Recently, when Harvard’s Corporate Learning Center shared the results of its survey on the most critical challenges in leadership development for 2024, few were surprised by what topped the list—the capacity to lead in a highly disruptive environment.
Leaders in 2024, it concluded, have to be “ready for anything”—from the demands of inflation and changing customer expectations, to the challenges of accelerating digital technology, including AI and security threats, to the complexities associated with managing diverse and often widely dispersed teams.
As someone who has long worked in the healthcare industry in Japan—a country facing its own challenge as the top super-aging society in the world—I have long realized that the old rules of leadership no longer apply.
Leaders who lead from the top, purport to have all the answers, adopt tunnel vision when it comes to crafting strategies and who are better at talking than listening are wildly ill-equipped to respond to the ever-changing, often crisis-filled environment of today’s business world.
We need to start looking elsewhere for models of effective business leadership.
In an effort to gain insights into a different approach to leadership, I researched the internal leadership journey of three Japanese women leaders. Yes, an unusual group since Japan has long struggled with supporting women in leadership roles. As data from the Japanese Cabinet has pointed out:
… the percentage of female executives in Japan's prime market-listed companies was 10.7 percent in 2020 and remained at just 11.4 per cent as of July 2022. This was far lower than France (45.2 per cent), the United Kingdom (37.2 per cent) and the United States (31.3 per cent).
One might assume then that women who ascend to leadership positions and hold those positions for a length of time with proven markers of effectives have something to teach us.
What I found through this preliminary study was that there are several common threads woven throughout the leadership journeys of these women:
1) They possess a sense of mission or "calling,"
2) They cultivate their leadership by creating and maintaining a dynamic, ever-changing, holding environment for business, and
3) They make consistent efforts to maintain their "self as an instrument" so that they may continue to serve through various developments and adversities.
Self-as-Instrument Approach to Leadership
For this article, I would like to focus on this third trait—their efforts to maintain their “self as instrument”.
So what does it mean to approach the “self as an instrument”?
The concept has its origins in Burke’s notion of instrumentality (Burke, 1982). To him, instrumentality is not simply comprised of interpersonal skills and technical knowledge. Rather, it rests largely on self-awareness and a kind of presence.
Picking up on this thread, Edwin Nevis went on to describe this “presence” as follows:
“Presence is the living embodiment of knowledge: the theories and practices believed to be essential to bring about change in people are manifested, symbolized, or implied in the presence of the consultant”. (Nevis, 1987, p. 69)
More recently, Mee Yan Cheung-Judge has explained “self as instrument” as follows:
“To be ‘aware of’ and ‘use’ our own emotional, perceptual and cognitive processes to create the impact that is needed in the system and bring our whole selves to the work we do.” (2001, 2012, 2018)
Process of Cultivating the Self as Instrument
So what then is the process of cultivating this approach to leadership?
OD Practitioner Roffey Park describes this use of the self, beginning with the need to know one’s whole self. The leader needs to make efforts to know and understand the following:
My open self—the way I look, communicate, and present myself
My hidden self—my values, attitude, motivation, prejudices, anxieties, fears, assumptions, habits, and all other aspects of my personality
The actions that I take and the decisions I make and why
My style and preferences and how these might show up and be perceived
My knowledge, skills, and experience. (Park, 2021)
Bachkirova goes on to outline three essential conditions for effectively utilizing oneself as an instrument. They are:
1) understanding ourselves as an instrument,
2) looking after ourselves as an instrument, and
3) checking ourselves as an instrument (Bachkirova, 2016).
What was clearly evident in my study was the extent to which the three leaders demonstrated consistent efforts to address each of these conditions.
Cultivating a Culture of Reflection—Both for Oneself and Within One’s Team
One salient feature that was present with all these leaders was their ability to acknowledge and discuss how they work through their own emotions and how they engage in reflection—both for themselves and within their group.
In each case, they made efforts to try and understand themselves better. Specifically, they sought to become aware of what they are good at and what they are not good at. This also applied in how they worked with their teams. They were not the so-called "talk more than listen," "be strong," and "pull" leadership style of the 80's and 90's, but were conscious of acting as their own catalysts.
For example, when a conflict would arise at work, rather than go on the attack or try to defend themselves, they calmly shared their own insights while also encouraging those around them to speak up. In doing so, they were creating a reflective space for both themselves and others. They would pass the ball around so that the discussion would not be concentrated on any one person, and so that each could respond to what they were good at. It was as if they fully understood that they don't have all the answers.
Creating a Reliable “Space” for Reflection—Value of a Business Coach
In addition, one of the leaders decided to retain a business coach to promote her reflection as a leader. Having such a coach whom she met on a regular basis allowed her to secure a “place” for this reflection. It is easy to take for granted the need for reflection, so she consciously set aside this time for herself to develop her capacity to reflect through dialogue with her coach. She realized that leading her team in today’s volatile and uncertain environment meant that it would be foolhardy to think she could have definite answers all the time for everything. Sometimes we need to pause our reactions and let things be for the moment so that we can reflect and even see how they might unfold naturally.
