Leading from Behind

"It is better to lead from behind and to put others in front, especially when you celebrate victory when nice things occur."

--Nelson Mandela

What is the best way to develop a strong team? Let them lead! Have you ever led from behind? Leading from the back requires confidence, trust in others, the ability to allow others to be autonomous, to work without constant oversight, and the capacity to enable other people to take responsibility and credit for their own actions.

One of the earliest lessons offered to me about Montessori philosophy is that Montessorians are natural followers. Montessorians "follow the child." This is a central and sacred principle for Montessori guides (teachers).

When I transitioned from the corporate world into a Montessori school, I also learned that this central Montessori philosophy easily extends to Montessori leadership. Wait! Following in order to lead felt radical and uncomfortable.

First, I must share some context about what I was trained to believe before leading a Montessori school. Here is what I thought: Leaders are out front. They have a vision. They have ideas. They know where they're going, and everyone else follows. Why would leaders need to follow anyone, much less those they are supposed to lead?

The truth is that if we want to lead, we must have followers. Otherwise, we're only walking alone in the wilderness. If we wish to have followers, we must also follow, making room for everyone on the team to lead to their own strengths.

James Kouzes and Barry Posner define leadership as the act of motivating others to want to struggle for a shared aspiration. In their research, they have found that leadership does not always correlate to an organizational position. And, with regard to leading from behind, one of the five practices of exemplary leadership they define, is Enabling Others to Act. They note, "Grand dreams don't become significant realities through the actions of a single person. Achieving greatness requires a team effort." (The Leadership Challenge, 6th Edition by James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner).

In a Montessori classroom, the guide (teacher) learns to follow and observe each child. This is how lessons get presented. How else could the guide be expected to know or to understand what the child needs? If lessons are directed to each child’s learning pace, how else would the guide understand that child's needs or interests? Through observation, a guide knows when a child is ready for the next lesson, needs to repeat a lesson, or if a child needs more time with follow-up work. The guide's goal is to allow the child to shine.

By following, the guide also creates safety. The guide notices when a child does not feel like they belong. The guide notices when one child's behavior affects other children. The guide models how each child fits into the community. 

Montessori leaders (and I submit all leaders) must also learn to follow.  How will a leader understand what the group needs without keen observation? How else will the leader know that the environment is safe for all team members? This allows the team to shine rather than just a single leader. By taking a posture of followership, a leader is free to do three essential things:

Pay attention and observe. At its best, followership demands understanding and observation. I cannot follow without paying attention to where the leaders are going, their pace, direction, and cadence.

When I left the corporate world and joined the staff of a Montessori school, I thought I knew how to observe. I was so wrong. It took me years to begin to understand.

Observation requires that we open our minds. We cannot indeed observe with pre-conceived ideas. One of the guides I worked with described a lesson in her training where she was required to observe an apple and then describe it. At first, she wanted to say, "It is an apple on a table." When her trainers pushed her to clear her mind, she understood that observation meant she could only say this was a spherical object with green and red coloring. That there is a brown growth coming out of the top, etc. The same is true when observing children in a classroom. We cannot say the child is upset because we do not know. We can state only observable facts. The child is crying. The child lifts their foot and brings it down onto the ground with force. The child speaks in a raised tone of voice.

For leaders, learning to pay attention to the facts instead of what we think can be challenging. I know it was for me. My brain is used to making judgments. It is easy for me to say that an employee has a bad attitude, is a bully, or is never happy. I must work to observe what is happening without my theories and ideas intruding on the objective facts.

Once I can start with a mind that is open to the team, I can develop and test hypotheses to see what is most supportive for the team, the client, and for the community.

Ask and Listen. When we listen, we extend our observations. By asking questions (I find "what" and "how" questions helpful in this regard), I learn so much more about where I'm making mistakes or where I need to do more as a leader. Relying on others to teach and inform hones our leadership skills.

Montessori guides do this constantly. They ask students what they learned or how they can find an answer. Asking questions and genuinely listening gives clarity in two crucial ways. First, it allows the guide to understand what the child thinks. Second, questions allow conversation and creativity to spark new ways of thinking about a problem, idea, or concept.

Influential leaders do the same. They ask questions to understand where their team stands, how they think about and perceive their work, and any attendant problems. By asking questions, leaders learn more about how the team works together and what meaning team members draw from their work. Asking and listening are the tools for extending observation.

Experiment and Adapt. By following a child, Montessori guides can experiment and adapt to meet their students and their classroom where they are. For example, if observation and listening lead the guide to conclude that a child has mastered a concept, the guide will introduce a new one. This is why Montessori guides do not create lesson plans for an entire school year (or even a month). Montessori guides know before they even begin that they will need to be agile and responsive to student needs. Suppose the guide introduces that new concept, and further observation demonstrates that the student still has some gaps in understanding. In that case, the guide can return to the prior lesson, ensuring that the student fully integrates their learning before moving forward.

Good leaders do the same thing.

By following their team, the team often proposes solutions. If the leader is observing, they may also have ideas on how to support the community (and therefor the work of the community). Together, the group can try new things. They adapt when things don't go as planned. They experiment and take calculated risks. And in doing this, leaders make sure the team is with them. This strategic agility makes stronger leaders.

Questions to ponder:

In what ways does your leadership style reflect followership?

What would you want to keep doing to follow your team effectively? Quit doing?

How can you create space for observing and listening within your routines?

What experiments and adaptations can you make tomorrow?