The Upside-Down Seniority: Why Leaders must learn to learn from the younger generation.
Leaders need to know what they do not know. Effective leaders work hard to cover their gaps and build capabilities.
I recently read a piece by one of my Facebook connections defending why and how a younger friend is her mentor. She explained that mentorship has nothing to do with age. Mentorship is about someone who has something you can learn from and who has made an impact within their own area of influence. I couldn’t agree more. I pinched myself to say ‘remember that’.
Sometimes, we can be a bit reluctant to ask a younger person, a lower-level colleague to teach us or help us. Humility is a hallmark of authentic and courageous leaders.
There was an article in Fortune magazine recently, (June 13, 2023) with a title that sounded more like a plea from one leader to others: “The CEO who manages one of the world’s biggest sovereign wealth funds says ‘force yourself to use A.I. – even if you have to beg an intern to teach you”.
This CEO is Nicolai Tangen. He is the Norges Bank Investment Management CEO. While this piece is not about adopting or using AI (although I think it will be completely suicidal to ignore the AI revolution), it is clearly about the need for learning mindset shifts. It is about redefining your learning sources as a leader.
Nicolai Tangen said that generative AI is a big deal as it may be the technology that will create the most opportunities for business in the next decade by landslide. Therefore, “hailing from an older generation – or just simply being out of touch is no excuse… If you are an older person and you don’t really have experience, get some of the young guys to help you”.
Whether it is about learning how to use generative AI or learning generally, I will say shed your inhibitions, get the knowledge where they exist. You need to upskill and to do that, you may have to be an older student for a much younger teacher.
Active earning is as important for the leader as it is for the organization but more critical for the leader in my opinion. To lead from the core of excellence is to lead with knowledge.
By expanding knowledge and skills through continuous and active learning, leaders are more equipped to adapt quickly and more effectively; to tackle challenges and take advantage of emerging opportunities.
Overall, leaders who prioritize learning are better equipped to navigate the complexities of their roles, inspire their teams, and drive meaningful change within their organizations. Put differently, being a learning prone leader helps you increase impact and influence.
Whether it is how to position yourself for active learning or to learn how you can manage your time to create space for learning, develop learning appetite and skill to create a learning culture in your organization, I can help you. Please leave me a note below to begin the conversation.
