what they knew.’ For a warrior tribe from New Zealand, it was the beginning of the being of team.
Play with Purpose
Our fundamental human drive comes from within – from intrinsic rather than extrinsic motivations. Leaders who harness the power of purpose have the ability to galvanize a group, aligning its behaviours to the strategic pillars of the enterprise. Using vivid storytelling techniques, including themes, symbols, imagery, rituals, mantras and metaphor, and bringing them to life with imagination and flair, leaders create a sense of inclusion, connectedness and unity – a truly collective, collaborative mindset. It begins by asking ‘Why? Why are we doing this? Why am I sacrificing myself for this project? What is the higher purpose?’ The answers to these questions have the ability to transform the fortunes of a group or enterprise – activating individuals, providing a cultural glue, guiding behaviours and creating an overall sense of purpose and personal connection. It is the beginning of the being of team.
Play with Purpose
Ask ‘Why?’
—— Whāia e koe ki te iti kahurangi;
ki te tuohu koe, me he maunga teitei.
Seek the treasure you value most dearly;
if you bow your head, let it be to a lofty mountain.
IV
RESPONSIBILITY
—— Haere taka mua, taka muri; kaua e whai.
Be a leader, not a follower.
PASS THE BALL
Leaders create leaders
Hackney, London, 2002
A local resident was having problems with petty crime. A gang was breaking into his car, a rather pretty Saab 900 Turbo. Every time he changed the locks, the car was broken into again. One day he decided not to lock it – and so the gang began to use the car as a toilet. In despair, he approached the local police. ‘What are you going to do about it?’ he demanded. ‘We don’t have the resources,’ the constable replied. ‘What are you going to do about it?’
Teenage Kicks was born.
A five-a-side football tournament for disaffected youth, the purpose of Teenage Kicks was simple yet powerful: to turn gangs into teams.
In a community suffering from no jobs and nothing to do, the idea was to create a structure of meaning: a sense of purpose, belonging, teamwork and, most importantly, personal responsibility. It relied on a concept called ‘Pass the Ball’, defined as ‘enabling and empowering the individual by entrusting them with responsibility for the success of the team’.
It worked like this.
The organizers took care of the venue, the referees, the equipment, the stewards and the schedule, and then set about handing over responsibility – passing the ball – to the area’s disaffected youth.
They targeted existing gang members, and those likely to fall into the gang lifestyle. The first targets were alpha males, aged between nineteen and twenty-five, who displayed qualities of natural leadership, courage, respect, and the ability to involve and motivate others.
These natural leaders were invited to become Managers – a role that resonated in a community sandwiched about halfway between Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur Football Clubs. The Manager’s first responsibility was to find a Captain for their team – to pass the ball to them. And the Captain’s first responsibility? To pick a team.
And the teams’ responsibility?
To turn up for every game on time. If they didn’t the team was disqualified; not just from that game, but from the whole tournament.
In this way the responsibility was passed on and caught by everyone involved.
Perhaps a dozen teams were expected to turn up on the first night. Fifty-two teams arrived on time and ready to play. Over the next four weeks no team was disqualified.
Ten years later, Teenage Kicks is still going strong.
Pass the ball.
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‘The management always felt,’ says Graham Henry, ‘that they had to transfer the leadership from senior management members to the players . . . they play the game and they have to do the leading on the field. The traditional “you and them” became “us”.’
Leadership groups were formed, giving key senior players a distinct portfolio of responsibilities from on-field leadership to social organization, new-player mentoring to community relations. The players ‘induct those [young] players, tell them what the expectations are,’ says Henry. ‘It’s better coming from their peers.’
Leaders create leaders by passing on responsibility, creating ownership, accountability and trust.
Under Henry’s command, and with Enoka facilitating, the group began the patient process of culture change. ‘With that responsibility and privilege comes mana,’ says Enoka, ‘so it’s not an oppressive thing.’ It didn’t happen overnight, and by their own reckoning, they didn’t get it right straightaway, but slowly the culture change began to take effect.
The structure of the working week epitomizes this management model: the Sunday evening review meetings are facilitated by the coaches, though significant input comes from the on-field leadership. Then over the course of the week, you see a gradual handing over of responsibility and decision-making.
By Thursday, the priorities, intensity levels and other aspects are all ‘owned’ by the players. By the time they play on Saturday the players have taken over the asylum.
‘I’m just a resource,’ says Henry.
This can clearly be translated into business, where the leader sets objectives and parameters, then ‘passes the ball’ to the team, handing over responsibility for implementation and detail. Leading by creating leaders.
Unlike other international teams, the All Blacks aren’t given a rousing team talk by the coaches before the match. Henry tells a Rugby World Cup press conference, that ‘the time before they run out on the field, is their time. It has to be their time. They’ve got to set their own minds right and settled and on the job.’ He says that enabling his players to take charge of their own environment is, of all his achievements in rugby, the thing of which he is most proud.
Shared responsib
ility means shared ownership. A sense of inclusion means individuals are more willing to give themselves to a common cause.
‘We had to grow more collaborative, so that together we grow,’ says Gilbert Enoka, ‘together we advance.’
‘We changed totally from unilateral decision making to dual management and the players had a big part of setting the standards, the life standards, the behaviours that are acceptable,’ Wayne Smith says.
‘Dual leadership was a very important part of our success,’ says Graham Henry. ‘Perhaps the reason for that success.’
Pass the ball.
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‘Leaders don’t create followers,’ Tom Peters famously wrote, ‘they create more leaders.’ In a recent Annual Wharton Leadership Conference presentation, astronaut Jeffrey S. Ashby and adventurer John Kanengieter discussed the importance of ‘active followers’. Both gave examples of situations when, under pressure, one or more of their team had ‘stepped up’ and taken responsibility for a crucial part of a project. ‘Our leadership model leverages the strength of active followers,’ says Kanengieter, ‘which is highly effective during uncertainty and times of conflicting options.’
Yet according to Saatchi’s Kevin Roberts, even this doesn’t go far enough:
—— Language is pivotal to winning, language sets the mental and the physical frame for victory . . . A team of ‘followers’ is immediately on the back foot. A team of leaders steps up and finds a way to win.
In the book All In: The Education of General David Petraeus, the former commander of US forces in Afghanistan, says, ‘Instill in your team members a sense of great self-worth – that each, at any given time, can be the most important on the battlefield.’
In 2011, Stephen Donald became an unlikely hero.
A year before, Donald had played what many thought would be his last game as an All Black, after an unfortunate performance against Australia. As the Rugby World Cup unfolded on the world stage, he was fishing up the Waikato River.
