MANAGEMENT ─ Become A Successful Leader
LOOKING CLOSER AT
LEADERSHIP
How to use tradeoffs, compromise and paradox to become a successful leader. By Wayne Lynn
A
s F. Scott Fitzgerald once said, “The test of a first rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposite ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.” The same is true with a leader running an organization. They must make decisions that can’t be delegated, set the course by defining vision, purpose and goals, all while managing and resolving stress. All of these involve conflicting demands and tensions between possible choices. For clarity, tension in this discussion is the state created by trying to resolve the difference between what the current situation is and what the desired situation you want to achieve would be. There are three possible “lenses” at the disposal of the leader to deal with those conflicting demands and stress.
These lenses are tradeoffs, compromises and paradoxes. Let’s look at each one within the context of decision-making.
Tradeoff The tradeoff lens uses a decision process of weighing the pros and cons of competing options. The goal is to find an option that maximizes advantages and limits disadvantages. Finding the best option through tradeoffs is the tension reliever in this case. A good example of this approach is the allocation of capital and talent to your best opportunities. You’ll rarely have enough of each to take advantage of all your opportunities. The tradeoff approach helps to find your best options. Continued on page 62
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