Why is the practice of leadership difficult?

More than 2,500 years ago, Sun Tsu, in his The Art of War, advised military leaders to "Know the enemy." In WW II, the German general Erwin Rommel did it so well, that he came within an inch of hammering the Allied British forces. On the other side of the enemy lines, the commander of the gun battery on the Dover cliffs knew his enemy too! Every night, during the war, a German boat from the other side of the channel would travel up the straits on a reconnaissance mission. The commander, knowing the Germanic trait of being methodical and disciplined, watched for a pattern to emerge. He soon realized that the boat would come around exactly at 10p.m. He would therefore set up his guns and be ready and waiting, and when it hove  into view - he would just blast it away!

So then, can the knowledge of military history and strategies, along with the study of Sun Tsu's Art of War and other writings on leadership, lead one to becoming a successful leader? Well yes, but only partly. 

The reason? Leadership is  a complex phenomenon.

Being a leader requires heavy lifting!

 But just how complex? Atul Gawande in his book, The Checklist Manifesto, describes 3 levels of complexity;

• At Level 1 are simple problems like baking a cake, you master the recipe, and you are ensured success.
• At Level 2 are complicated problems like sending a rocket to the moon. The special expertise, once learned, becomes replicable.
• At Level 3 are complex problems such as raising a child. Since every child is unique, outcomes are uncertain.

Leadership shares it complexity with parenting. Just as every child is unique, every leadership situation too is unique. And therefore, even though reams and reams have been written, researched and studied about the subject of leadership, its practice continues to create uneven outcomes.

Given the complexities of leading a business , business leaders have found a CEO coach to be a useful help in becoming better leaders. A coach can help leaders unravel the complexities, understand their strengths and weaknesses, and make the knowledge work to their advantage. As one of the business leaders I was coaching remarked," Uday,  after I have started  practicing my coaching commitments, I find my employees have a greater respect for me."

A respect born purely out of understanding and successfully working on his leadership potential.