Trump @ Work

Really Huge Lessons on Leadership, Believe Me

Richard Moran

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2020
• ISBN:
  9781000077100
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Workplace Culture
• Index: Business

"Unprecedented" is the adjective most often ascribed to everything about Donald Trump. Trump @ Work is about the unprecedented impact that Donald Trump and his Presidency and style has had on attitudes and perceptions of leadership and management. This book brings a unique perspective about what has changed and what has not changed through humorous and true "bullets" and observations.

Why do some leaders get fired for things that other leaders boast about? In spite of controversy, why do some initiatives still get implemented? Is implementation all that matters? Is empathy and credibility still critical to success? Why aren't there any instruction manuals about how to navigate the new workplace? These are not questions raised by just a few. These are questions everyone in the workplace is asking. Trump @ Work explores these questions and many more. It reveals how the rules of the game have changed for everyone seeking success or at least, to survive. It's hard enough to keep up with leadership and management trends. Donald Trump is making it more difficult, not intentionally, not through the tweets he writes, but by how he is challenging the long existing norms. Who knew that tweeting would become an established way of communicating to an organization? Who knew that in spite of constant searing criticism, one can disregard it and continue to follow an agenda? Who knew that preaching to supporters and ignoring naysayers is a way to manage?

Whether you appreciate Donald Trump or not, he has had an impact on the thinking about leadership and management and the author precisely explores that impact in this book.

1

Credibility – Hitting a Nerve

The one trait that is most often associated with leaders is credibility. All the literature about management effectiveness points right at credibility. When it comes to Donald Trump, credible is not an adjective often connected to him. Yet, he doesn’t apologize, correct, or explain and for that he is both reviled and celebrated. Too bad leaders are not equipped with a Pinocchio nose that could help identify the size of any fibbing. Is it ok to fib to advance a career? Is it ok to fib to advance the organization’s mission? The verdict is mixed but ask anyone, credibility still matters. We want to believe our leaders and not question what is true.

I’d Like to Believe That One…

• Credibility might be all that matters in the long run for a leader to be successful.

When a leader’s credibility is in question, the leader is in trouble. A leader needs to be able to communicate ideas and strategies and solutions without others wondering if the truth is being told or if there is logic behind the thinking. A falsehood will crush credibility right away. A series of lies will allow thoughts of the leader to wander into “unfit” territory. It may be appropriate from time to time to tell a fib for the good of the organization but credibility needs to be restored. Lying is the enemy of credibility. Overcoming a lack of credibility is a high hurdle to clear once credibility is questioned. Better to start with gaining credibility and trust and in so doing, building support.

He/She Is the Only One Who Says What I’ve Been Thinking

• Telling people what they want to hear will ensure supporters but may box you in to a corner from which you may not be able to escape.

We have all heard someone say, “Finally, someone is saying what I have been thinking for years” implying that others never knew what they were thinking. Maybe. Telling it like it is does not mean it’s accurate. Telling it like it is doesn’t make it right. Is it the truth or just playing to a bias? Credibility includes the truth, judgment, the message, and perspective. It does not mean pandering to what people want to hear. And not everyone wants to hear the same thing. Building a message on what people are thinking but has not been declared can work, if it’s the truth. Donald Trump built a campaign on expressing what others are only thinking. It got him elected.

So Were Steve Jobs and Albert Einstein

• “Unprecedented” can be a complement when applied to big actions.

The word “unprecedented” could mean much more than “this is the first time”. It could mean this is the breakthrough that the world has long awaited. It could also mean “WTF!” Leaders need to break molds and kill sacred cows as well as keep adversaries on their heels. Whether it be meeting with “sort of” enemies, visiting forbidden lands, or breaking long-established protocols, Donald Trump is the master of the unprecedented. He has tread where no President has ever gone before and considers those groundbreaking steps to be what a leader does. So do his followers. When change is required, “unprecedented” may be required.

What Tangled Webs We Weave

• Truth does prevail. Any lies, fibs, and other falsehoods may be glossed over in the short term but can come back to haunt you.

