Immutable Laws of SHEQ Leadership
- August 28th, 2007
Do you think that better SHEQ leadership can improve your organisation’s SHEQ performance? Well I do. When I consider the people that I look up to, those I admire, those that have made a difference, I can also tell you how they have influenced my thoughts and actions.
Why have they been able to accomplish this? This is a very important question as the answers will lead us to the difference between a real leader and the average Joe. The answers to the “Why?” question, I call the immutable Laws of SHEQ Leadership:
The Law of Belief
Just as in any other sphere, employees buy-into the SHEQ leader and then the vision. The SHEQ leader gets the dream and then the employees. The employees accept the SHEQ leader and then the dream. Employees want to support and believe in people that they get along with.
The Law of the big Mo
Momentum is a leaders’ best friend. SHEQ leaders always find a way to make things happen. As they say “If you cannot make a fire, stay away from the kitchen”. With enough momentum, almost anything and any change is possible.
The Law of Sacrifice
As with all leaders, the SHEQ leader must be willing to sacrifice to accomplish his/her objectives. People notice and respect such a continuous commitment and let’s face it, respect is the fuel of superiour SHEQ performance. Nothing is for free. Sacrifice is the cost of leadership.
The E.F. Hutton Law
E. F. Hutton was an American stock broker who founded his firm in 1904. It became one of the most respected financial firms in the United States and was best known for its commercials in the 1970s and 1980s based on the phrase, “When E. F. Hutton talks, people listen” (which usually involved a young professional remarking at a dinner party that his broker was E.F. Hutton, which caused the moderately loud party to stop all conversation to listen to him).
It is true, when the real leader talks, people listen. To be in a position of power is like being a lady – if you must inform people that you are a lady – then you are not.
Now you can compare the characteristics of your organisation’s positional SHEQ leaders to that of real leaders in SHEQ. So what is the verdict – is it average Joe or real leader?
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