Questioning Orders

An excerpt from Chad’s book “Thinking Aloud: Reflections on Ethical Leadership”. We hope you enjoy the essay – and perhaps introduce the questions below as a way to start conversations with your teammates. – ELA Team

Get a free PDF version of Chad’s Book, “Thinking Aloud” now at https://ethinact.com/thinking-aloud/.

Why? Because…

“When I give an order, the last thing I want to hear is, `Why?’ The only thing I want to hear is, `Yes, sir!’” The statement came from a seasoned sheriff, at a gathering of senior law enforcement leaders. His peers rushed to agree. A veteran commander jumped in. “The young ones are the worst. When I was a new cop, I never, ever, ever would have asked why. Ever.” Many of the leaders gathered that day shared stories of punishment, sanctioned or unsanctioned, meted out to subordinates of old, who dared to question….

I understand a leader’s hesitation when she is asked, “Why?” It is easy to feel like our direction is being questioned, or our leadership doubted. Most often, though, that is not the case. A subordinate may be seeking clarification, trying to understand his leader’s thought process in order to faithfully execute her intent. And, whether or not such a question is asked, often the best thing a leader can do is explain her directions as fully as time and circumstances allow.
I direct someone to take action in order to achieve a particular outcome. If circumstances change, or an action doesn’t work out as intended, then my subordinate needs to understand my intention in order to bring about the desired outcome. Even better, I can often engage that subordinate as an ally by explaining how the intended actions can bring about something we both value. If, instead, I answer “Why?” with, “Because I said so,” I have done nothing to motivate or engage anyone.
“Because I said so” is also disrespectful. That statement simply underscores that the person to whom it is addressed is a subordinate forced to comply, rather than a full person, willing and able to contribute. In which roles are we most likely to see people at their best: as minions, or as contributors? What tone do we wish to set in our organizations?
Finally, by sharing our intent and explaining why our desired ends are worthwhile, we help others to participate in leadership now, and we guide emerging leaders with our thought processes. By being explicit about our intent, we invite others to help improve our thinking, our plans, and our direction. Such explanation also serves as a positive example and instruction for those who are learning to lead and direct others.
There are times and places for terse direction; it is worth noting that this discussion arose among public safety leaders, who function in paramilitary hierarchies designed for emergency response. Even in those contexts, only a very small minority of the work is done under emergent circumstances. Happily, for most of us, these circumstances are even less common. In nearly all cases, when we give direction we ought to share what we intend to bring about, and why it is important. Persuasion and engagement are nearly always more powerful than coercion and compliance.
Conversation Starters:
Except under rare circumstances, sharing your intent is an important part of giving direction.
• When are you comfortable taking orders? What features distinguish those situations?
• Do you tend to perform better when you are called on to contribute, rather than directed to accomplish a certain task?
• When you are giving direction, do you share your intent? Are you open to questions and discussion?

At Ethical Leaders in Action we believe that most, if not all people, can develop themselves to play leadership roles in many different spheres both large and small. The foundation of this development process is a short but powerful list of virtues which can be developed and improved through conscious effort. For more information feel free to take the Virtues of Ethical Leadership Self Inventory (VELSI) which breaks these virtues down into features that can be individually developed. The results of the VELSI come with a quick reference guide to help you understand how the virtues and their individual features fit together. https://ethinact.com/velsi/

See a list of other posts in this series at Blog Post Series

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