The Unfinished Leader: Balancing Contradictory Answers to Unsolvable Problems

If you’re leading people or a project and believe that you have it all figured out, then you’re at risk. Leading is learning, and the only way to stay open to the vast amount of new information and ideas being generated is to stay humble and be adaptive, that is, to be “unfinished.” A sense that you’re unfinished keeps you fresh and makes you better. Leaders must be able to embrace paradox and become comfortable with uncertainty. Humility helps you drive toward mastery every day, while accepting that you can never quite get there. That’s how you will act effectively in a world of paradox.

Problems are puzzles with clear and defined answers, such as, “How can we reduce costs by 20%?” Paradoxes, on the other hand, are defined by two or more competing alternatives that cannot be resolved with a list of pros and cons. (for example, “Should we invest for the future or return money to shareholders?”). Paradoxes require a different way of thinking, leading, and deciding. While most organizations prefer problems, today’s climate of connectedness, transparency, and increased information means that leaders encounter more paradoxes. Problems can certainly be tricky, but paradoxes are always complex and multifaceted; they keep reappearing because they cannot be “solved. ” Leaders need to embrace the ambiguity and shifting options that paradoxes require.

When faced with equally good alternatives, one guide for a leader is his or her personal purpose, or the purpose of the organization itself. An organization’s purpose can be defined by answering the simple question, “Why does my organization exist?” Once articulated and communicated, leaders can use a purpose-driven mindset as a North Star to frame paradoxical problems and inspire collaboration around what is most meaningful to everyone involved. Put another way, instead of thinking “outside the box,” it’s imperative to think “above the box.”

Paradoxes may be denied, but they can’t be avoided. Skilled leaders recognize when they are in a paradox and rather than try to solve it, work to manage it with the appropriate mindset and tools. If they don’t, conflict will escalate and people will take sides. Managing paradox requires awareness and agility; it is a constantly evolving process that defies control, consistency, or closure. Because organizations often reward people for puzzle-like “accomplishments,” leaders continually try to exert control, attain consistency, or get closure. In our research, we learned that executives who misread paradoxes as problems fail over the long term. The ability to recognize and manage paradox is an absolute requirement for leading people in today’s environment, when information is readily available and many people understand the options facing the organization as well as or better than the leader.

Just like successful leaders, forward-thinking companies are now recognizing that leadership development is something that is never truly finished. They know it takes time to develop effective leaders who can manage both internal and external complexity, and they recognize that adaptation and agility must be encouraged, practiced, and supported. For example, first-time managers must balance when to act with when to delegate. For mid-level managers, evolving from an achievement-oriented "doer" to a developer of others often requires giving up control and learning new ways to feel successful. For senior executives, managing paradoxes is their primary responsibility, as they work to maintain global standards while allowing local variation, lead growth while managing costs, or focus on the long term while achieving short-term results. Helping executives minimize the swings that can come from these paradoxes goes a long way in creating an agile, but stable, organization.