Over this past
weekend it has become clear that one of Australia’s most influential
broadcasters – someone who is sometimes labelled a “shock jock” grossly
overstepped the mark in a virulent and totally offensive set of remarks about
the Prime Minister and the very recent death of her father.
Before I
proceed, let me make some things clear. First in relation to free speech. In my
new book "Third Generation
Leadership and the Locus of Control: knowledge, change and neuroscience" (2012, Gower
Publications, UK), I make the following statement:
I have spent my life believing in the power
of a democratic society where the rule of law ensures that people will not be
imprisoned without trial; that habeas corpus is a vital component of a free
society; that secret police and interrogation without legal representation is
wrong and an abuse of power; that freedom of faith, speech and association are
inalienable rights – even if I disagree totally with what you say, believe or with
whom you associate, you have an absolute right to say what you want, follow the
faith or non-faith of your choice, and associate with whoever you wish.
Second, in
relation to politics. I am a past member of the Liberal Party in Australia and was
once asked to nominate for Federal Parliament. I am no longer a member of any
political party and, again as I say in "Third
Generation Leadership and the Locus of Control: knowledge, change and
neuroscience", I think a strong case can be made for arguing that the
rise of political parties is a sign of the decline of democracy. For that
reason I support independent candidates at elections.
In other words, I write
this with no political agenda and from a perspective which believes Alan Jones
(and anyone else) has an absolute right to free speech.
I believe that attacks such
as this one by Jones tells us a lot about Jones and, from the fact that, with
one exception, no-one at the function where he made the remarks appears to have
been offended by them, we learn something about the people who were present
that evening. It tells me that these people have no real concept of the
unconditional respect for a person that ought to be the hallmark of leaders and
aspiring leaders. It indicates to me that these people are ones who are
lacking in true self-confidence and who compensate for this lack by a retreat into
some form of fundamentalism and attack. In "Third
Generation Leadership and the Locus of Control: knowledge, change and
neuroscience", I say:
Self-confident people are those who
understand that there is no need for any form of ‘talking down to’ or ‘putting
down of’ other people. Self-confident people are those who always treat others
with respect and who, as a result, ultimately expect to earn trust and respect
for themselves ... A self-confident person is one who is always cognisant of the fact that
everyone has his or her own issues with which they have to deal. .... Self-confidence is not weakness or any behaviour
that indicates a lack of personal resolve. But neither is it the bold, brassy
over-confidence that is encountered in the worst examples of some who seek to
place unacceptable levels of pressure on people in order to achieve results.
Alan Jones (and
his supporters) exhibits all the signs of a G1 Leader and of what I term "First
Generation Leadership” – an approach that became challenged during the 1950’s
and which has long since reached its “use-by” date. This is a male-dominated,
“born-to-rule” approach in which the leader considers himself (it is usually a
male) beyond reproach and with no need to show any respect to others unless
they comply with his thinking and demands. Invariably First Generation
Leadership and bullying are inextricably intertwined.
If a person
wants to be a grub and/or a bully, that is their prerogative. But the existence
of grubs and bullies should alert us to the need to change both what we look
for in leaders and how we behave as leaders. What do you think?
More about
Douglas Long at http://www.dglong.com
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