Leadership Metaphors
Power

• The heights of ecstasy; the depths of despair
• Lower than a snake’s belly
• Morale is up; morale is down
• Elevated to bishop
• I’m not up to doing that
• I’m under the weather
• I’m down at the mouth
• The computer is being upgraded
• I am downhearted
They are beneath contempt

The leadership challenge in this dimension is to create a shift from positional power to shared power. Leadership recognizes that shared power and active participation create vested ownership. Channels are created to shift power to where it is most needed in the organization. Leadership shifts from specific positions to essentially everywhere. The entire organization must have the courage to learn together. This requires humility, listening astutely, being rigorously open, speaking up, trust, and sharing power.

Core Ideas:

Power is making and keeping decisions over time. Leadership, here, is creating ownership through shared power and participation. A tremendous challenge for leadership is to turn destructive power into participatory codetermination.

Leadership engages others. When leadership is engagement, power no longer lives exclusively at the top of the organization. Channels are created to move power to where it is most needed within the organization.

Ownership Through Shared Power and Participation

• Stakeholders want voice. Shifting from buy-in to ownership, stakeholders codetermine the organization’s outcome with others, not just agree with and follow the one in the position of power.


• Participation makes an organization “work”. It requires great courage on the part of a leader to champion participation. It requires great confidence that everyone can come together, dialogue and collectively decide on important matters affecting all of them.


• Courageous communication is required to challenge the authoritarian way of thinking, current mindset, cultural assumptions, “group-think”.

Qualities Needed For Sharing Power - Empowerment

The top of an organization cannot empower a workforce. The top of the organization can set up a context and create the circumstances so people can empower themselves. The voice of the stakeholders and multi-perspective thinking are features of action in the Power Dimension. Power shifts to anywhere it is needed in the organization.

To achieve ownership through shared power and participation, the following qualities must be nurtured and valued within the organization:

• courage
• humility
• astute listening
• rigorous openness
• using one’s voice; speaking up
• trust
• trustworthiness
• clear, concise communication
• commitment to shared power

Leadership Downloads and Books by Bob Terry

• Authentic Leadership: Courage In Action ~by Dr. Robert Terry
• On Being A Secular Theologian by Bob Terry
• Seven Zones For Leadership by Bob Terry
• For Whites Only by Bob Terry
• Leadership and Diversity by Bob Terry
• Leadership Ethics by Bob Terry
• Leadership Choices by Bob Terry
• Leadership Metaphors by Bob Terry
• Leadership Paradox by Bob Terry
• Digital Store

The Leadership Series for Successful Living

Related Links:

Parable of Ups and Downs

Leadership Metaphors

Leadership Metaphors: Existence

Leadership Metaphors: Resources

Leadership Metaphors: Structure

Leadership Metaphors: Mission

Leadership Metaphors: Meaning

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