Life is easier when you don’t have to try to remember what you said. It is often the case that lying about something that happened will get you in more trouble than the thing you might lie about. (See Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton.) Most of us have the ambition to keep life simple. Telling the truth just makes life easier. More importantly, if you lie, you get caught. The million dollars a year salaried executive who lies on an expense report and is fired will testify to that principle. If you find it hard to sleep when you are worried about what might be found out later, you are living a life that does not feature credibility as a foundation. Any misstatements of Donald Trump are out there, but the world is going so fast that there is no going back for corrections. No haunting yet or maybe ever.

Sticks and Stones Can Break Your Bones

• Responding to critics can be counterproductive and a waste of time. Recognize at some point that the critics may be right.

Critics are always out there. A leader who is not being criticized is not doing much. Regardless of any decision a leader makes, some will not like it. The more controversial the decision, the more the critics will howl. Responding to every criticism is a time suck that is infinite and probably does not appease any critic. Better to pay some attention to the criticism and make changes as necessary but don’t be consumed by critics. Recognize, however, that if the howls last long enough and are loud enough, the critics might be right, and a change is required. Or, like Donald Trump, ignore the critics or get even, there is no middle.

To Tell You the Truth…

• Trusting your team is as important as the expertise of the team.

A leader who is not trusted will fail. A leader who doesn’t trust the rest of his or her team will fail because the important work will not be delegated. Trust should go deep. Trust is not just about lying or stealing or about keeping secrets. Trust too is about competency and letting people do their jobs. Trust is about valuing other people’s opinions. Trust is about doing what you say you will do. Trust is about believing those around you are not secretly keeping notes for a book. Effective leaders surround themselves with people that can be trusted both ethically and from a competency perspective. If the team is only one, yourself, then things are a lot easier. No need to take votes or discuss issues. Donald Trump often operates with that team of one. It may be efficient but opinion is very mixed about how effective that party of one operates.

Where Everybody Knows Your Name

• Remember that the “Person of the Year” has included some bad hombres.

The most famous person in the world is just that, famous. Homer Simpson is famous around the world. So are Korean Boy Bands. Adolph Hitler was Time Magazine Man of the Year in 1938 and infamous. Are they leaders? Most would argue not but they are famous. Donald Trump is the most famous person in the world right now and that means that his dream may be fulfilled but does not mean that his leadership style is embraced or admired. Leaders command attention based on the position held and as a result become a brand. The brand should be used to push a positive agenda. When the leader holds the platform something should be done that will make the place better, whatever that place may be.

Success Has Many Owners

• When the measures that people care about are looking good take credit, even if outstanding performance has nothing to do with you. Sometimes throw in the caveat that maybe others helped or that you inherited the situation.

People care about their own welfare and, to a lesser extent, the welfare of those around them which means they pay attention to the economy in general. People care about and want good news like job growth or improving wages or getting the “bad guy” or diplomatic victories. For a leader, when good things happen, take credit and be unabashedly proud of the accomplishments. Giving some credit to previous leaders will make any leader look generous. Sharing the credit, if possible, is better than to just taking credit. Throwing others under the bus so that you can look good will always lead to trouble ahead. The “others” who went under the bus will find ways, sometimes subtle, so that next time there will be no credit to take. The economy goes up and down. Blaming others for it going down and claiming credit for any uptick is not credible.

The Probation Period Will Be Extended

• Performance reviews happen every day because any leader is so visible. There are no days off.

Leaders don’t get mental health days. Leaders don’t look forward to “snow days”. In fact, leaders don’t and can’t get sick. If the President or a CEO wants to call in sick, who does he or she call? Leaders are always “on” whether it be in an office, on a podium, in an airplane, at a dinner, or on the golf course. Performance is as much a perception as a reality, and the perception of how one performs day to day can change. A hero one week can be the asshole the next week. The sense that the leader is getting things done is the variable that will effect that perception. Donald Trump has polished the perception that he is getting things done. Whether what he is getting done is good or bad is up for debate and in the eye of the beholder.

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