In her coaching sessions, she articulated her thoughts, feelings and emotions. She told me that, through her coaching sessions, she began to realize what she tends to focus and what behaviors or words by others tend to activate her. She started to become aware of her patterns and would try to leverage them in her leadership style. As she continued to do this, she gradually came to realize that her relationship with her parents had been affecting her leadership style—something she didn’t want to admit.
This female leader’s personal reflection journey, which involved observing and accepting herself through reflection, is a good example of understanding ourselves as an instrument and looking after ourselves as an instrument based on Bachkirova’s theory. She even mentioned that her reflections had made her more open to accept herself and others, which, in turn, made it easier for her to let others lead.
Our emotions, perceptions, and cognitions can influence our behavior, materializing as strengths as well as weakness as we demonstrate our leadership. The key here is to develop an “awareness” of what we are driven by since unconscious drivers can easily affect our behavior and decision.
I asked her, "Why are you able to be so aware and accepting of your limitations, especially in such a competitive business environment?”
She responded, "We can't do it all. My experience so far has made me think that it would be arrogant of me to try to do everything myself. When we look back on our experiences, we can learn a lot about ourselves, right? Effective leadership is about fostering effective, creative and resilient teams. What I can and can’t do as an individual is meaningless if my team is not thriving."
Critical Importance of Self-Care—Creating a “Third Place” for the Self
In the midst of a disruptive, competitive business environment, how did these women care for themselves so that they could function effectively as a self as instrument?
What I observed was their efforts to create “a third place” for themselves, one that allowed them to rebalance themselves, gain perspective and refuel.
They seemed to see value in their personal lives, and didn’t take it for granted. I asked one of them how she balances herself. She said, "I try to eat breakfast and dinner with my husband as much as possible. No matter what happens, we switch it up. We have dinner together and talk about trivial things. That's very important.” She added, "I used to always worry about when my cell phone rings, but I try to disconnect from it as much as possible."
Another one shared that “I tend to involve my family in work-related events so that I can spend more time with them as well as my team. In that way, my partner and my child can understand what I am passionate about. Also I believe this will bring us closer to each other. My family is one of the important elements in my life.”
Last fall, I attended one of the biggest Healthcare Management conferences in Japan, which this leader organized. I happened to notice that she was in attendance, along with her partner and child—exactly as she had said. It seems as if her partner and child were having good time at the conference. In this way, this leader was able to blend her “third place” with her work life in a way that allowed her to reenergize herself so that she could continue to lead her team at work effectively.
During my dialogues with them, I realized that their faces would soften as they discussed this third space, as if it was playing a special part of their lives.
Embodying the Concept of Negative Capability
Finally, what became apparent with each of the leaders I interviewed was their efforts to embody the concept the negative capability. Negative capability refers to the capacity to accept uncertainties, mystery, and doubt.
In this volatile, uncertain, and complex world, it is critical for leaders to accept that things cannot be fully controlled or understood. Even when the course we set is based on well thought-out strategies, our success is not guaranteed What then might be the key to leading ourselves and the system to which we belong?
What my observations of these three Japanese female leaders suggest is that we would do well first to accept the reality of things as they are, and then to remain open to all possibilities, not just those perspectives offered through our own lens. By building the muscle of negative capability through our reflections, we will be able to function better as an instrument that is fair and not influenced by one particular perception. Making our best effort to do this will also help us maintain the quality of ourselves as instruments.
A Kaleidoscope of Lens
The various reflections of the three Japanese female leaders functioned like a kaleidoscope showing them different perspectives on how they were feeling, acting, experiencing, giving meaning, and understanding their own self and that of others. Even though they didn’t have the definite answers, they somehow managed to adopt a reflective attitude and heighten awareness about the human dynamics involved.
Also, the female leaders created their “third places” for them away from the emotionally rough and competitive business environment, an oasis to heal their sometimes wounded wings. Their families or their own professional networks served as such places, making those their spiritual home, they have been able to work on themselves, accept various events as they happen, and function as a holding space without emotional activation.
As leaders, “checking the quality” of my instrument, as Bachkirova suggests, and attending to self-care are also essential in developing ourselves as an instrument of change (Bachkirova, 2016, p. 145).
The common characteristics of the three female leaders were:
• their willingness to explore their inner selves through reflections,
• their honesty about their conflicting feelings,
• their continued efforts to reflect on the quality of their selves as instruments, and
• their humility.
Conclusion
Whatever our profession—senior management, change agent, coach, consultant, or even a physician—learning how to use the "self as an instrument" and to continue to cultivate the self in this way can have a profound impact on our ability to contribute and even change the organizations and systems around us.
Sources
Bachkirova, T. (2016). The self of the coach: Conceptualization, issues, and opportunities for practitioner development. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research 68 (2), 143-156.
Nevis, E. (1987). Organizational Consulting: A Gestalt Approach. Cambridge: GIC Press (1998 Second Edition)
Park, R. (2022, January 17). Use of Self as an Instrument in Organisational Development. Roffey Park Institute. https://www.roffeypark.ac.uk/knowledge-and-learning-resources-hub/use-of-self-as-an-instrument-in-organisational-development/
Takao, Y., & Takao, Y. (2023, December 7). Aiming to increase women’s leadership in corporate Japan | East Asia Forum. East Asia Forum.