UUntil recently, one of the basic tenets of leadership was to keep your distance from team members, their direct reports and even other leaders. The idea was to never get too close, or it would reduce your effectiveness as a leader. This philosophy has been reinforced through innumerable catchphrases and nuggets of well-intentioned advice: • “Leave your feelings at the door when you come to work …” • “Never let them see you sweat …” • “Keep your emotional distance from team members, or they will see you as weak and won't respect you.” While some of these axioms are more colorful than others, the message remained the same: “Stay tucked comfortably inside the ivory tower, or else people will begin to think you’re one of them.” But let’s face it: those types of philosophies reflected archaic leadership methods and practices that didn’t work well then and are even less effective today. That’s why today’s most effective leaders and executives incorporate an approach known as “professional intimacy” into their management repertoire. It’s a term you may have heard, but for the uninitiated, let’s define exactly what it is — and what it isn’t. Professional intimacy (also called corporate intimacy) describes a concept under the larger umbrella of Authentic Leadership.1 According to a recent article on Indeed.com,2 “Authentic leadership is one leadership style that emphasizes transparency, genuineness and honesty. Authentic leaders build genuine relationships with team members by inspiring trust and fostering a positive work environment.” Professional intimacy, then, is an essential ingredient in the Authentic Leadership recipe that helps make it work the way it was intended. In a professional context, intimacy should be viewed as close familiarity. It is NOT a romantic or erotic relationship that originates in the workplace. Nor does it refer to the common misunderstanding that genuine closeness automatically develops when individuals share secrets. At its core, professional intimacy describes the process of letting the people with whom you work closely get to know “the real you” and vice versa. What’s more, it is meant to be used with no regard for a person’s title, position or responsibilities; the “real you” should be on display for everyone to see. Bountiful Benefits What is the outcome of all this newfound closeness and openness? According to an article in Psychology Today,3 professional intimacy holds the key to myriad corporate gains, including: • Enhanced individual and team performance • More effective senior leadership • Reduced stress • Increased happiness and fulfillment • Improved communication by removing defensiveness • Enhanced creativity • A reduction in counterproductive “groupthink” Given this laundry list of potential benefits, it’s no wonder more companies are viewing professional intimacy with much greater applicability. I’ve been personally involved with many companies Professional Intimacy LEAVE IMPERSONAL LEADERSHIP BEHIND By Karen Brown, CEO, Exponential Results Colorado Banker 10
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTg3NDExNQ==