Business executive Jack Welch once said a leader must look into the future and see the organization not as it is, but as it should be.

What do you see when you look into the future? Do you see your organization as it is or as it should be? 

By the end of this decade — perhaps sooner — the landscape of the working world will change. The majority of employees will be “Zoomers.” Think Gen-Xers on steroids. A Zoomer is an informal term for a member of Generation Z, born in the late 1990s and early 2000s. 

The silent greatest generation, as some would call it, is no longer in the workplace. Sadly, there are few remaining to teach us. My age group of boomers is leaving the work force and, frankly, that’s been a big issue in the COVID-19 pandemic work world. Far too many boomers have declared, “Enough. I’m out.” 

And now the work force is filled with Generation Xers, Millennials and Gen-Zers. 

That poses the question: Have we been training leaders to lead these types of individuals? 

Leaders must be aspirational, not complacent. Leaders must continually seek their true selves and work on what they aspire to become. 

At a minimum, great leaders possess the following attributes: They have an inspiring vision. They know they need other great people to succeed. They know how to set boundaries. They persuade others to follow their causes. They empower others. They give credit where credit is due. And they’re always learning. 

Leaders must ask and answer two critical questions every day: Do they possess these attributes? Is it apparent to the “the common person” they possess these attributes?

To understand the concept of the common person, consider some of the psychological theories of values as well as advances in rationality research to deploy a theory of expanded rationality. 

This concept considers “rationality” as a way of asking a question of someone we all generally believe is, in fact, rational. 

What would occur if that same “common person” asked any of your employees whether you possess those leadership attributes? Would you accept the answers and interpretations they provide? More specifically, what type of answers do you think they’d get, and would you accept those answers? 

Here’s where the importance of looking into the future comes into play.

The silent and Boomer generations learned to both cope with and help in command-and-control leadership methodologies. They learned that to get along, they had to go along. 

Today, however, employees demand something different — servant leadership.

Before wading too deep into what servant leadership can do for you and your organization, step back and revisit what you intentionally — or unintentionally — drive in your organization. Go ahead and look. What do you see? 

Come back next time, when I’ll discuss how you consciously – or unconsciously — create leaders in your organization.